Antonio Mateu Lahoz will be the referee as Lionel Messi-led Argentina take on Virgil Van Dijk-led Netherlands in the FIFA World Cup 2022 quarter-final clash at the Lusail Stadium on Saturday, December 10. 

The high-profile encounter will be a repeat of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil when Argentina beat the Netherlands in the semi-final to qualify for the final. The Dutch will be looking for revenge against the South American side, bringing an end to Lionel Messi’s final FIFA World Cup run. 

Also read: Argentina vs Netherlands FIFA World Cup 2022: Head-to-head, stats, predicted line ups, formations

As a result, Mateu Lahoz has a huge task at hand on Saturday.

Who is Antonio Mateu Lahoz?

Antonio Mateu Lahoz was born on March 12, 1977 in Algímia d’Alfara, Spain. He has been a referee in La Liga since 2008 and is registered with the Spanish football association. Known for his quirky and chatty refereeing style, Mateu Lahoz has experience officiating UEFA as well as international matches. 

He first got a taste of officiating an international match during the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. However, when the 2014 World Cup finals began, Mateu Lahoz was not part of FIFA’s team of match officials. He returned with FIFA for the 2018 World Cup qualifiers in Europe and also went on to join the refereeing team at the 2018 World Cup finals. 

Also read: What did Lionel Messi, Papu Gomez say on Sergio Aguero’s live stream?

In the Qatar World Cup, Mateu Lahoz has so far been the referee in two games. The first one was the Iran vs USMNT match which USMNT went on to win by a goal. The next one was the meeting between host Qatar and Senegal which ended 3-1 in favour of the African side. 

Mateu Lahoz also famously officiated the 2021 UEFA Champions League final between Chelsea and Manchester City on May 29, 2021.