Egypt’s sense of injustice after their dramatic World Cup exit to Argentina was backed by former Premier League referee Graham Scott, who said the VAR decision to disallow Mostafa Ziko’s goal was incorrect, in analysis for The Athletic.
Argentina staged a stunning comeback to beat Egypt 3-2 in Atlanta on 7 July, overturning a two goal deficit with three goals in 13 minutes to reach the World Cup quarter finals. But the result was overshadowed by controversy, with Egypt seeing a goal ruled out when leading 1-0 and having penalty appeals waved away before Argentina’s winner.
Ziko, who had put Egypt 2-0 up before the fightback, was scathing about the officiating afterwards. “The referee is unfair, God is sufficient for me and the best disposer of affairs. He’s wasting the effort of an entire nation. The cup is being given to Argentina,” he said.
The disallowed goal came in the 67th minute, when Haissem Hassan’s driving run set up Mohamed Salah to tee up Ziko, who lifted the ball over goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez and wheeled away in celebration. A VAR review, however, ruled that Egypt’s Marwan Attia had fouled Lisandro Martinez in the build up, at the opposite end of the pitch, and the goal was chalked off.
Scott disputed the ruling in detail. “The decision to disallow Egypt’s goal is incorrect. Attia’s challenge on Lisandro Martinez was normal contact and should be regarded as such, rather than considered a foul,” he wrote. “It was also almost 100 yards from goal, and Argentina had every opportunity to regroup and defend, no wonder Egypt felt aggrieved that the eventual goal was disallowed after a VAR review. There was some contact in the left corner of the pitch, far from Argentina’s net, both foot on foot and a fleeting hold of the shirt, but there was no offence committed here. It was an astonishing intervention and a massive overreach of the VAR’s role to correct only clear and obvious errors.”
Scott explained that the VAR routinely checks the attacking phase of play before every goal, and in this instance would have gone back as far as the turnover of possession. “For a goal to be chalked off, there needs to be a clear foul. As a general rule of thumb, the longer the time and distance between a challenge and a goal, the more serious the alleged offence needs to be. But there was no offence to speak of here, and nothing anywhere near the threshold for VAR to get involved.” He added that Egypt’s penalty claim for an alleged foul on Salah moments before Argentina’s winner was similarly “without foundation,” noting there was only minor contact, not enough to send the forward down. “Just as Egypt’s goal should not have been ruled out, nor should Fernandez’s.”
Egypt coach Hossam Hassan said he would not watch the rest of the tournament, blaming the officiating for his side’s elimination. “What happened to us wasn’t fair. We should have had a penalty, a goal was disallowed, and I don’t know why it was disallowed,” he told a press conference. “Even if the goals came from mistakes, the biggest mistake is not getting what you’re entitled to from those responsible for making the decisions.”
Despite the controversy, Hassan praised his players’ effort, most of whom are based in the Egyptian domestic league. “With predominantly local players, besides Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush, we were able to compete with anyone,” he said.
Argentina, roared on by a Lionel Messi inspired revival, will face either Colombia or Switzerland in the quarter finals.
