Hossam Hassan, the technical director of the Egyptian national team, directed fiery statements and harsh criticisms to those responsible for managing football in the world, after the loss to Argentina 3-2.
Hossam Hassan
Club: Egypt
Egypt's national team bid farewell to the World Cup from the round of 16 after the loss to Argentina.
Hossam Hassan said via beIN Sports: "We were the best in the match, but football is unfair, we had a penalty and the referee canceled our third goal and I don't know why".
He added, "It may be related to marketing and they want the World Cup champion and Messi to continue in the tournament".
He continued, "Many times you get tired and give everything but other things happen that keep you away from your goal".
He pointed out, "We wanted to please the Egyptian fans who supported us from the beginning of the World Cup, but there are other things happening outside of football".
He stressed, "There is support from all sides for the world champion, refereeing and marketing, and everyone is with them".
He affirmed, "We have a style and we wanted to impose it in the match just as we did in all previous confrontations, and I am happy with the Egyptian national team players because they carried out the instructions, but external factors decided the matter".
He continued, "The biggest mistake is not getting your right from the decision-makers who control football and influence match results with other factors outside the field".
He added, "I am happy with the Egyptian national team and the players after we have become a strong team that honors Arab and African football".
He explained, "Now we are in the depths of world football, we are not afraid of anyone, and the match was more difficult for Argentina than for us, and our development will not stop here and we have many big goals ahead and for the Egyptian national team to become a competitor to any other team in the world".
He disclosed, "I thanked all the players and told them of my complete satisfaction with everything they presented in the tournament, we play with a group of local players from the Egyptian league unlike all the other teams present in the quarter-finals, and we will continue to do so and we will have an impact on world football".
He continued in his statements, "FIFA must apply its slogan, which is respect and justice, we had a penalty against Belgium that was not awarded, and the referee wronged us today against Argentina".
He concluded, "I know that the players' ambition was to go further than that, and that is why I thank them all and we will return stronger".
