Egypt came within a few minutes of one of the biggest surprises of the World Cup, but saw the dream dramatically slip away. After squandering a two-goal lead against the reigning champions, Argentina, head coach Hossam Hassan launched fierce criticism of the refereeing, questioned the fairness of the decisions and delivered a line that quickly went viral.

"If they want Argentina to win, why are we playing?" the Egyptian coach fired out, visibly angry after the 3-2 defeat in the round of 16.

The Egyptian side were 2-0 up after 79 minutes and appeared to be heading for a historic qualification. However, a comeback inspired by Lionel Messi allowed Argentina to score three goals in the closing minutes and secure their place in the quarter-finals.

At the press conference, Hossam Hassan said his team had been harmed by several decisions by the officiating team.

"I'm going home and I won't watch another game of this World Cup," he declared.

"What happened to us was not fair. We should have had a penalty, we had a goal disallowed and I still don't understand why it was ruled out."

The coach was referring to the incident in the 62nd minute, when Mostafa Zico put the ball in the Argentine net. After VAR intervention, the goal was disallowed for an alleged foul by an Egyptian player in the build-up.

In the closing moments, the Egyptians appealed for a penalty for an alleged foul on Hamdy Fathy. A few seconds after that incident, Argentina launched a counter-attack that ended with the winning goal, in the 92nd minute, further heightening the African side's indignation.

Making no attempt to hide his frustration, Hassan went even further in his criticism.

"If they want Argentina to win, why do they invite the others to take part?" he asked, insinuating that the outcome of the match appeared to be favoured by the refereeing decisions.

The coach acknowledged that some of the goals conceded were the result of his own side's mistakes, but insisted that this was not the main reason for the elimination.

"Even if the goals came from our mistakes, the biggest mistake was that we did not receive what we were entitled to from those who made the decisions."

Known for his competitive character, Hassan admitted the enormous difficulty of accepting a defeat he considers unjust.

"I'm someone who hates losing. And when a defeat seems as unfair as today's, all I can do is ask the fans not to be disheartened. We really wanted to give them more joy."

Despite his anger, he made a point of praising his players.

"What pleased me was seeing my players stick to the game plan at many moments and work very well."

Unlike their usually more cautious strategy, based on a compact defence and rapid counter-attacks, Egypt took to the pitch with an attacking approach and surprised Argentina from the first minutes. The lead they built was also underpinned by an outstanding performance from goalkeeper Mostafa Shoubir, who made several decisive saves before half-time.

For much of the match, Egypt believed they were about to write a historic page in world football. However, Argentina's reaction in the closing minutes completely changed the course of the game and left the Egyptians with a deep sense of injustice, fuelled by the refereeing decisions and by the harsh words of Hossam Hassan, who left the World Cup convinced that his team deserved a different outcome.