The referee for England's World Cup qualifier against Hungary in Budapest has been revealed, and England fans will be familiar with him. The Turkish official has refereed many high profile games involving English teams in the past.
Cuneyt Cakır is the man in the middle for England's clash with Hungary, at the Ferenc Puskas Arena on Thursday, September 2, at 7.45pm BST.
Cakir controversially sent off Nani in Manchester United's 2013 Champions League clash last-16 against Real Madrid, inviting the ire of Sir Alex Ferguson in his final year as Red Devils gaffer. He has also refereed a host of other high-profile Champions League clashes involving other English sides.
The 2013 incident shows he is not one to back out of a big decision and England's player should be aware that he is more than willing to flash cards if he feels it is necessary.
However, discipline is rarely an issue for Gareth Southgate's England. They were among the least carded sides in the latter stages of Euro 2020, and managed to see out the Germany last-16 clash with all 11 players on the field despite a flurry of early bookings. Most notable were the yellow cards shown to central midfield partners Declan Rice and Kalvin Phillips, both in the book before half time. They both made it through unscathed, though, and Southgate knows his side has the temperament to weather storms previous England teams may have struggled to.
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