The derby passed peacefully like a spring afternoon in a Valencian orchard where it is only possible to pick oranges and suddenly Mateu Lahoz, from the Valencian school, began to squeeze cards. But in a mechanical and noisy way. Like a possessed The hand took vitamins and as soon as it started, like it couldn’t stop. There was a particularly frantic margin, from six minutes, in which he had time to draw seven yellow cards and two red cards. “For protesting one of my decisions”, was the tagline he used the most when drafting the arbitration act.
In general, Mateu Lahoz is accused of a supposed desire to become the groom at the wedding, the baby at the baptism and the dead at the funeral. And he certainly got to set himself up protagonist in the final stretch of the match and in the subsequent treatment given to it by the media and derby fans. It is not a situation that comes to him again. His particular style of refereeing has always given us something to talk about, especially for being talkative with the players during the match dispute, by calling them the first name, call them by name. Eccentricities of a collegiate type, it was always thought. A style with followers, like Xavi Hernández himself, who presciently said before the game that he liked Mateu because of what he lets people talk about. On the other hand, in view of the record, He couldn’t stand being spoken to on Saturday. If she didn’t lose it, she seemed a lot.
Showed a total of 16 yellows (including Xavi) and two reds for double reprimands, record in a Spanish League game. But it is that Mateu Lahoz had already established a identical record in the Qatar World Cup. In the heart-pounding match between Argentina and the Netherlands, the Spanish referee unhinged each other with 17 yellow cards and one red card (the result of a double warning). Such frenzy had never been seen in a World Cup match. Leo Messi charged hard against him, as will be remembered. “You can’t put a referee who isn’t up to it. We were very scared before the game because we knew what it was like,” he stormed furiously, ignoring that that day he hurt the Dutch above all, despite the fact that the Argentines were the ones who most angrily they protested.
Frenkie de Jong has suffered it, then, in his last two games. He could have been very harsh. He wasn’t. “I think he lost the course of the game“, the midfielder limited himself to saying in an act of containment that must be valued. He was one of the few who did not receive a card.
praise and blame
The person who was pleased with the refereeing at the Camp Nou was Diego Martínez, Espanyol coach: “He is one of the best referees in the world.“, he stated after the tie. Exactly what Xavi came to say before the initial whistle. Then he said that he thought the contest had gotten out of hand. “It doesn’t usually happen“He said halfway between praise and reproach.
Mateu Lahoz, 45, has been giving interviews here and there and a few years ago he was asked in the newspaper Las Provincias about this assumption desire for prominence on the pitch. In this particular one, he was surprised and passionate. “I don’t have any leading role. I’m in love with football, I live it in the first person. I can smell it, hear it, feel it. I’m not going to change anything about how I live my profession,” he asserted. Nobody disputes this passion, but at the same time it is very difficult not to think of him as future contestant on a show realityisland version or kitchen version.
