[Saba Sports News] Argentina staged a stunning 3-2 comeback win over Egypt, delivering another instant World Cup classic. Yet for African fans, the fixture was riddled with perceived injustice and alleged underhanded refereeing dealings. After the final whistle, Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan unleashed a furious rant, claiming officials might as well hand the trophy straight to Argentina. He blasted biased officiating, accusing the French head referee and VAR team of applying double standards.
Numerous football professionals backed Hossam Hassan’s grievances post-match, arguing Mostafa Ziku’s goal should have stood and that the referee and VAR enforced inconsistent standards throughout the game. The most contentious incident revolved around Egypt’s disallowed strike.
In the 59th minute, Haissem Hassan won possession at the back for Egypt, dribbled past multiple opponents to surge upfield, then laid on a clever assist for Mostafa Ziku via Mohamed Salah’s link-up play, putting Egypt 2-0 ahead temporarily. VAR later intervened to review the build-up, deeming Egypt’s ball recovery had included a foul on Lisandro Martínez, and ruled the goal void.This sparked a pivotal debate: how far back can VAR trace potential fouls in an attacking sequence? Fernando Guerrero, a Mexican ex-referee who officiated the 2022 World Cup, went public on his social media platforms to slam the VAR review as a wrong call.
In my view, this fixture lays bare systemic flaws of “selective strictness” in VAR implementation, deepening public distrust over tournament fairness. Still, no concrete evidence exists to prove bribery or match-fixing. Industry doubts are not unfounded, rooted in verifiable inconsistencies in officiating benchmarks. On paper, Argentina’s progression aligns with their superior overall strength, yet the flawed officiating process has inflicted tangible harm on the competition’s credibility.