Hassan cries ‘fixed’ as Messi’s Argentina pulls off stunning comeback
Coach Hossam Hassan booked, FA files FIFA complaint over VAR-overturned goal and unreviewed penalty shout in Atlanta
CAIRO — Argentina mount stunning comeback, saw Egypt react against ‘injustice’ in World Cup Round of 16 clash.
Argentina’s comeback from a two-goal deficit in the final eleven minutes to win 3-2 against Egypt advanced them to the quarter-finals of the World Cup on Tuesday. Enzo Fernandez netted a last-minute winner at the Atlanta Stadium after Egypt had taken a 15th-minute lead through Yasser Ibrahim‘s header from a corner. Argentina’s Lionel Messi had seen a penalty saved by Egypt’s Mostafa Shobeir soon after the opening goal in the 21st minute.
Egypt appeared to double their advantage in the second half when Mostafa Zico scored in the 59th minute, only for the goal to be disallowed after a VAR review for a foul by Marwan Attia on Lisandro Martinez in the build-up.
Mostafa Zico, who scored the disallowed goal, legally doubled Egypt’s lead by beating Lisandro Martínez in the 67th minute.
Cristian Romero initiated Argentina’s comeback with a strike in the 79th minute; Messi followed suit four minutes later, before Fernandez completed the remarkable turnaround in the second minute of stoppage time. The full-time whistle triggered an angry outburst from the Egyptian bench.
“We have been treated unfairly today. We have suffered injustice. We haven’t seen respect or fair play. A penalty was ruled out. The VAR did not even check it, and our second goal was remarkably, for whatever reason, disallowed,” said Egypt head coach Hossam Hassan, who was booked for protesting the lack of a VAR review in extra time. Hassan speculated that external factors influenced the result.
Hassan was furious about the referee’s decision and said his team was better than Argentina.
“We looked better than the reigning champion – better in everything – but the result was influenced by internal factors on the pitch and external factors off it. Perhaps they wanted to keep the world champion in the competition. Perhaps they wanted Messi to stay in the running,” said Hassan.
Hossam Hassan, Head Coach of Egypt makes a cross arm gesture as Referee Francois Letexier shows a yellow card during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16 match between Argentina and Egypt at Atlanta Stadium on July 7, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. Photo: Catherine Ivill- AMA/Getty Images
The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) confirmed it had lodged a formal complaint with FIFA requesting an investigation into the officiating, whereby many mistakes were ignored by the referee.
“The Egyptian Football Association cannot remain silent regarding the refereeing decisions witnessed during the match against Argentina, as well as the failure to make appropriate use of the Video Assistant Referee system,” the EFA stated. “Several key incidents raised serious concerns and left profound questions about the consistency and fairness of decisions that directly influenced the course of the game.” The EFA also demanded the expulsion of the French referee Francois Letexier and his crew from the remainder of the tournament.
Egyptian frustration peaked during the 92nd-minute winner, when Mohamed Salah fell inside Argentina’s penalty box, but no penalty was given. This happened seconds before the counter-attack that led to Argentina’s late winner.
Zico, whose goal was disallowed, also expressed his frustration.
“The referee was really unfair. The injustice was clear. There’s been an unfairness right from the start of the match. It is clear that this tournament has been fixed,” said Zico.
Hossam Hassan, who declared he would not watch another match, stated: “I’m going home and won’t be watching any more games from the tournament. What happened to us wasn’t fair.” Egypt remains without a World Cup quarter-final appearance, while Argentina will face Switzerland in Kansas City.