On October 26, 2022,
Néstor Pitana
directed his last match, it was in the
1-1 draw between Lanús and Platense
at the
Fortaleza
del
Granate
.
Today, more than a year after his retirement,
he was presented to the Ecuadorian Football Federation (FEF)
to assume the position of
President of the National Arbitration Commission of Ecuador
(CNA).
The Argentine
will be directly responsible for everything related to local arbitration
, from the designation of the shortlists of the
Ecuadorian Pro League
, to the general development of the new referee generations.
The 48-
year-old
missionary stated that he accepted this challenge because he still maintains his passion for refereeing.
"I am passionate about refereeing and from that passion I come to contribute my knowledge to the FEF's proposal so that Ecuadorian referees, with the great potential they possess, have the courage, passion and freedom to act.
"
The former referee will replace local
Rogger Zambrano
, who would have resigned due to
debts that the Federation had
with the referees' union.
However, the president of the Federation,
Francisco Egas
, thanked
Zambrano for everything he contributed to Ecuadorian football
as a referee and as a manager.
Pitana
said that they are going to abide by what
FIFA
and
CONMEBOL
tell them and for that it is necessary to have referees who feel the game:
"We will follow the guidelines that FIFA and Conmebol give us. I think that here we have potential, we have great referees, it is "It is necessary to believe, project and feel football, so we will need referees who feel football, who play in every play
. "
He also
added that his intention is that those who go to the stadiums can also enjoy what a referee
who is at the service of the game lives and feels
"even if the devil has his tail because the referee does everything with commitment and conviction." to do things well
. "
Pitana and his new facet as a manager in Ecuador.
Photo: EFE / José Jácome.
The international referee
said that his idea is that the judges can feel free and that they can make free decisions on the court
"because they are owners of their decisions"
and he promised that
they will give them all the possible tools
.
He also proposed that they are going to
work with the youth team
and that they will go look for new referees:
"We are also going to work with the youth team, we will go to all places in search of new talents, because that will undoubtedly be something that is among my priorities." , just as it also happens with football"
and asked that the managers accompany him and be patient with him because
it will give results
.
Egas
stated that he was
convinced of the historic decision
to elect
Pitana
as president and that it will greatly benefit the refereeing body due to his great career.
"The ability and honesty, with an impeccable career that Néstor Pitana led as referee, is his best letter of introduction
. "
The president of the referees' union,
Luis Muentes
, also spoke at the conference , who expressed that they have been waiting for someone like Pitana for a long time.
"Today marks a milestone for Ecuadorian refereeing. The challenge is very great, but the satisfaction in the end will be greater
. "
Néstor Pitana will be president of the National Arbitration Commission of Ecuador.
Photo: AFP
Pitana
debuted in 2006 for the
Primera B Nacional Apertura Tournament
.
That match pitted
Huracán
and
Aldosivi
in
Parque Patricios
and was a 2-1 victory for
Globo.
Pitana
got two yellow cards
.
Through AFA tournaments
he directed 424 games
.
Since 2010 he has been
an international referee
, the most important match of his career: in 2018, the
World Cup final in Russia
between France and Croatia.