Antonio Mateu Lahoz has made headlines for his bizarre display at the World Cup last night, which has led many to ask what the Spanish referee did to Rangers.
A number of people have been searching for the 45-year-old’s name as well as Rangers, after the Spaniard brandished 18 yellow cards in Argentina’s Quarter-Final win over the Netherlands, a World Cup record.
So, what did Lahoz do to Rangers? Let’s take a look…
What did Antonio Mateu Lahoz do to Rangers?
Well, Lahoz made one of the worst decisions in Europa League history last season as Rangers were held to a 2-2 draw against Borussia Dortmund in the Round of 32 clash at Ibrox.
Two goals from James Tavernier, as well as strikes from Jude Bellingham and Donyell Malen, had the score nicely poised when Ryan Kent thought he put Rangers 3-2 up in the 67th minute, following some excellent work from Alfredo Morelos.
However, Lahoz adjudged the Colombia international to have fouled Emre Can when robbing him of possession before squaring for Kent to tap home, and disallowed the strike after looking at the VAR monitor.
You can see the incident below.
It was a widely criticised decision, as footage shows it was actually Can who kicked the leg of Morelos when trying to play the ball out from the back.
Fortunately for Rangers, who have a friendly against Bayer Leverkusen today, they were already 6-4 up on aggregate following an outstanding 4-2 win at the Signal Iduna Park.
Nevertheless, the Ibrox faithful clearly remember the Spaniard well, as thousands have taken to the internet to search him up following his chaotic refereeing display in Qatar last night.
Referee profile
Name: Antonio Mateu Lahoz
Age: 45
Date of birth: 12th March 1977
Nationality: Spain
Place of birth: Algímia d’Alfara, Valencia
Antonio Mateu Lahoz card stats
Lahoz has now made a name for himself as a card-happy referee after the frantic affair between Argentina and the Netherlands.
In his three appearances at the World Cup so far, the Spaniard has brandished a total of 23 yellow cards, averaging 7.67 bookings per game as WhoScored shows – he must love filling out the paperwork after each match.
Lahoz is yet to give out a red card in Qatar, although he has awarded 30.33 fouls per game, which is not what we want to see – it was striking how little last night’s Quarter-Final flowed between Lionel Scaloni and Louis van Gaal’s sides.
However, in domestic action, Lahoz has actually acted quite normally, giving out 27 yellow cards in seven La Liga outings this season – an average of just 3.86.
By the looks of it, Lahoz is trying to grab the headlines for himself in Qatar, and in all honesty, we hope he doesn’t officiate another game at the World Cup.
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