France vs Croatia World Cup Final referee: Nestor Pitana to oversee Moscow showpiece

Nestor Pitana will take charge of the World Cup Final between France and Croatia, having overseen matches involving both teams earlier in the knockout stages.

The 43-year-old Argentine was the man in the middle for France’s 2-0 victory against Uruguay in the quarter-finals, as well as Croatia’s penalty shootout victory over Denmark in the round of 16.

Pitana’s appointment means the same official will have taken charge of both the opening game and the last game of the competition after Pitana was appointed for host nation Russia’s 5-0 victory over Saudi Arabia.

The last time this happened was in 2006 when Horacio Elizondo oversaw the opening game between Germany and Costa Rica as well as Italy’s penalty shootout win over France in the Final.

"Pitana is as strong as a rock," Pierluigi Collina, the head of Fifa's refereeing committee, said at the start of the tournament. "He won't allow himself to be taken in by the players' protests and demands."

According to the statistics on website Transfermarkt, Pitana has refereed 347 professional games, shown 1,658 yellow cards and 108 red cards and awarded 81 penalties since his debut in 2007.

Before making his refereeing debut, Pitana took odd jobs which included a minor acting role as a prison guard in the 1997 Argentine film "La Furia" as well as working as a lifeguard and a security guard at a disco.

Pitana will be assisted by compatriots Hernan Maidana and Juan Belatti, with Italy’s Massimiliano Irrati on VAR.