FIFA has made a decision on the future of Spanish referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz after his amazing performance as Argentina beat the Netherlands on penalties.
Referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz will no longer oversee World Cup matches after feeling the wrath of Argentine star Lionel Messi.
The Spaniard was in charge of the South American Cup quarterfinal matchup with the Netherlands last week. Despite Argentina being victorious on penalties, there were big complaints sent to the referee.
In what was a bad-tempered clash, Lahoz issued an eye-watering 17 yellow cards and Dutch defender Denzel Dumfries also received his marching orders despite the game already having ended. Meanwhile, the hero of the two goals, Wout Weghorst, also received a booking before even taking the field.
Messi, author of Argentina‘s second goal in the match, aired his complaints about the referee’s performance. He told TyC Sports: “This match should not have ended the way it ended.
“I don’t want to talk about the referee because they sanction you. But people saw what happened. We were scared before the game because we knew how he was and I think FIFA has to review this. You can’t put a referee.” like him for these games”.
Meanwhile, Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez mercilessly criticized Lahoz for his performance. He said: “The referee gave them [the Netherlands] everything. Everything turned upside down.
He gave 10 minutes of overtime for no reason. He just wanted them to score. That referee is crazy. Arrogant. You tell him something and he answers you. He is crazy.
“Because Spain was eliminated, they wanted to eliminate us. He is the worst referee in the World Cup. I hope we don’t have him again, he is useless ”.
Now, it has been revealed that Lahoz’s display has spelled the end of his World Cup campaign. The 45-year-old will not oversee any more matches at the tournament and he is expected to return home to Spain.
Lahoz is not the only referee who has been questioned about his performances in the World Cup in the last month. Brazilian referee Wilton Sampaio came under heavy criticism for his performance during England’s quarter-final loss to France.
Numerous members of the Three Lions squad criticized it during their post-match interviews, with former Manchester United defender Gary Neville calling it an “absolute joke”.
Speaking to ITV, he said: “The referee had a nightmare game, an absolute joke from a referee. I’m not saying it’s all down to England’s defeat because that’s making excuses. He was just a bad referee, poorly ranked”.