Cakir to referee Argentina-Holland semi-final
- adamhigginsuk
- Jul 9, 2014
- 2 min read
The man in yellow: Cakir will become the first Turkish official to take charge of a World Cup semi-final (Picture from Zimbio.com)
TURKISH referee Cuneyt Cakir will be the man in the middle for the 2014 World Cup semi-final between Argentina and the Netherlands in Sao Paulo.
The 37-year-old will take charge as the South American side bid to reach their first final since 1986 against the 2010 runners-up on Wednesday at the Arena Corinthians.
He will be assisted by fellow countrymen Bahattin Duran and Tarik Ongun while Swedish duo Jonas Eriksson and Mathias Klasenius will be the fourth and fifth officials respectively.
Elsewhere, host nation Brazil's semi-final against Germany on Tuesday will be overseen by Mexican official Marcos Rodriguez Moreno.
Cakir has already taken charge of Brazil's goalless draw with Mexico and a 1-1 draw between Algeria and Russia in the group stages, flashing nine yellow cards in the process.
The insurance agent, who became a Fifa-listed official in 2006, has previous experience of officiating in semi-finals after handling Spain's penalty shoot-out victory over Portugal at Euro 2012.
He was also assigned to Fulham's second-leg win over Hamburg on their route to the Europa League final in 2010 and Chelsea's second-leg draw with Barcelona in the Champions League two years ago.
The Istanbul-based whistler, the second Turkish World Cup referee after Dogan Babacan in 1974, has also been the fourth official for the Euro 2012 and 2014 Champions League finals.
Cakir notoriously dismissed Manchester United winger Nani against Real Madrid in a Champions League last 16 tie in March 2013 but was named as the fifth best referee in the world last year by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS).
An early Gonzalo Higuain goal saw Argentina narrowly defeated Belgium in the quarter-finals while Holland edged past a stubborn Costa Rica on penalties following a goalless draw in 120 minutes.
Last updated: 9 July 2014 08:24am
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