German referee Daniel Siebert had to endure some awkward moments after the World Cup match between Ghana and Uruguay. Because a large part of the Uruguay squad pressed the referee.

After a good quarter of an hour after a goalkeeper foul on Ghana's Kudus, he initially wrongly decided offside and had to be asked by the video referee to watch the scene again. Siebert then decided to take a penalty – which Uruguay's goalkeeper Rochet was able to fend off.

In other respects too, Siebert didn't seem very confident in directing the emotional and intense game. At the end of the first half, Siebert Uruguay denied a possible penalty kick and also a crystal-clear one after a good hour, although the video assistant had asked him to study the video images again after Daniel Amartey had clearly fouled Darwin Núñez.

Soon to be 36, Suárez was substituted after 65 minutes to great cheers from Uruguay's fans. But upon learning of South Korea's winner, the Uruguay superstar collapsed on the bench in shock and buried his face under his shirt.

After the final whistle, the Uruguayans vented their frustration on Siebert. He drew yellow cards against Edinson Cavani and José Maria Gimenez for complaining before he – pursued by a whole entourage of players and officials from Uruguay – was able to save himself in the dressing room.

At his World Cup premiere, however, Siebert had shown a sovereign performance. In Australia's 1-0 (1-0) win over Tunisia on Saturday, the 38-year-old from Berlin had no problems directing the intense encounter. "A strong game from the entire team of referees," praised his Bundesliga colleague Patrick Ittrich on Magenta TV. Due to minor fouls, Siebert had to moderate numerous short interruptions, but it never got really complicated for him. He is the only German referee to be used on the pitch at the tournament in Qatar.