Egypt forward Mostafa Ziko criticized the officials following his team’s 3-2 loss to defending champions Argentina in the FIFA World Cup round of 16. He called the refereeing unfair and suggested the tournament was fixed. Egypt led 2-0 after 67 minutes but Argentina scored three times in 13 minutes through Cristian Romero, Lionel Messi and Enzo Fernandez to advance. A goal by Ziko was disallowed after VAR review for a foul in the buildup. In post-match comments, Ziko said the decisions showed clear injustice and that the outcome was influenced. Egypt had taken an early lead through Yasser Ibrahim but Argentina missed a penalty. Mohamed Salah helped set up Ziko’s later goal before the comeback. Argentina will face the winner of Switzerland versus Colombia in the quarter-finals.
