Mexico boss Miguel Herrera has blasted referee Pedro Proenca and blamed him for his side's World Cup exit following the dramatic 2-1 defeat to the Netherlands.

Herrera's men were minutes away from booking a place in the quarter-final when Wesley Sneijder drilled an 88th-minute equaliser past goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa.

There was yet more drama, however, when Arjen Robben was awarded a stoppage-time penalty, which Klaas-Jan Huntelaar duly converted to send the Oranje through.

Robben has since admitted to diving to win a penalty earlier in the contest, and Herrera believes that Proenca contributed to Mexico's elimination by not booking the Dutchman on that occasion.

"The reason was the referee. He put us out of the next stage. As I said, the first goal was due to a mistake on our part," he told reporters.

"[Robben] dived three times, and the referee should have booked him the first time. The referee should go back and caution the guy who tried to cheat. If that's the case Robben doesn't do it the second time.

"At least we expect that the refereeing committee looks at this and the referee goes home just like us."

As a consequence of the win, Louis van Gaal's charges will face Costa Rica in the next round.

Written by
Shane Callaghan