Carlos del Cerro Grande was the Spanish referee designated for the great showdown on Tuesday night between France and Germany, which ended in a 1-0 victory for Les Bleus at the Allianz Arena.
He showed just one yellow card in the entire match - to Joshua Kimmich for a tackle on Lucas Hernandez - and that led to some criticism from the French press.
"An uninspired referee," the headline read in L'Equipe. Despite the fact that the two goals ruled out were both offside, the press also complained about the tackle on Kylian Mbappe, when the forward had only Manuel Neuer to beat. Mats Hummels made the challenge from behind which would have led to a red card, but the referee deemed it to be a fair tackle.
Mbappe protested angrily and so did Paul Pogba after a separate incident involving an altercation with Antonio Rudiger, who in some images gives the impression he is trying to bite the Frenchman from behind.
L'Equipe also discussed the collision between Robin Gosens and Benjamin Pavard in the 59th minute, which left Pavard requiring treatment for several minutes.
The newspaper Le Parisien also criticised Del Cerro Grande. "If France did not win, the debate would undoubtably have gone to arbitration," they said.
The French media believe that the referee was too permissive with the German aggressiveness.
"It is not about exchanging sympathies and playing beautifully. They are very strong offensively, we know that. We have to be prepared for one-on-one situations. With French players you have to send messages. I have always played like this, like a warrior," said Rudiger three days before the game.