On Wednesday, the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) issued a statement asserting that it “cannot remain silent” about the controversial refereeing decisions that occurred during their 3-2 defeat to Argentina in the World Cup round of 16.
Egypt’s head coach, Hossam Hassan, along with several players, expressed their disbelief at the refereeing as Argentina mounted a stunning comeback, scoring three goals without reply in just 13 minutes—one of the most remarkable turnarounds in World Cup history.
The EFA’s statement highlighted concerns regarding refereeing mistakes and the inadequate use of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR). “The Egyptian Football Association cannot overlook the officiating discrepancies during the match against Argentina and the suboptimal application of the VAR system,” it read.
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Egypt seemed poised to score their second goal in the 58th minute, but a VAR review deemed that Marawan Attia had committed a foul on Argentine defender Lisandro Martínez prior to the goal.
The statement continued, “Several significant incidents raised deep concerns, casting doubt on the fairness and consistency of decisions that had a direct impact on the match’s outcome.”
The decisive goal by Enzo Fernández was scored two minutes into stoppage time, igniting chaos near the Egyptian bench.
Goalkeeping coach Saafan Elsaghir received a red card and had to be restrained from confronting French referee François Letexier. Several yellow cards were issued to players who vocally protested Argentina’s final goal, as officials chose not to review a potential foul by Alexis Mac Allister in the build-up to the goal.
“The events of the match have understandably caused significant frustration among our players, staff, and fans, who anticipated top-notch officiating on such a grand stage,” the EFA stated.
Mostafa Zico’s goal in the 67th minute initially gave Egypt a 2-0 advantage, but the tide turned when Lionel Messi assisted Cristian Romero in the 79th minute, marking the start of Argentina’s scoring spree.
After the match, Coach Hassan condemned the outcome as an “injustice” and insinuated that FIFA might be favoring Lionel Messi to prolong his journey in the tournament.
With Messi scoring the equalizer to make it 2-2, Hassan reflected, “We performed better than the reigning champs in every aspect, yet the result was swayed by internal and external factors affecting the match. They may have wanted to ensure the world champion stayed in the competition. Maybe they wanted Messi to continue playing.”
Argentina advanced to face Switzerland in the quarterfinals.
The EFA’s statement reiterated the need for fairness, stating, “Every player representing Egypt and every supporter behind the team deserves fairness, respect, and equal enforcement of the laws of the game.”
Report contributed by The Associated Press.