'Don't hear the French about this stage': Polish referee who whistled sarcasm at World Cup final with smartphone photo credited to French media

world Cup of footballThe dust has not settled after the World Cup final. The French newspaper L’Equipe reported at the beginning of this week that Lionel Messi’s 3-2 should be dismissed and made mincemeat for referee Simone Marciniak. Marchiniak himself is now back in the fanfare in his native Poland. He defended himself and even pulled out his smartphone to bring back the mockery of the French media.

look. Argentine Anarchist Party in Buenos Aires

Messi seemed to give Argentina certainty of the world title in the second overtime. Lautaro Martínez was first stopped by French goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, but Messi was there like a chicken to push the skin over the line. Jules Condé’s rescue came too late.

Lucille exploded and the Argentine reserves rushed onto the field en masse. Some not so early, as can be seen from the photos (see above). Even before Messi’s kick crossed the line, some Argentine substitute players were already on the field.

Was it necessary to cancel 3-2 Messi? © AFP / Reuters

And this is why referee Simone Marsignac should have disallowed the goal,” French sports newspaper L’Equipe wrote earlier this week. “At the time of Messi’s kick, some of the Argentine substitutes, overcome with emotion, were already celebrating on the pitch. This is not allowed.” L’Equipe barely gave Marciniak 2/10 to take control of the race.

However, it must be said: the French themselves were not freed from sin either in the final. Pictures circulated on social media of Randall Kolo Mwani’s chance to decide the final before the penalty shootout. Video filmed from the stands shows how many Frenchmen were already on the field when the striker kicked. The same story with Mbappe’s penalty goal in extra time – and those shots were seen by referee Marciniak.

When asked about France’s criticism at a press moment in Poland, Marciniak added the photos himself. Marciniak even pulled his smartphone out of his pocket and backed up his explanation with screenshots. “The French didn’t say anything about these pictures, as you can see that there were 7 Frenchmen on the field before Mbappe scored,” said Marsignac, who denounced the criticism in L’Equipe. “The game has never been affected by it. How much influence have the players taken on the field? He is looking for small things. It’s not serious business.”

On Kolo Muani's chance, several Frenchmen were already on the field. — On Kolo Muani’s chance, several Frenchmen were already on the field. © Tik Tok

Marciniak then admitted that he had just received a lot of compliments from the French players for the way he led the final. “The French thanked me after the match and were satisfied with our performance. Everyone approached us and shook our hands. I chatted a bit with Hugo Lloris and Olivier Giroud. Kylian Mbappe even hugged me.”

Pierluigi Collina, FIFA’s chief referee, also did not spare praise for Marchignac. He said Marciniak was “better than technology” and that “all his decisions were correct and accurate”.

Home referee Tim Potts for Argentina 3-2:

Our home referee Tim Potts also looked at Argentina with a score of 3-2. According to him, the referee did not miss the ball in this situation, and his instinctive feeling followed. “This is a case of theory versus practice. No team may enter with more than 11 players. If, after the goal, the referee determines that the team already had 12 on the field at the time, the goal must be disallowed before the new kick-off, otherwise the goal will be counted as Final.Only in this case you can’t say that Argentina actually have more than 11 players on the field… Then you also have to stop the game every time one of the warm-up players touches the sideline with one foot. According to the literal rules, you also have to stop the game when A second ball enters the field, but in practice this only happens if it affects the game.