Wednesday, 4 July 2018

2018 FIFA World Cup - Referee Appointments - Kuipers, Mažić, Ricci and Pitana to officiate Quarterfinals

Thank to ArbitroInternacional we can offer you referee appointments for Quarterfinals. 

Match #57
Nizhny Novgorod, 6 July 2018 16:00 CET
Uruguay - France
Referee: Néstor Pitana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 1: Hernan Maidana (ARG)
Assistant Referee 2: Juan Pablo Belatti (ARG)
Fourth Official: Alireza Faghani (IRN)
Fifth Official: Reza Sokhandan (IRN)
VAR:
AVAR1:
AVAR 2:
AVAR 3:

Match #58
Kazan, 6 July 2018 20:00 CET
Brazil - Belgium 
Referee: Milorad Mažić (SRB)
Assistant Referee 1: Milovan Ristić (SRB)
Assistant Referee 2: Dalibor Đurđević (SRB)
Fourth Official: Jair Marrufo (USA)
Fifth Official: Corey Rockwell (USA)
VAR:
AVAR1:
AVAR 2:
AVAR 3:

Match #60
Samara, 7 July 2018 16:00 CET
Sweden - England
Referee: Björn Kuipers (NED)
Assistant Referee 1: Sander van Roekel (NED)
Assistant Referee 2: Erwin Zeinstra (NED)
Fourth Official: Antonio Mateu Lahoz (ESP)
Fifth Official: Pau Cebrián Devis (ESP)
VAR:
AVAR1:
AVAR 2:
AVAR 3:

Match #59
Sochi, 7 July 2018 20:00 CET
Russia - Croatia
Referee: Sandro Ricci (BRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Emerson de Carvalho (BRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Marcelo van Gasse (BRA)
Fourth Official: Janny Sikazwe (ZAM)
Fifth Official: Jerson Dos Santos (ANG)
VAR:
AVAR1:
AVAR 2:
AVAR 3:  

197 comments:

  1. Pitana on Uruguay : France is wow...

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    1. Names delegated to matches completed ? Only names out right.

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  2. Faghani is the first option for WC final now, as we can guess that Cakir will get a semifinal.
    Maybe Rocchi in the other semifinal?

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    1. Two referees from Europe and two from South America in 1/4. Maybe they are candidates for final? Match for 3rd place or semi final for Faghani? Everything is possible now.

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    2. That would be insane, Kuipers, Pitana, Ricci all performed better than Rocchi. But again he is Italian so very possible.

      My guess is Pitana or Kuipers for the final, Cakir and Faghani for the semis.

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    3. My thoughts precisely! With Kuipers and Pitana to bid farewell to the WC after their respective QF's.

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    4. Rochi a semi final candidate for sure.

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    5. Ricci better than Rocchi?
      Kuipers and Pitana at least have been at the dame level of Rocchi.

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    6. The trend seems clear - Kuipers and Pitana neck to neck for the final. Very difficult to choose between the two. With Argentina out and Netherlands not playing , it is sure that one of the two will surely do the final. The one who misses the final would have got a semi final , surely. If it is Brazil vs France in the semifinal, Kuipers will get this semi and Pitana will get the final. _

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    7. Faghanni will get the other semi final.

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    8. I think this picture says Faghani gets the semi-final. And according to the FIFA candidates success Pitana may get the other semi final. Dutch team even though experienced and got matches Kuipers Absentees througout the year because of the injury. I personally have doubts about. All in all Mazic is having a stable expected performance and Faghani on the other hand is really fit and ready. Kuipers according to the cumulative performance between two world cups gets the Qfinals and Semi Finals. Final would be irrational.

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  3. Strange appointment for Pitana since France beat Argentina in R16...

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    1. No doubting Pitana. Top top ref. Ref committee would have taken that into consideration totally.

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    2. So did Brazil defeated Serbia, and Mazic is appointed to Bra-Bel. Not a problem for impartial referee.

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    3. Sweden defeated Netherlands in the qualifying campaign but still Björn Kuipers for Sweden... Oh my god! :o

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    4. Kuipers and Pitana the top 2 refs with nothing to separate them. Kuipers great appointment. Sweden beating Netherlands won't matter one bit.

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  4. Cakir and Faghani -- semis. Kuipers final. Would a QF and Final be unheard of?

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    1. Not at all, that was in fact the path that Rizzoli took last time around!

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    2. The problem with Kuipers is that URU - FRA QF will be his 2nd appointment at the KO! Usually refs don't get more than two appointments at that stage/KO/.

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  5. Cakir and Faghani semis, Mažić or Kuipers final?

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  6. Difficul to think that a referee could get 5 games, so I would exclude for this reason Pitana and Kuipers from final assignment.

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    1. In that case i really don't understand this appointments. Why not use Cakir for a QF?

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    2. It all depends on the results of the QF. When both Brazil and Uruguay are defeated than the ref for the final can be from any confed. If one of the south american teams will be in the final against a European country it maken sense to look after a ref from a neutral confed.

      Plus the last two wc finals the ref came from Europe. In all situations Faghani would be the best option.

      On the other hand, Faghani is only 40. A semi would be a great experience for the next WC in 2022. This would open up the possibilities, in case of a European final for Kuipers. I think that that is his only chance. After his last match with Brazil involved i don’t think that they will accept him as a ref for the final.

      So options can be:

      Final: Faghani or Kuipers (small chance)
      Semi: Cakir and Ricci (if Brazil is out)otherwise Rochi or Faghani can be there.

      Lasr but not least. With Collina involved in the appointments we can expect surprises and see a ref getting a 5th appointment or a semi and a final. Happend in CL before.

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    3. Ricci got QF so he wont get SF. Cakir and Faghani will get it probably.

      Mazic, Kuipers are candidats for finals.

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    4. You’re right. Than Mazic could get a semi to. I don’t see him in the final. Faghani is clearly number one

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    5. When there is Collina in charge everything is possible... I wonder why Cakir is saved for a direct semi-final and not used in any other round before as he could have got a chance to make a case for the Final!

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    6. To Soham That question is 4 yеars old.

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    7. Which question are you talking about?

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    8. Mean cakir went direct sf after two group stage ( wc 2014)

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  7. 3 times earlier one ref has got assignments in a single World cup , Ravshan Irmatov being the last in 2010.

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    1. I think you forgot a number. 5?

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    2. Benito Archundia also got 5 matches in one year I can remember!

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    3. He sure did. It was at Germany 2006

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  8. 3 times earlier one ref has got assignments in a single World cup , Ravshan Irmatov being the last in 2010.

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  9. Kuipers perfect appointment for England Sweden.

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  10. Cakir and Scomina for semifinals , Kuipers for the final!!!!

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    1. Chance to see Skomina again are 0,00%.

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  11. Well, Pitana is in quater-final, but dont exclude him for the final if he gets bigger grade than Kuipers. Hey, Urugvay is alo big Argentina rival, so we can conclude that if there is the case that Brazil will be in the final, I think that Pitana could be there.

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    1. If Brazil is in the final Pitana will not be there. Zero chance.

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  12. @Chefren, Fidje and others; If Rocchi gets a semifinal; do you think that is based on the performance principle or because of politics?

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  13. If Rocchi gets a semi-final match ahead of Pitana and Kuipers that will be only because Rocchi is an Italian... No way in terms of performance should Rocchi get a Semi-final and honestly I don't think Collina will appoint Rocchi for a SF... I think it will be Cakir and Faghani for the semi-finals and the best performing QF ref in the Final!

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    1. I don't necessarily agree with this... I thought Rocchi did really well in Brazil - Mexico, which was a match which, based upon the teams' reputations, could have become very tough very quickly. But Rocchi was on top of it and had full control and total authority from the first minute, using early yellow cards to set his dominance. It would not surprise me if FIFA rates this performance very highly.

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    3. Would've been acceptable if he got a QF but I don't think he deserves a SF more than Pitana or Kuipers! All just my opinion though!

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    4. And Pitana and Kuipers don’t deserve it more than Rocchi.
      So, please, stop telling that Rocchi gets great matches only because of Collina. He is a great referee, that has always been behind Rizzoli.
      He would have had another career if he had no one before him like Kuipers and Pitana in their countries.
      But, unfortunately, Italy has a mass of great referees and this is sometimes a limit for others.

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    5. I'm not saying Rocchi isn't a good referee... He, of course, is a very good referee... But in my opinion his palmares and experience aren't really comparable with some of the big hitters currently! Just for example, I don't think Rocchi was the beast available name for Portugal v Spain!

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    6. Again, i think you shouldn’t look at palmares, cause in the case of Rocchi, for example, he has always had Rizzoli before him, who stopped his possibilities, that only recenti have been fully exploited... :)

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    7. @SoccerGuy
      So Rocchi did in his match what Geiger failed to do in his?

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    8. Rocchi is absolutely far under many European refs (Kuipers, Cakir, Mazic, Skomina, Brych) in every measurable category! And he is far under Pitana, Ricci, Faghani... So, no way of getting SF. He had Rizzoli above him, but Clattenburg had e.g. Atkinson above, and managed to overcome him (I want to say that Rocchi had enough space to develop himself, but never reach so high, even he is good ref).
      I am here with Soham: Faghani and Cakir ("semifinal man") for semifinal, the best from QF in final, second one for 3rd place.

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    9. Best from QF means Kuipers or Pitana. These 2 have clout, aura, élan to ref a WC final. Everyone else is not at the same level.

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    10. Best performing QF ref in the Final from the referees with 3 games. It is hard (not impossible) to see someone gets 5 games. So this should be the last match for Pitana and Kuipers.

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  14. Brazil v Belgium is a super appointment for Mazic but at the same time I'm a little worried!

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    1. He'll prepare in the best possible way. Hope to be very good performance so he can be candidate for final..

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    2. Because it's his first game ever in KO stage of WC and it's a huge game so there will be some nerves for sure!

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    3. I've never been fully convinced by Mazic either. He's a capable referee but it seems like many rate him in the top echelon of referees, and I've never understood why.

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    4. He should just referee the game as he knows. The problem comes when he wants to avoid cards. That's my opinion.
      I had a very negative perception of KOR - MEX.
      However, definitely better in SEN - JPN.

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    5. SEN - COL you mean :D

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    6. Champions League final referee, and you don't understand why?
      Mmmm, ok.

      I can understand that you don't like him as a referee, don't like his style and fully respect that!
      But to say you don't know why he is so respected in UEFA...
      Well, I don't know

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    7. Breaking news!!!! Mazic Will wear blue kit, according to a Brazilian média outlet.

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  15. All Rocchi’s performances have been evaluated excellent by the commission, i can tell this for sure (even the discussed foul-no foul Costa-Pepe).
    Having Said that, Rocchi’s level was the same (if not superior) of Pitana and Kuipers and FAR BETTER than Cakir.
    If he will get a semifinal, it will be fully deserved and not due to politics.

    Just learn to evaluate performances, please.

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    1. How was he "far better" than Cakir?? I really want to learn!

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    2. Compare prevention, match control, players’ behaviors, cards issued/cards not issued of Cakir with the ones of Rocchi in all their matches: it’s not possible to compare, cause there is an ocean of difference in terms of quality.
      Mascherano’s behavior with Rocchi on the pitch is simply IMPOSSIBLE to see.

      Refereeing is not only about correctly spotting the events like PK, it is above all on how you MANAGE all the aspects of refereeing!

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    3. Cakir is one of the best managers in UEFA, if not the best! I don't even need to compare as their respective palmares speak for themselves who is at which level!

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    4. Palmares don’t count.
      What counts is performances.
      And in this word cup Cakir’s ones are worse.
      That’s it.

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    5. I really don't think Cakir's performances were worse!

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    6. Stop to answer this guy, he is just troll

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    7. Palamres does count and speak for themselves.

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  16. After these appointments i would not exclude even a possibility of Diedhiou in the semis

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    1. I would like to see Malang!

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    2. The UEFA v UEFA semi-final is actually really suitable for Malang's style!

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    3. Possible for 3rd place match!

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  17. Probably we'll see Faghani in the final now. I don't like this after the last 10 dreadful minutes of his match. I think the final should be between Kuipers and Pitana (without them getting now these QF appointments)

    Cakir is probably on his way to another SF, but why give Pitana and Kuipers a fourth match before Cakir gets his third? Maybe he was not accessed as very good in his VAR handling in the last match. After the Brych BS you never know.

    You never know with Collina. It's also possible to see a SF refereed by Pitana and Kuipers, because why not.

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  18. I think that Rocchi appointment for a semifinal would be an acceptable appointment. I didn't like only his first game, Portugal - Spain, but then after that he was at least expected level in the following games. If committee backed him in all the incidents regarding Portugal - Spain, then the rest was OK.
    However, we should not talk before knowing the assignments.

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    1. Yeah that's the thing... We must wait for the appointment before saying anything :D But I think there are candidates who deserve it more than him based on performance as well as experience!

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    2. Experience is not palmares.
      Italian matches are enough to give him experience, believe me.
      And his performances were at the same level of the other better referees of the tournament.

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    3. But you have to compare the palmares to understand their experience and level reached... Cakir has one FIFA Club World Cup final and one Champions League Final... Rocchi has one Super Cup Final only! Sorry but Cakir is at a much higher level than most other UEFA referees in general... If Rocchi is so good, he should've been given the Europa League Final this time but no! Why? Did he need special protection from the Committee before the World Cup? There are many things to ponder on and no analysis is that simple!

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    5. And in that case Collina didn’t count? Where was Collina when UEFA Europa League final referee was appointed? Oh, in that case someone else decided...

      Oh please.

      But, again, Rocchi will be appointed for the SF: words flow away, facts count.

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    6. There are not a lot of facts in your arguments pino;)

      We wil have to wait; after the QF's we know more..

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    7. Yes @pino... He will be appointed because he is an Italian and thus the treatment will be of course preferential because the boss is from the same country... No two ways about it!

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    8. Rocchi can be appointed in SF match, but only as 4th official :-)

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  19. Referee designations FWC 2018 Match 57: #URU🆚#FRA⁠ ⁠(06 July):
    (Quarter finals)

    Referee: Nestor PITANA (ARG)
    ASR 1: Hernan MAIDANA (ARG)
    ASR 2: Juan Pablo Belatti (ARG)
    4th Off. Alireza FAGHANI (IRN)
    Res.Ass. R. SOKHANDAN (IRN

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  20. Faghani is confirmed among the referees kept for last stages, he will appear as FO with Pitana in URU - FRA.

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  21. Rocchi is not one good referee but.........

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  22. All Quarterfinals referees are potencial candidates for the final match for sure. And Faghani and probably Cakir are waiting for another game, but I agree that Rocchi is better than Cakir, so he deserves one more match.

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    1. What about the performances in this tournament? Was Cakir poorer than Rocchi?

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    2. Hard to say, Soham... Rocchi was solid in Portugal-Spain and great in Japan-Senegal and Brazil-Mexico. Cakir was excellent in Morocco-Iran, but just average or at the most good in Nigeria - Argentina, the situation when Argentinian player with blood in his face was chasing by Cakir was at least strange...

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    3. Actually the opinion on Nigeria v Argentina is really diverse I must say... Mark Halsey have his only 10 out of 10 of the WC to Cakir for that game whereas on the other hand some criticised him!

      On Rocchi : Don't you think Rocchi for the QF and Pitana/Kuipers in the SF would have made more sense??

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    4. Please Pino...

      Rocchi is among the ten most valued referees in the world but he had some problems in the Spain-Portugal clash. Based on his palmares and the performances this tournament (his last 2 matches were good - very good), he should have gotten a QF. But in my opinion there are 3/4 referees who deserves a semifinal more; Pitana, Ricci, Kuipers and Cakir.

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    5. @Unknown is just absolutely spot-on... Exactly the point I wanted to make!

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    6. If commitee calculates with Kuipers or Pitana for the final, then not. And I must say Ricci also deserves the final.

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    7. Exactly cakir is a much better referee than Rocchi imo

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    9. Exactly cakir is a much better referee than Rocchi imo

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  23. Why don’t anybody give the name of Lahoz??
    İMO Cakir and Faghani for semi final and Kuipers or Lahoz for final..

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    1. Honestly I can't see Mateu Lahoz directly get the final!

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    2. Neither can I. But neither can I imagine him gone without another match based on this tournament performances. Only if play-off is taken into account and was badly assessed by FIFA, it could be understood.

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  24. Referee designations FWC 2018 Match 58: #BRA🆚#BEL⁠ ⁠⁠(06 July):
    (Quarter finals)

    Referee: Milorad MASIC (SRB)
    ASR 1: Milovan RISTIC (SRB)
    ASR 2: Dali. DJURDJEVIC (SRB)
    4th Off. Jair MARRUFO (USA)
    Res.Ass. Corey ROCKWELL (USA)

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    1. Marrufo as FO in this game whereas Faghani in the other one?? Won't we see Faghani on the pitch anymore??

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    2. Masic? This FIFAMedia deparment is really shocking.

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    3. I would like to see one Dutchman as VAR :)

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    4. But it seems impossible, because of the Kuipers appointment.

      Maybe Geiger?

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    5. VAR for MaSic will be Swayer....

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    6. VAR for Mazic should have been Clement Turpin!

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  25. Excellent appointment also for Marrufo!

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  26. Referee designations FWC 2018 Match 59: #SWE🆚#ENG⁠ ⁠⁠ ⁠(07 July):
    (Quarter finals)

    Referee: Bjorn KUIPERS (NED)
    ASR 1: San. van ROEKEL (NED)
    ASR 2: Erwin ZEINSTRA (NED)
    4th Off. Antonio MATEU (ESP)
    Res.Ass. Pau CEBRIAN (ESP)

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  27. I think Pitana and Kuipers receiving appointments in consecutive rounds is basically a result of some rather expected names being unavailable for the KO stage like Irmatov, Aguilar, Gassama, Brych and Marciniak... These referees were expected to get KO games but they have become unavailable and some other referee has to cover for them! But I'm a bit surprised as more often that not this QF appointment would imply that Kuipers and Pitana won't likely be appointed for the last 3 games but thought these absolutely deserved to be there more than many others!

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  28. Cakir, Lahoz semifinal, final - Faghani (4th off Pitana),3rd pl.Diedhiou (Gassama)

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  29. For sure Diedhiou is now a candidate for another game. Third place final very likely will go again to CAF.

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  30. Referee designations FWC 2018 Match 60: #RUS⁠🆚#CRO (07 July):
    (Quarter finals)

    Referee: Sandro RICCI (BRA)
    ASR 1: E. DE CARVALHO (BRA)
    ASR 2: Mar. VAN GASSE (BRA)
    4th Off. Janny SIKAZWE (ZAM)
    Res.Ass. J. DOS SANTOS (ANG)

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  31. Just a question; are we sure Cakir is still in Russia? No sign of him in all the KO-matches..

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  32. So, two matches featuring teams threatened by suspensions go to Mažić and Ricci. Interesting.

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  34. Let's see the 4th official appointments of this round... Mateu Lahoz, Marrufo, Sikazwe and Faghani... The former 3 are quite sure names for not getting another game IMO! So why Faghani here? Interestingly all the 4th officials appointed during Round of 16 were not candidates for games on pitch any further! I really don't know how to read this 4th official appointment of Faghani!

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    1. In my opinion Faghani had superb performances but maybe he is coming from "the wrong" country, namely Iran to get another appointment.. Unfortunately we can not totally exclude politics for the last appointments..

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    2. It's clear final goes to kuipers if he don't make big mistake ,,and faghani is out now with this appointment

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    4. But I'm surprised... I still think Faghani should get at least a semi-final... But this 4th official appointment is more than strange to me comparing with the other 4th officials appointed!

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    5. I don't think that this 4th official appointment means automatically no chances for Faghani as a main referee. Anyway Marrufo had only one match despite very good performance, so at least he is still in Russia and get 4th official appointment in great match.

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    6. Till now the 4th officials in KO stage : Bascunan, Marrufo, Turpin, Cáceres, Mateu Lahoz, Gassama, Shukralla, Conger in R16... Faghani, Marrufo, Sikazwe and Mateu Lahoz in QF... To be honest, other than Faghani none of the other names seem likely for a game on the pitch... So it's a very weird kind of appointment!

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  35. Perhaps to be appointed on semifanal of the winners of URU-FRA VS BRA-BEL

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  36. Cakir is a sure name for one of the last games. I wouldn't exclude from further possible appointments Diedhiou, Ramos, Mateu Lahoz and of course Rocchi.
    I think all the 1/8 referees having the chance for further games, apart from Geiger.
    And as Cakir haven't been so far surprisingly appointed for any games, that's why it would not surprise me also to see maybe Mateu Lahoz.
    Now I predict Cakir and Lahoz for the semifinals. 3rd place game either Diedhiou or Ramos and final to Faghani/Kuipers/Pitana.

    I don't like those arguements about palmares..if always the same referees get the chances, then nobody else will have palmares. And also I don't like arguments about age. I think if the best performers are between 36-40, then give them the chance.
    I just remember in 2010 how surprising was to see Irmatov and Kassai in the semifinals. But both of them had great tournament and proved in their semis why they received the appointments.

    Anyhow very safe choices for these quaterfinals.

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  38. I think that if the first semifinal is Conmebol-Uefa, then Faghani is the man for that match. Otherwise, I´m pretty sure we will see him in the final.

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  39. So what do you think guys,, possible France- Brasil sf,, according the Media it will be Early final, if realized it will be more interesting game all football lovers,,maybe more interesting than final game,,what is predictions for this game and other possible Croatia England sf

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    1. I have been saying this from the last week, if France v Brazil happens then most definitely that should be refereed by Faghani!

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    2. I agree he is most suitable name for this match,but I can't be sure now,,because he is 4th official with all out names,we will see
      Fra bra faghani
      Cro eng cakir
      Final kuipers

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    3. I'm also surprised that Cakir is not in QF so basically if he gets a SF it will be clear that he was never considered a name for the Final!

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    4. Last day I said if collina thinking cakir for final he will get qf but if he doesn't think, cakir will go directly sf,,so Collina didn't prefer to see him qf performance,,and trust him for sf

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    5. Cakir, Cakir, Cakir... He is very good ref, but he simply doesn't deserve final. It is interesting that on this blog many people remember ref's mistake from 5-6 years ago, and forgot what happened few months ago. E.g. it seems you all forgot Cakir missed clear penalty for Bayern against Real in Madrid in semifinal return leg (handling from Marcelo). His previous year was not his best at all. Also, in EC he was really bad and was first ref to be sent home. And now ooops - final of WC. Yes, he has fantastic palmares, but he doesn't deserve it, it is simple as that. Also, at this WC we have at least 3-4 refs that performed better than him. So, semifinal is the most he can reach (personally, I would give him QF and am surprised not to see his name).

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    6. I agree, Teo, nothing against Cakir, but he is not the best choice for final on this championship...

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  40. DFB has confirmed that Brych and Borsch are sent home, while Zwayer, Dankert and Borsch remain in Russia.

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    1. You mean Lupp is sent home?

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    2. So it seems sure now to me that Zwayer reported something but Brych didn't want to review the incident. It is also particular to see that Brych and an assistant referee have to go, while the other one will remain there due to VAR.
      However, I don't know whether referees are really forced to leave when they got the official announcement by FIFA, from my point of view, I would stay always until the end... even more if an assistant referee from my trio is still there.

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    3. Sorry, yes, Lupp is sent home, Borsch stays in Russia.

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    4. Mark Borsch is now very experienced with the offside VAR duties like Carlos Astroza!

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  41. I think Collina has already prepared Kuipers for the final of the WC.
    For example, it was interesting to designate him to officiate EL final for the 2nd time.

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  42. Worse choices again. First of all Pitana refereeing Uruguay, specially when they will losing will be tense. Need more discipline referee. And Mazic will be other Geiger. This match needs anyone with more experience: Cakir would be The correct choice, but Fifa has more attention for politics, puts the serbian for referee The most difficult match so far. Lets see

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    1. Everybody was guessing cakir even who don't like cakir:) interesting choise we will see,,

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    2. By comparing Mazic and Geiger you shoved us your knowledge about refereeing. Mazic's appointment in this match and in CL final this year speak for themselves.

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    3. @Teo Are you Collina? Who says you have knowledge? More respect for others' opinions does well.

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    4. @FabGX: I didn't understand this: "Fifa has more attention for politics, puts the serbian for referee" - From when Serbian association has any important influence in FIFA? What kind of politics you have in mind here?

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  43. For my feeling, it would make more sense to appoint Marrufo with Kuipers and Mateu with Pitana. In that way, both Comnebol and Uefa are represented. Same counts for Mazic: why not Cunha there as 4th official?

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  44. Croatia-England goes to Mateu Lahoz.

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  45. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  46. England-Croatia too difficult for Matéu,

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    1. nooooo!!!! Alberto, are you spanish?

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    2. like "italy-sweden" play off game..

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  47. First of all, great to see Alberto back :).
    I wanted to write a comment on "breaking conf neutrality rule" - in last years it was only broken in fovour of UEFA - UEFA's referees for UEFA's teams against teams from other confederations. And today boom: Pitana for Uruguay, ...
    Just as it was when he became boss in UEFA - Collina always introduce something new :)

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  48. Faghani is the ideal candidate for the final,he has been expecitional.

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    1. I agree but I may be biased towards towards AFC referees. :)

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  49. Imo Collina and Busacca took a very big risk by appointing Kuipers and Pitana to their fourth games. In case of failure on these matches, it will leave Faghani, Cakir and Rocchi for sf and final games.
    If there is no problem for these two referees, then my prediction is, Faghani and Cakir for semis and Kuipers for final.

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  50. I will write more about this topic when WC will be over, however, so far let me say that committee has surelt considered as very important element of the assessment of every performance, how the referees have dealt with VAR. I mean: the acceptance of being corrected by technology, but at the same time the decision making on the pitch, as it was nefore VAR: a paramount example of such excellent management has been in my opinion Kuipers in BRA - CRC.
    He has whistled a very soft (we can maybe directly say "wrong") penalty to Brazil, but then he has found the "courage" of rewatching the incident and annulling his call. That's not trivial if you ask me. I was convinced that all referees at this tournament were ready to use the technology and very happy of having such important support. But for some referees very likely this wasn't the best thing to do, and they confirmed their (very likely wrong) decisions, taken on the pitch. So, this was a very negative point for me, under the eyes of committee. At the same time, I really don't understand why a referee at top level should act in this way. We had also Pitana using VAR, as well as Mazic, so the mistakes on the pitch by themselves, were not a negative sentence for referees.
    So, a referee at this world cup had to officiate like it was before VAR, but at the same time he had to be humble. Kuipers (and all the others who were willing to use VAR) has been successful in that, while other ones have failed. But believe me, it was very difficult to fail. We should be honest: with a VAR review in Serbia - Switzerland very likely Brych would have taken the correct decision and his WC would have continued. Sometimes, the fear of admitting a mistake, can lead to something worse.
    It is a more than interesting topic and I want to promise that I will write more about that.

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    1. This entry alone makes the whole blog worth reading. Congrats, Chefren!

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    2. I'm an American with no experience in evaluating soccer referees, but I do know a little about how officials are evaluated in American football. Although the sports are nothing alike, I'm noticing some parallels in the philosophies of the people in charge of the referees.
      Chefren, you've definitely done a great analysis of the situation. Knowing what I know of Pierluigi Collina and his reputation, I think a lot was made clear at that referee committee press conference after the group stage. Two observations: 1. The willingness to review a decision by VAR is key to the philosophy of the committee. If that were not true, Felix Brych would have stayed longer as I know he is otherwise one of the top referees in the game. 2. With Collina as chairman, I think internal politics AND international politics have nothing to do with assignments. Collina has such integrity, I think, that the only thing that matters in assignments is performance. How did I do?

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    3. Great comment post by Chefren. I have been following this blog for the last 6 months to learn the academic language of refereeing. I hated the biased polls and comments but when I read Chefren's posts and his moderating behaviour it gives me chills please chefren track the comments and identify the so called lobbyist and flagwavers of some of the referees misleading the defacto information. I believe this blog is more than that.

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  51. Faghani and Cunha(Rocchi) semis
    Malang 3rd place and Cakir final
    Cakir is saved for final
    Remember how Mazic was saved for CL final this year.

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    1. I wouldn't be surprised to see that, but it will not be fair to the referees like Kuipers and Pitana who performed very well on all their matches.

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  52. My prediction is Faghani and Çakir for SF and Kuipers for final. As for BRA-CRC, no one in Brazil thinks the Neymar incident was a PK anyway. We have fond memories of Kuipers from Confederations Cup final in 2013.

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  53. IF Çakir gets a SF, will he be the first referee to officiate 2 WC semifinals?

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    1. Actually it looks like Cakir would be the second in history. Sandy Griffiths from Wales did a SF in both 1954 and 1958.

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  54. OT: Anyone be interested in an overview what were the reasons for bookings (fouls, dissent, handball etc.) during the WC so far?

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  55. Iam Iranian but i say it with impartial mind : faghani had no VAR in 3 matches before and had 6 crucial decisions in that matches and was quicker than Germans defending players , why not take a role in final match?

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    1. He is a good ref. But others are as good as Alireza but have more aura, charisma, these intangibles.

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  56. You’re all Wrong!

    SF1 : Joel Quinou
    SF2 : Arturo Brizio Carter, until minute 14 when he sends himself of and gets replaced by fourth official Anders Frisk

    Third place : someone no one heard about

    Final : VAR itself

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    1. I know todt all that you said, you said jokingly. But those 3 referees you named world raise the quality of officiating at this World Cup substantially.

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    2. I agree! Quinou in my opinion the best referee ever, brizio because of his currage, andr frisk because of all the time i have been he’s AR :)

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  57. For me Mazic and Kuipers are the main candidates for final. You speak about Faghani, he missed 2 RC in game Fra-Arg for Otamendi direct RC, and second YC for Banega. Mazic and Kuipers are in top form, and if they have good performance in their next games, one of them will get the Final match.

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    1. I have seen their better off days. Remember Kuipers efficient and well controlled games. Besides as far as I know there is a strong opposition against Kuipers from the strongest candidate federations for the final. This is more than a rumour by the way.

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    2. Both of them didn't have crucial mistakes in their games. They used VAR as it should to be used. No one talks about them in neagtive way about their performance in WC, except us who can discuss here because we are referees. We can't comment someone's style or tactic, someone's like but someone's dislike.

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    3. @Artificial Are you talking about opposition from Brazil? If yes, that was just a speculative discussion we were having here!

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  58. I am surprised that nobody mentions Sandro Ricci like a potential referee for the final. I think all QF referees have big chance + Faghani, Cakir or Rocchi are possible options too.

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    1. If Brazil gets to SF Ricci will be out.

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  59. I think after 5 games Kuipers is off the final table but I expect a surprise from Collina for QFinal and Sfinal for Kuipers and direct final for Cakir. As you say above in Collina's reign everything is possible and He is lucky to have Cakir Faghani Mazic and Kuipers. This is a golden generation for UEFA and Fifa. and What I personally think is after his performance in WC 2014 and Champions League Final Cakir should be awarded for the well deserved final.

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    1. Nestor Pitana, Björn Kuipers can come up with the same argument as well!

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  60. Come on wait for the Quarter finals end. I wouldn't risk Cakir for these four games. And believe me he is one of the best candidates for the final not because he deserves it after 2014 and CL final he is the only referee who has the enough people skills to soothe and cool down the players harsh attitudes. This world cup is one of the furious ones I have ever wacthed live. Remember ENG COL, FRA ARG and the other games all the tension was so high. Italian and Turkish referees are used to this tension even Collina probably satying to himself. You probably familiar with his book about the Italian amatuer level games. Think about a France BRA or ENG for the finals these players will eat up the referee alive. Check Cakir's gestures and how easily he fends off the players without any sanctions. As a strong follower of Elleray, Ulenberg, Collina and Webb's educational materials I would say final appointment is to be Cakir all the other alternatives other than Cakir of Faghani would be risky. But I think Faghani needs more time cause refereeing has a moral code of experience and seniority and precedence.

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    1. Pitana and Ricci doesn't have experience in dealing with tough players? CONMEBOL guys basically whistle the most heated games on a regular basis!

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  61. I agree with you with the CONMEBOL but when it comes to the soft leagues such as netherlands, belgium and their equivalences you should draw a line there well put Soham

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    1. But still you see Kuipers being one of the most accepted referees on the pitch... Of course league isn't everything but it does help, the personality of the referees also matter a lot... I don't rate anyone higher than Kuipers and Pitana in this tournament!

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  62. Ther’e will not be an UEFA-ref in the final this year. Not a chanse. To much politics ’bout that! Asia, north america or africa is most likely to get the final. My guess is Malang Diedhiou,

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    1. I would like to see Alireza Faghani in that case... Nestor Pitana would be great too!

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    2. Faghani as 4th game is more possible. Pitana will have his game #4 tomorrow. .

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    3. Than UEFA referee will have the game for 4th place.

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