France coach Didier Deschamps declined to turn the appointment of Argentine referee Facundo Tello into a talking point ahead of Thursday’s World Cup quarter-final against Morocco at Gillette Stadium.

“There is nothing I can do about refereeing appointments. I just try to have confidence in the officials,” Deschamps told reporters on the eve of the match.

Tello’s appointment comes with added scrutiny given the lingering rivalry between France and Argentina since their 2022 World Cup final, which Argentina won on penalties. French referee Francois Letexier officiated Argentina’s 3-2 win over Egypt in the last 16 on Tuesday, a match in which the Egyptian Football Association has since filed a complaint over contentious calls.

“I hope that Mr Tello and his assistants will be just as good as Mr Letexier and his assistants,” Deschamps said. “There are always decisions that can lead to debate depending on which side you are on, but our opponents are Morocco. I can’t consider the referee to be an opponent.”

In a related development, Deschamps also confirmed that FIFA had rejected France’s appeal against a yellow card shown to Michael Olise in the last-16 win over Paraguay, leaving the Bayern Munich winger one caution away from a suspension for a potential semi-final.

“The yellow card has not changed. We were notified by FIFA this morning, it has been maintained,” Deschamps said.