Antonio Mateu Lahoz and Carlos del Cerro Grande will stop refereeing in the First Division next season. This has been communicated to Luis Medina Cantalejo, president of the Technical Committee of Referees, who has unilaterally decided to do without both for the next course, giving them the possibility of becoming VAR referees, something that Mateu Lahoz and Del Cerro would not see with good eyes In Spain, the age limit for a referee to be active was 45 years, but with the arrival of the former president of the CTA, Manuel Velasco Carballo, that limitation disappeared. Therefore, that decision to renew them was at the discretion of the current CTA chaired by Medina Cantalejo, who has chosen not to continue.
The collegiate veterans, aged 46 and 47 respectively, thus put an end to a 15-year career as referees in the First Division, although it remains to be seen if they will continue whistling in other competitions. In fact, the Valencian referee has recently had experiences abroad, refereeing the Arabian Super Cup or the Greek Super Cup. Mateu Lahoz is undoubtedly the most popular referee in Spanish football due to his way of directing matches, with his philosophy of allowing players to play by flag and for that characteristic love-hate relationship with footballers and coaches.
Some protagonists like José Mourinho considered him the best. However, he had his ups and downs with footballers like Leo Messi, with whom he also had a scuffle in the quarterfinals of the last World Cup in Qatar between the Netherlands and Argentina. “We were scared before the game, because we knew what it was and I think FIFA has to review that, they can’t put a referee like that in these instances of the game. For a game of such a similarity, it is so important that the referee is not up to the task,” the Argentine confessed after a game in which Mateu added 10 minutes and whistled a controversial foul that led the match to a penalty shootout.
In addition to being media, the Valencian referee is, with 282 games, the third referee with the most games called in the First Division, only behind Iturralde González (291) and Undiano Mallenco (348). He will also have an enviable international resume. International since 2011, Mateu is the referee with the second most matches he has directed in the history of the World Cups, with a total of five, only surpassed by Juan Gardeazabal with seven World Cup matches. Also to his credit are the 2016 Rio Olympics, Euro 2021 and the 2021 Champions League final between Chelsea and Manchester City.
For his part, Del Cerro, less reluctant than Mateu to continue as a VAR referee, also has a successful career. 231 matches directed in First Division and as many international appointments to his credit. In addition, he won the Golden Whistle in 2010 and the Vicente Acebedo trophy in 2016. This decision by Medina Cantalejo to do without both is a bombshell for Spanish arbitration, and could be motivated by the discredit it has suffered after the outbreak of the ‘ Negreira case’ and the controversial decisions on the pitch for which many clubs have formally complained to the competent bodies.
2023-04-25 10:33:01
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