England vs Slovakia ref was hospitalised and left in neck brace after being punched in shocking incident

The referee who will take charge of England's round of 16 clash with Slovakia at Euro 2024 was previously involved in a shocking incident in club football that left him hospitalised.

England take on Slovakia in Gelsenkirchen on Sunday evening after finishing top of Group C, with their opponents coming third in Group E.

The Three Lions will be hoping to prove their doubters wrong when they face the team in 45^th place in FIFA's world rankings, after a disappointing group stage which saw them held to draws by Denmark and Slovenia after beating Serbia in their opening game.

Turkish referee Halil Umut Meler will take charge of the match at Schalke's Arena AufSchalke.

It comes just six months after he was brutally attacked during a domestic match in Turkey, which later became known as the 'night of shame'.

Meler was hospitalised after MKE Ankaragucu president Faruk Koca punched and kicked the official following his side's 1-1 draw with Caykur Rizespor in the Turkish Super Lig.

Rizespor scored a last-gasp equaliser in the bad-tempered match, which also included two red cards.

Koca stormed onto the pitch at full-time before confronting Meler, knocking him down with a punch before kicking him several times on the floor.

Meler was eventually escorted away by riot police, before the country's Football Federation shut down the entire league.

Meler was later pictured in hospital and wearing a neck brace, but was later discharged the following day.

The violent incident sparked outrage in Turkey, with the country's football federation's disciplinary board ordering Ankaragucu to play five home matches behind closed doors while also fining the club 60,000 euros (£50,000).

FIFA president Gianni Infantino slammed the incident claiming it was 'totally unacceptable', while Turkish president Recep Erdogan also condemned the attack.

Meler was attacked in a Turkish Super Lig match earlier this season (Image: Getty)

"Sports means peace and brotherhood. The sport is incompatible with violence. We will never allow violence to take place in Turkish sports," Erdogan posted on X.

Koca initially defended his actions, claiming that the referee had 'thrown himself to the ground'.

But he later apologised, resigning from his role as Ankaragucu president.

Koca said he felt 'great embarrassment' and was stepping down to 'prevent any further harm' to the club.

Meler returned to refereeing duties later in the season and was selected to represent Turkey as an official at Euro 2024.

He has overseen two matches at the tournament so far – Slovakia's 1-0 win over Belgium and Austria's 3-1 victory against Poland, while he also acted as fourth official England's goalless draw with Slovenia.

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