Egypt have lodged an official protest with FIFA following the performance of referee Francois Letexier during their World Cup quarter-final defeat to Argentina. The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) has also called for the French officiating team to be removed from the remainder of the tournament.
Controversial Decisions in Dramatic Comeback
Egypt were eliminated by the world champions in dramatic fashion, with Argentina scoring three times in the final 15 minutes to overturn a two-goal deficit. Lionel Messi and his teammates secured victory through Enzo Fernandez's late header, but Egypt felt the referee played a pivotal role in their downfall.
EFA president Hany Abo Rida submitted the formal complaint, according to Diario AS. Egypt saw a second goal ruled out after VAR intervention, citing a foul at the other end of the pitch before they scored. Crucially, a similar foul was ignored in the build-up to Argentina's winner.
Penalty Claim and Investigation Demand
The Pharaohs also believed they should have been awarded a penalty moments before the decisive fifth goal, when Mohamed Salah was brought down in the box by Julian Alvarez. Egypt are now seeking an explanation for the referee's decisions and have called for an investigation into what they describe as controversial calls.
Egypt boss Hossam Hassan expressed his fury after the match, saying: "Why isn't there any fairness in sport? In football? I do not want to try to put it nicely here with beautiful wording. We have been treated unfairly today. We have suffered injustice."
Allegations of Favoritism
Hassan suggested that football's authorities may have a vested interest in keeping Argentina and Messi in the tournament. "It could be a matter of marketing, they could want to make a World Cup with the champion of the last World Cup, they want Messi to exist (in the tournament)," he claimed.
The Egyptian bench reacted angrily to the winning goal, with goalkeeper coach Saafan El-Sagheer shown a red card and Hassan having to be restrained from confronting the official. Hassan added: "I wish we could be happier with the loss, but with a severe loss like today I say to them (my players) be upset. We wish we could be happier. Thank God for everything but football is different from what happens in the stadium when we are playing against the world champions."
