Argentina survived one of the most dramatic matches of the World Cup so far, coming from two goals down to beat Egypt 3-2 and keep their title defence alive.
The reigning champions looked close to elimination after Yasser Ibrahim gave Egypt an early lead and Lionel Messi had a penalty saved by Mostafa Shobeir. Egypt then thought they had tightened their grip on the match when Mostafa Ziko found the net again in the second half.
But VAR intervened, and the goal was ruled out for a foul in the build-up. Egypt later did go 2-0 ahead through Ziko, only for Argentina to respond with a late surge. Cristian Romero pulled one back, Messi equalised, and Enzo Fernández headed in the winner in stoppage time.
According to SPORTbible, Ian Wright was furious after the match and argued that Argentina’s winning goal should also have been reviewed because Mohamed Salah appeared to be caught in the build-up.
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Wright questions VAR consistency
Wright’s anger centred on what he saw as two similar incidents being treated differently.
Egypt’s disallowed goal was pulled back after VAR reviewed a foul earlier in the attacking move. But when Salah went down shortly before Argentina’s winner, play was allowed to continue.
“That’s what happening with VAR now, they’re pulling it back,” Wright said.
“If you’re going to pull it back for Argentina on the edge of the box to disallow a goal, you have to pull it back for this one with Mo Salah. He’s been caught. Whatever we say, it might be minimal, he’s been caught and then they go up the other end.”
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Roy Keane questioned whether Salah had gone down too easily, saying: “The only thing I’d say with this one when he does cut, why does his legs give way?”
Wright pushed back immediately.
“Look Roy, we’re talking that. We have to see the Lisandro Martinez one as well, but they’ve given one for that, they’ve disallowed a goal for that. It’s absolutely a Pandora’s Box.”
Egypt’s disallowed goal changes the match
The VAR decision against Ziko’s earlier strike became one of the defining moments of the match.
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Described by The Guardian, Egypt thought they had doubled their lead early in the second half, only for the goal to be disallowed after a foul in the build-up. The Guardian reported the foul as being by Marwan Attia.
That ruling gave Argentina a lifeline. Ziko later made it 2-0, but the sense of control had already been disturbed, and Argentina’s late pressure eventually broke Egypt.
Former Premier League referee Mark Halsey also questioned the consistency of the decisions. Quoted by The Sun, he said VAR should either have stayed out of both incidents or reviewed both.
“For me, VAR should not have got involved in either, but as they got involved in the Martinez challenge, they have to look at the Salah challenge and that’s where the inconsistency lies,” Halsey said.
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Ziko claims the tournament is fixed
Egypt’s players were furious after the final whistle, and Ziko delivered the strongest accusation.
“The referee was really not fair,” he said.
“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.”
Ziko’s comments reflected the mood in the Egyptian camp, where players and staff believed the biggest calls had gone against them.
Hassan says Egypt suffered injustice
Egypt manager Hossam Hassan was just as angry.
“We haven’t seen respect or fair play,” he said.
“A penalty was ruled out and a second incident that should have been checked for a penalty for us was not even checked by the VAR. A second goal was remarkably, for whatever reason, disallowed.
“There seems to have been pressure on the Argentinian side on the referee that has brought about this outcome.
“Life is unfair. The world is unfair. OK, but why isn’t there any fairness in sports? I’m not convinced by this outcome and by the way things unfolded in this match.”
Reported by The Independent, Hassan also said he would not watch the rest of the tournament after Egypt’s elimination.
Argentina survive and move on
For Argentina, the night ended in relief rather than comfort.
Messi had missed from the spot and Argentina looked beaten for long spells, but the 39-year-old responded by helping drag his team back into the match. Romero’s goal gave them hope, Messi’s equaliser changed the atmosphere, and Fernández’s header completed the escape.
As reported by Sky Sports, Argentina’s 3-2 win sends them into a quarter-final against Switzerland.
For Egypt, the result will be remembered as a lost historic opportunity. They had the world champions on the brink, but left the tournament convinced that VAR and the referee had played too large a role in deciding their fate.
For everyone else, the match has become another chapter in a growing World Cup debate over how far back VAR should go, and whether consistency is being lost in the process.
