Egypt's elimination by Argentina in Tuesday's World Cup round of 16 has led to a formal complaint against François Letexier and his refereeing team. Having lost 3-2 after taking the lead, the Pharaohs are contesting several decisions made during the match and are asking FIFA to open an investigation into the Frenchman's officiating. The Egyptian Football Association is also demanding that Letexier and his assistants be removed from the team for the remainder of the tournament.
A disallowed goal, a contested decisive action
The main point of contention was a disallowed goal by Mostafa Ziko, which Egypt thought they had taken a two-goal lead. The play was overturned after a VAR review for a foul by Marwan Attia on Lisandro Martinez during the build-up. The Egyptians also protested the lack of a whistle just before Enzo Fernández's winning goal, which secured Argentina's qualification.
Hossam Hassan accuses the match of being rigged.
The anger was publicly voiced by Hossam Hassan, the Egyptian national team coach. After the match, the former striker claimed his team had been treated unfairly and directly accused FIFA, believing Argentina and Lionel Messi had been given preferential treatment in this round of 16 tie. He stated, "It's all about the money; they want Messi to stay in the tournament." He also vowed that he would not watch another match of this World Cup after his team's elimination.
Ziko goes even further after his disallowed goal
Mostafa Ziko, directly involved in the disallowed goal, also criticized the refereeing. The Egyptian striker stated that everything turned against his team after they went 2-0 up and that he didn't understand why his goal was cancelled. He made some very strong statements, declaring: "It's clear this tournament was fixed." These accusations come on top of the formal complaint filed by the Egyptian Football Association with FIFA.
Letexier at the center of a global controversy
François Letexier now finds himself at the heart of one of the biggest refereeing controversies of this World Cup. The Frenchman, appointed for the round of 16 match between Argentina and Egypt, is accused by the Egyptian side of having made decisions that directly influenced the outcome of the game. The Egyptian Football Association is demanding an investigation into these decisions and the exclusion of the entire French refereeing team for the remainder of the tournament. At this stage, Argentina's qualification remains valid and no FIFA disciplinary action against Letexier has been announced.
