World Cup 2026: Fans Claim Egypt Were 'Robbed' After Argentina's Dramatic Comeback Win
- Argentina came from two goals down to beat Egypt 3-2 in the 2026 World Cup Round of 16, completing an impressive 13-minute comeback
- Egypt had a goal ruled out by VAR and were denied what fans argued was a clear penalty before Argentina's match-winner
- Social media erupted with claims that refereeing decisions cost Mohamed Salah's side a famous upset against the defending champions
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Argentina booked their place in the 2026 FIFA World Cup quarter-finals after staging a dramatic comeback to beat Egypt 3-2, but the thrilling contest has been overshadowed by fierce criticism of several refereeing decisions.
The defending champions recovered from two goals down to grab victory in stoppage time, with Lionel Messi inspiring the turnaround after earlier missing a penalty.
Source: Getty Images
Argentina stage epic comeback against Egypt
Egypt looked on course for one of the biggest upsets of the tournament when Yasser Ibrahim fired the Pharaohs ahead in the 15th minute before adding a second in the 67th minute.
Watch Zico's second goal for Egypt, as shared on X:
Argentina had the chance to equalise much earlier, but Messi squandered the opportunity by missing his fourth penalty in World Cup history.
With the holders staring at elimination, they produced an impressive late rally.
Messi set up Cristian Romero to pull one back in the 79th minute before finding the net himself four minutes later to restore parity.
Deep into stoppage time, Enzo Fernández completed the comeback with the winning goal to seal a dramatic 3-2 victory, as cited by CNN.
Watch Fernandez's match-winning goal against Egypt, as shared on X:
Fans claim Egypt were robbed
According to USA Today, while Argentina celebrated another escape, much of the conversation after the final whistle centred on referee François Letexier and the use of VAR.
The biggest talking point came when Egypt had a goal ruled out following a video review.
Officials deemed there had been a foul on Lisandro Martínez during the build-up, leading to the strike being disallowed.
Watch Egypt's disallowed goal, as shared on X:
Another contentious moment arrived just before Argentina scored the winner.
Many supporters argued Egypt should have been awarded a penalty after an apparent infringement inside the box, insisting play should have been stopped before the attack that eventually ended with Fernández's decisive finish.
Watch the contentious Egypt penalty claim, as shared on X:
Those incidents quickly sparked widespread debate online, with many fans questioning the consistency of the officiating.
BBC Sport journalist Dale Johnson wrote:
"Egypt's disallowed goal was completely against how this tournament has been refereed. You can't have a light touch where you don't give fouls for minimal contact and then rule out a goal through VAR for a very minimal hold of the shirt."
@naresh_dharmani posted:
"Egyptians are robbed by FIFA in this game."
@GarethMorr2841 wrote:
"One VAR rule for Argentina & one VAR rule for Egypt! Never seen so much corruption in a World Cup before."
@lancstic commented:
"It’s disgraceful. Two incidents of ties being stepped on, two different outcomes. Neither were fouls in my opinion that warranted var intervenor you can’t give one without the other."
@irigo_m added:
"Argentina are FIFA untouchables, there's a huge agenda to favour them and give decisions that favours them in this tournament. Balant corruption."
Source: Getty Images
Egypt bow out as Argentina progress
Although the result ended Egypt's World Cup dream, Hossam Hassan's side won plenty of admirers with a fearless display against the reigning champions.
The Pharaohs pushed one of the tournament favourites to the limit and came within minutes of reaching the quarter-finals before Argentina's late surge turned the contest on its head.
For Messi and his teammates, the comeback keeps their title defence alive and sets up a quarter-final showdown against either Colombia or Switzerland.
The dramatic victory, however, is likely to remain a subject of debate long after the celebrations have ended.
Supercomputer predicted Argentina's win over Egypt
Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported that Opta's supercomputer backed Argentina to beat Egypt before their World Cup Round of 16 meeting.
The prediction made the South Americans clear favourites heading into the tie.
Source: YEN.com.gh
