Egypt Coach Hossam Hassan Blames 'Unfair' Refereeing for World Cup Elimination

Atlanta, Georgia, US : Egypt's national football coach, Hossam Hassan, has sensationally accused referees of 'unfair' decisions and 'external factors' for his team's heartbreaking World Cup elimination by Argentina, leading him to declare he will no longer watch the tournament.

Egypt coach Hossam Hassan is shown a yellow card by referee Francois Letexier during the Round of 16 match at Atlanta Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia, US on Tuesday

Egypt coach Hossam Hassan attributes his team's World Cup elimination to 'unfair' refereeing and 'external factors' influencing the match against Argentina.

Hassan cited a disallowed goal, an uncalled penalty on Mohamed Salah, and a lack of VAR review as key injustices.

He suggested that there was a desire to keep reigning champions Argentina and Lionel Messi in the competition. 

Despite the loss, Hassan expressed satisfaction with his predominantly domestic league players' effort and adherence to the game plan.

Egypt, leading 2-0 with 11 minutes left, conceded three late goals to lose to Argentina in a dramatic last-16 clash.
 
Egypt coach Hossam Hassan will not be watching any more of the World Cup, he said on Tuesday, blaming refereeing errors for his country's heartbreaking elimination from the tournament at the hands of Argentina. 

Egypt were 2-0 up with 11 minutes left of their last 16 clash against the holders Argentina, agonisingly close to one of the great World Cup upsets, only to concede three goals in the closing stages and go out. 

They were picked apart at the end of the game by a Lionel Messi-inspired comeback, but Hassan insisted his team were better.

Allegations of Bias and External Factors : "I'm going home and won't be watching any more games from the tournament," he told a press conference.

"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." 

Hossam alleged that the match was "influenced by internal factors on the pitch and external factors off it".

"We looked better than the reigning champions -- better in everything --, but the result was influenced by internal factors on the pitch and external factors off it," Hassan told reporters as quoted by ESPN. 

"Perhaps they wanted to keep the world champion in the competition. Perhaps they wanted Messi to stay in the running. In football, there are sometimes external factors that go beyond the technical aspects. The world champion received support at every level."

"There seem to be pressures from the Argentina side on this outcome. We were objecting to the selection of the referee because of the French situation [Argentina beat France in the 2022 World Cup final], but everybody has to suffer at some point, and we suffered."

Argentina's Julian Alvarez and Alexis Mac Allister remonstrate to referee Francois Letexier before he disallowed Egypt's Mostafa Zico's goal

Hossam also said that they had not seen "respect or fair play" in the match, alleging refusal of a penalty after an alleged foul on Egyptian star Mohamed Salah, and the particular event did not even undergo a VAR check. "We have not seen respect or fair play. 

A penalty was ruled out [alleged foul on Mohamed Salah], it was not even checked by the VAR, and our second goal was remarkably, for whatever reason, disallowed. 
We have all seen the shirt pulled back [by Mac Allister] and not even a VAR check. Life is unfair, normal life is unfair, so why is there no fairness in sports?"

The head coach said that he is "not convinced by the outcome and the way things unfolded in the match". "I want to put it in beautiful words and say hard luck, but we have been treated unfairly and it has been an injustice," he added.

 Egypt netted in the 62nd minute through Mostafa Zico, but a VAR check found there was a foul from the Egyptians in the buildup. 

They also claimed a late penalty after a tug on Hamdy Fathy, and their anger was exacerbated by Argentina going down the other end and scoring a 92nd-minute winner.

"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," said Hassan, whose press conference was a long litany of complaints. 

"I'm the type of person who hates losing. And when it's a defeat that feels unjust like today's, I can only tell the fans not to be upset. We wanted so much to give them more joy," he added. "But what made me happy was that my players followed the game plan on many occasions and worked very well."

Egypt had been surprisingly attacking early on in the game, a departure from Hassan's usual tactic of playing with a tight defence and looking for counter-attack opportunities. 

It helped them take an early lead, but it was the heroics of goalkeeper Mostafa Shoubir that ensured they remained in front by halftime. "I'm very, very satisfied with the effort they put in. Most of our players come from the Egyptian domestic league, while many players in other national teams are based in Europe and live in that professional environment," Hassan added. 

"Yet with predominantly local players -- besides Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush -- we were able to compete with anyone."