Lahoz is taking part in his first World Cup, having accumulated ten years of experience refereeing matches in La Liga.

In April, he was labelled a "special guy" - and not by way of compliment, by Manchester City head coach Pep Guardiola, after Lahoz sent the Catalan to the stands and denied City a number of decisions during their UEFA Champions League quarter-final elimination to Liverpool at Etihad Stadium.

"I know him from Spain. He likes to be different," Guardiola said in wake of the defeat. "Whenever people see the things, he will decide the opposite."

Lahoz officiated 20 games in La Liga last season, issuing 113 yellow cards and seven red cards.

His average rate of 5.65 bookings per game was the second highest of the 20 referees used in Spain's top tier.