Saturn are unhappy at the performance of referee Igor Zakharov during last weekend's 2-1 defeat to Luch-Energiya Vladivostok, which saw Luch awarded a controversial penalty and Saturn themselves denied a spot-kick.

In the letter, Saturn general director Boris Zhiganov wrote: "The governor of the Moscow region, our entire team, fans of all ages in the Moscow region and journalists who witnessed this scandal are angered by the actions of Igor Zakharov.

"Such glaringly biased refereeing could be carried out by somebody working to undermine the authority of not only the refereeing body but that of the whole of Russian football."

Russian FA chief Vitaly Mutko responded to Saturn's request for overseas officials by saying that the usual practice of assessing domestic referees' performances will continue.

"Today all the necessary institutes are acting", Mutko said.

"If a referee makes a mistake in a specific game, then his actions will be examined by the expert-refereeing commission and he will be punished."

Mutko also played down talk of a possible strike by Russian referees in protest at the appointment of foreign officials.

Overseas referees are a common sight in Russian football, with officials such as German Markus Merk and Belgian Frank De Bleeckere among those invited to officiate high-profile matches this season.

"There has been no ultimatum from the referees," Mutko added.

"I have spoken with them all and the issue has not been raised."