Allegations and Defense

FIFA’s refereeing chief, Pierluigi Collina, defended the officiating in Argentina’s 3-2 victory over Egypt in the World Cup round of 16. He dismissed allegations of bias and emphasized that match officials operated independently.

Collina was interviewed on inside.fifa.com, stating that criticism of referees is part of football. However, he condemned challenges to the officials’ integrity following Egypt’s complaints after their defeat.

“Constructive discussion about decisions will always be part of football, but unfounded allegations have no place in our sport,” Collina remarked.

He stressed that the integrity of FIFA World Cup match officials should not be questioned and insisted that refereeing cannot be influenced by anyone, including FIFA’s president, Gianni Infantino. Collina also noted that such allegations could lead to threats against referees and their families.

Egypt’s Complaints

Egypt exited the tournament, claiming unfair treatment after Argentina overcame a 2-0 deficit to win with Enzo Fernandez’s stoppage-time goal. Coach Hossam Hassan suggested possible pressure on the referee to favor Argentina.

The Egyptian Football Association expressed concerns over several key incidents, questioning the consistency and fairness of decisions impacting the game’s outcome.

Egypt contended that Mostafa Zico’s second-half goal was wrongly disallowed due to a supposed non-existent foul. Another grievance was that a challenge on Mohamed Salah went unnoticed just before Argentina’s winning goal.

VAR Involvement

Collina explained that VAR correctly recommended overturning Zico’s goal after identifying a foul by Marwan Attia on Argentina defender Lisandro Martinez during the attack.

“We believe that a foul is a foul,” Collina said. “The VAR can intervene regardless of whether the foul is ‘obvious’ if the referee missed it.”

He defended the decision not to award Egypt a penalty before Argentina’s winner. Both the referee and VAR judged the contact between Salah and Julian Alvarez as normal football contact.

“Stepping on an opponent’s foot is a foul. But if a defender contacts the ball first and then makes normal contact, it’s not a foul,” Collina explained.

While some decisions carry subjectivity, Collina reassured that FIFA was satisfied with the application of VAR principles throughout the tournament.