World Cup final referee Pitana yet to use VAR

Pitana will be whistling the World Cup final, with Spanish speakers enjoying the fact that the verb to whistle is ‘Pitar’, making this a case of near nominative determinism, the theory that people tend to gravitate to work that fits their names. Above and beyond his name, Pitana has had a great World Cup. He’s been consistent in his decision making, controlling tense situations on the pitch, and in general reading games to perfection.

World Cup final referee Pitana also took charge of the opening game

He also goes down in the record books as the second referee to take charge of the opening game and the final at the World Cup, after his fellow countryman Horacio Elizondo did so in 2006. In total the Argentinean has whistled five matches in total, and is one of 15 referees out of the total pool of 28 who haven’t used the VAR at the tournament.

Like the other referees at the World Cup, he’s aimed for a preventative refereeing style, keeping his cards guarded until late on. Something we say is easier to do in a short tournament than in a league campaign.

The World Cup has been a fairly European affair in the later stages, but with South American referees taking charge of many of the big games. The European referees once again fell by the wayside, failing to meet our expectations - I hope that, with the new committee, it’s possible to effectively lobby, which is so important in the allocation of the officials.

In conclusion, I hope that Pitana continues without using the VAR and is as inspired in the final as he has been so far - meaning I hope that today we only talk about the football and not controversies.