How was the debut in the World Cup of Fernando Rapallini, the Argentine referee who managed the current runner-up Croatia

If a first date umpire ranking of Qatar 2022, which still has a good stretch to complete, no doubt that fernando rapallini he would be well regarded for the rest of the World Cup.

The Argentine referee, accompanied by the linesmen Juan Pablo Bellatti Y Diego Bonfa, put in a good performance in the goalless draw between Croatia Y Morocco who opened group F, the one they share with Belgium and Canada (face each other at 16).

It was his World Cup debut and he had no complications. I can hardly name one Hard tackle by Luka Modric on Achraf Hakimi in the 18th minute of the first half in which the Croatian player could have been booked. It is true that the Real Madrid man first touches the ball, but then strikes his opponent’s ankle with his spikes.

Except for that action, there have been no subsequent plays that have raised any doubts. The Croatians demanded an attacking penalty towards the end of the first half, just as the Moroccans protested a handball inside the box in the second half, but in both cases Rapallini was right to let the match continue.

​Without controversy, they didn’t call him from the VAR and he barely showed a yellow card, correctly taken Sofyan Amrabat for an after-hours crossing on Modric. The linesmen, for their part, didn’t have much work and only once did they correctly raise their flag to mark offside.

How far will Rapallini go?

Although Argentine refereeing is usually the victim of great criticism, and rightly so, due to the blunders that are frequently seen in our football, the recent history of the World Cup marks something else. Without the madness and constant protests with which the sport is experienced in Argentina, the judges can calmly direct and manage to function in another way.

Four years ago, in Russia 2018, Néstor Pitana officiated the final who consecrated France champion against Croatia, while at the World Cup in Brazil, given the good performance of Alejandro Sabella’s team, he only managed to reach the quarter-finals (it was in the 1-0 draw from Germany to France).

While, in Germany 2006 refereed the decisive match Horacio Elizondo. On that occasion, helped by the fourth referee Luis Medina Cantalejos, expelled Zinedine Zidane for the brutal headbutt against Marco Materazzi in the final that crowned Italy on penalties.

Will Rapallini become the third Argentinian to referee the decisive match of the World Cup? Although the hope at these latitudes is not to realize it since this would mean that Scaloni’s men would not arrive at the definition on December 18th, he begins to get credit for continuing to direct in Qatar 2022,

Facundo Tello, the other designated, will debut tomorrow in Switzerland vs. Cameroon, who will meet from 7 in the morning in Argentina for the first round of Group G, which will be completed by Brazil and Serbia at 16:00.