Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni has rejected accusations that his team has benefited from favorable refereeing decisions at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
As reported by İdman.Biz, Scaloni was responding to criticism from members of the Egypt national team, who claimed Argentina received assistance from the match officials during their Round of 16 encounter.
"I don't know if I'm speaking only about Argentina, but people have been saying since 1986 that referees help us. This didn't start today," Scaloni said.
"The criticism has always existed, as long as I can remember. We use it to show our players that there are people who don't want Argentina to win. That's normal. There are probably people who don't want other national teams to win either."
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According to the Argentina coach, expectations are even higher because his side are the defending world champions.
"Perhaps there are more people who want us to lose because we won the last World Cup. We take that into account, and the players really feel it. We use it as motivation to rebel and perform even better."
Scaloni also insisted that the introduction of VAR has made it almost impossible for officials to deliberately favor one team over another.
"With VAR and all the technology we have today, it's extremely difficult to help anyone. There is no room for different interpretations. Everything was explained to us before the tournament with video examples, and the rules are applied consistently. If Lisandro Martinez is stepped on, whether it's hard or light, it's a foul. If there was no change of possession, the goal is disallowed. There is no other interpretation."
He concluded by saying that debates are often fueled by social media rather than the actual decisions made on the pitch.
"Today, social media blows everything out of proportion, and that's where the arguments begin. But there is no favoritism. On the contrary, it's very difficult to help anyone nowadays."
Argentina are preparing to face Switzerland in the World Cup quarter-finals as they continue their bid to defend the title they won in 2022.
