Argentina will take on Switzerland in the final World Cup quarter-final on Saturday evening. The defending champions narrowly avoided a shock exit with a dramatic comeback victory over Egypt in the Round of 16,
That match also sparked a storm on social media as accusations and claims surfaced alleging that FIFA was rigging the tournament in favour of Argentina.
However, the Argentine manager Lionel Scaloni has set the record straight on the allegations of favoritism.
Scaloni embraces outside noise
“The thing is, we might have a lot more people who don’t want us to win because we won the last one, and well, we take that into account,” Scaloni said in the pre-match press conference.
However, the 48-year-old coach emphasized that such narratives and outside noise only strengthen the team's mentality, using the criticism as extra motivation in their pursuit of the World Cup title.
“And yeah, it gets to the players. We use the criticisms or comments that are made to reveal ourselves. To stage a rebellion and have the players play even better,” Scaloni said.
He also reflected on the past, saying there has always been outside noise surrounding Argentina whenever the team performs well.
{{/usCountry}}He also reflected on the past, saying there has always been outside noise surrounding Argentina whenever the team performs well.
{{/usCountry}}“Argentina has always been talked about, and that's because we've always been the ones to liven up these tournaments, and maybe it's because we come from winning the last cup,” the Argentine boss explained.
Rejected favoritism claims earlier
It was not the first time Scaloni had pushed back against the claims circulating online. Earlier in the tournament, during the pre-match press conference before Argentina's clash against Cape Verde, he addressed the issue directly.
“You shouldn't give it (allegations) any importance. These days, anyone can post something that might be completely unfounded, and it grows into something huge. We don't echo that,” Scaloni said.
Disallowed goal draws backlash
The accusations of FIFA favouring Argentina intensified after the defending champions pulled off a dramatic late two-goal comeback against Egypt in the Round of 16.
The controversy centered on an Egyptian goal that was ruled out around the 60th minute. Mohamed Salah's side had broken through on the counterattack and found the net past Emiliano Martínez.
However, following a VAR review, officials determined that Lisandro Martínez, who had initially lost possession in Argentina's attacking third, had been stepped over and fouled by the Egyptian attacker in the buildup, leading to the goal being disallowed.