Controversy erupts after Argentina's victory, coach says: It was a rigged match

2026-07-08 08:15:00, Sport CNA

Controversy erupts after Argentina's victory, coach says: It was a rigged

After losing 3-2 to Argentina in the 1/8th of the World Cup, the Egyptian camp reacted harshly to the refereeing of Frenchman Letexier. Striker Mostafa Zico, author of a goal and a goal disallowed after the intervention of VAR, stated that the referee constantly influenced the course of the game. He expressed dissatisfaction with the goal disallowance and claimed that the decisions favored Argentina.

Coach Hossam Hassan also criticized the use of VAR, saying that the goal disallowance directly affected the outcome of the match. According to him, such decisions can change the course of a World Cup.

"I will say what is on my mind regardless of the consequences. This was clearly a rigged match; the whole world saw it. And I want to say something else, if they want Argentina to win so much, then why are they inviting everyone to come and participate?"

We beat them in every aspect. The result was influenced by internal factors and before the match, it seems that pressure was put on the referee by Argentina and that was the result. We suffered the consequences. We did things well and ended up suffering. We deserved the victory. Even so, we leave with our heads held high. There was no fair play, no respect. A penalty was disallowed, which should have been reviewed by VAR and the second goal was strangely disallowed for some reason.

We all saw that catch at the end and VAR didn't even step in to see if that goal should have been disallowed. Why is there no justice in football? I'm not convinced by this result. I'm not convinced by the way the game was played. We were treated unfairly; we suffered an injustice. I dare say that whoever scheduled these matches has never played football, because they never schedule a match at this time. At noon, they go for a walk or have lunch. It's not the time to play a match. There are many questionable aspects.

"Why schedule a match at noon when there are only two matches? They could have scheduled one at six in the afternoon and another at ten in the evening. We leave with our heads held high, but what happened shows a lack of credibility and I am proud of my players. We can face any opponent as long as justice is served. I told the referee that maybe he had something to hide. I don't know if he is hiding something that we are not aware of. I promise you that I will not watch any more World Cup matches; it is my way of confronting this situation. I will not watch any more matches in this tournament," were his words at the press conference at the end of the match.