Egypt demand referees kicked out of World Cup after ‘double standards’ against Argentina | OneFootball

Egypt have filed an official complaint to Fifa demanding the “exclusion” of referees from the World Cup after their controversial loss to Argentina.

Holders Argentina pulled off a miraculous late comeback in the last-16, winning 3-2 after trailing 2-0 to the Pharaohs, who had a goal controversially disallowed and protested angrily over a perceived foul in the build-up to Enzo Fernandez’s winning goal.

Mostafa Ziko was denied a goal at 1-0 to Egypt, while Mohamed Salah claimed a penalty before the Albiceleste counter-attacked, leading to Fernandez’s headed goal in stoppage time.

The Egyptian FA made a statement confirming their action to Fifa in a bid to “preserve justice and the integrity of the competition”.

As reported by BBC Sport, an EFA statement read: "Hany Abou Rida, president of the Egyptian football federation, filed a complaint with Fifa, demanding an investigation into the French referee Francois Letexier after the serious refereeing mistakes committed by the team of referees and double standards, which caused the Egypt team to lose the match and leave the World Cup.”

The federation has lamented the “failure to make appropriate use of VAR” and said that the match “left profound questions about the consistency and fairness of decisions that directly influenced the course of the game”.

It wants an investigation into the team of referees for “insisting on not reviewing some of the footage” for “blatant errors”, with the EFA alleging “the crime of discrimination against the Egyptian national team”.

“The union emphasises its adherence to the rights of the national team, and its keenness to undertake all the measures provided by the regulations to preserve justice and the integrity of the competition,” it said.

Egypt players appeal to referee Francois Letexier after Argentina's third goal (PA)

The Independent has contacted Fifa for comment.

It comes after goalscorer Ziko accused the World Cup of being “fixed” with the competition “directed towards Argentina”.

“The referee was really not fair,” an irate Ziko said at full-time. “The injustice was clear.

“We did a really good job in the early stages of the match. There’s been an unfairness, right from the start from the match. A 2-0 lead isn’t enough to beat Argentina.

“It is clear that this tournament has been fixed. But God is sufficient for us.”

Egypt manager Hossam Hassan, meanwhile, insists he will “never watch the World Cup again, because there’s no justice in this competition.”

After denying Egypt a first World Cup quarter-final in their history, Argentina will face Switzerland in Kansas City on Saturday.