World Cup referee has a long talk after Egypt manager makes an ‘X’ sign against Argentina
Egypt’s manager, Hossam Hassan, made an ‘X’ gesture towards referee Francois Letexier near the end of Egypt’s 3-2 loss to Argentina in the World Cup round of 16.
Egypt took the lead twice, with goals from Yasser Ibrahim and Mostafa Ziko in the first 67 minutes. But Argentina came back strong, scoring through Cristian Romero, Lionel Messi, and finally Enzo Fernandez. Fernandez’s header in the 92nd minute sealed the win for Argentina, moving them on to the quarter-finals.
Egypt’s players were upset, protesting a possible foul before Messi’s equalizer. They were also frustrated because one of their goals was ruled out for a foul earlier in the match. Things got tense in the dugout near the end, with referee Letexier showing a yellow card to one of Egypt’s staff in the 98th minute. That’s when Hassan made the ‘X’ sign towards the referee.
This ‘X’ gesture is often used to report racist abuse, but it’s not clear if that was Hassan’s specific message this time. Back in 2010, Jose Mourinho made a similar ‘X’ gesture that was seen as offensive to a referee, and he was banned for three matches.
After Hassan’s gesture, an Egypt substitute stepped in, and his brother and coach Ibrahim calmly put Hassan’s hands down. Letexier then talked with both managers, and Ibrahim gave a thumbs-up before returning to the field. It’s not known if the referee took any further action.
In the post-match interview, Hassan said, “Why isn’t there fairness in football? We were treated unfairly today. We suffered injustice.” He also said Egypt had concerns about Letexier being chosen as the referee since he’s from France. Hassan confirmed he won’t watch any more World Cup matches, saying, “This is my way to speak up. I won’t watch another game in this tournament.”
SPORTbible has reached out to FIFA for a comment.