The men's football event of Paris Olympic Games 2024 got off to a controversial start in Saint-Etienne, France on Wednesday (July 24). Argentina suffered a 1-2 loss to Morocco in the opener, but more than the result, the manner of the match's conduct raised eyebrows. (More Football News)
Argentina appeared to have equalised with Cristian Medina’s goal late in stoppage time, only for that goal to be disallowed two hours later for offside after an intervention from the video assistant referee (VAR).
Morocco fans crashed the pitch to protest Medina's late goal. Objects were thrown and invading Morocco fans were tackled by security on the field, and the game was suspended for nearly two hours with only minutes remaining.
Play eventually resumed in an empty Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, four hours after the original kick-off, and Morocco held on for a 2-1 victory.
After going down 0-2, Argentina first cut the deficit in the 68th minute through Giuliano Simeone - son of Atletico Madrid head coach Diego - and then looked to have equalised in the 106th minute equaliser (after 15 minutes of stoppage time had been added).
Medina headed home after the ball hit the Morocco goalpost twice. First, Nicolas Otamendi’s effort was deflected onto the crossbar by the Morocco goalkeeper Munir, then a header by Bruno Amione landed on the crossbar before Medina sent it in from close range.
But following Morocco fans' uproar, a lengthy match suspension and VAR referral, the goal was disallowed, much to the dismay of the Argentines. You can watch the video of the entire sequence of events below.
Argentina coach Javier Mascherano later called the controversial defeat "a scandal", fuming at the numerous interruptions and the manner in which the goal was disallowed.
“The match was suspended for security and safety,” Mascherano began. “At no moment did we talk about the review. The official Olympic page put the match at 2-2. At no moment did we talk about the review. Then after we were not told anything new, we started to hear things. The referee never came, he never gave us an explanation,” the coach added.
“What happened on the pitch was a scandal. This isn’t a neighbourhood tournament, this is the Olympic Games. How are they going to stop the match seven times in the second half because someone comes onto the pitch?" Mascherano said.
