The performance of Uzbek FIFA referee Ilgiz Tantashev, who officiated the France vs. Paraguay (1:0) match in the Round of 16 of the World Cup, was criticized by a number of foreign publications and football experts.
France's L'Equipe and the Archivo VAR analysis portal rated the work of the refereeing team as 1 out of 10 points. According to the publications, the referee lost control of the game and failed to make the right decisions in a number of controversial situations.
Critics noted that Ilgiz Tantashev did not adequately punish a series of rough fouls by Paraguayan players and did not issue cards for fouls against Kylian Mbappé and other French players. Additionally, the penalty awarded in favor of France was only given after VAR intervention.
It was noted that for the first time since the 1998 World Cup, the Paraguay national team finished a World Cup match without a single yellow card. During the match, Paraguayans committed 13 fouls, while the French committed 10. However, all yellow cards were shown to French players.
Several controversial situations were also observed during the match. According to some experts, Paraguayan midfielder Matías Galarza Fonda escaped a second warning twice. There were also two mass confrontations between players on the field.
German refereeing expert Patrick Ittrich described Ilgiz Tantashev's work as "catastrophic," while former footballer Eduard Mor noted that the referee "lost the thread of the game."
