Collina explains VAR decision: Decisive detail in Egypt's protest

FIFA Referees Committee Chairman Pierluigi Collina commented on the most discussed episodes of the 2026 World Cup Round of 16 match between Argentina and Egypt.

The discussion concerns Egypt's goal disallowed after a VAR intervention and the incident involving Mohamed Salah late in the match. Collina explained the criteria referees used in both cases.

VAR also checks the start of the attacking phase

According to Collina, after every goal, VAR reviews not only the shot or offside but also the start of the attacking phase that led to the goal.

“After every goal is scored, VAR checks the attacking phase. If a foul is identified at the start of the attack leading to the goal, VAR recommends the head referee to review the episode on the monitor,” said Collina.

He emphasized that there are no strict limits regarding time or distance to the goal in such situations.

Reason for Egypt's disallowed goal revealed

In the Argentina vs Egypt match, Egypt's goal was disallowed following a VAR review.

According to Collina's explanation, at the start of the episode, Egypt's number 19, Marwan Attia, stepped on the foot of Argentina defender Lisandro Martinez.

“In our opinion, this is a clear foul. If the head referee missed it on the pitch, VAR must intervene,” he said.

Why was no penalty awarded in the Salah incident?

The incident involving Mohamed Salah and Julian Alvarez late in the game also caused protests from the Egyptian side.

Collina assessed this episode differently. He stated that the defender played the ball first, followed by normal football contact.

“If the defender plays the ball first and then normal football contact occurs, it is not considered a foul,” Collina emphasized.

Referees' decision assessed consistently

According to the FIFA Referees Committee Chairman, both the on-field referee and VAR deemed the situation involving Salah as normal football contact.

Therefore, no grounds were seen to award a penalty in this episode.

Argentina reached the quarter-finals in dramatic fashion

Recall that Argentina, despite trailing 0-2 in this match, eventually won 3-2.

The reigning world champions thus advanced to the quarter-finals. However, the VAR decisions in the game against Egypt remain one of the most discussed topics of the World Cup.