Egyptian Mostafa Ziko, the striker of his country's national football team, said that 'strange things' happened during the match between the Pharaohs and Argentina on Tuesday evening, in the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup. The Egyptians squandered their 2-0 lead until the 79th minute, conceding three late goals to lose 2-3 against the defending champions, who barely advanced to the quarterfinals and await the winner of the Colombia vs. Switzerland match. In a statement to beIN Sports, Ziko, with tears streaming down his face in front of cameras, lamenting the missed qualification opportunity, said: 'We played a great match against the world champions; I don't know what happened in the second half.' He continued: 'There were strange things that happened, the whole world saw them, as clear as the sun,' while expressing pride in his team's performance, his teammates, and the fans who supported the Pharaohs since the start of the tournament. Ziko, who scored Egypt's second goal in the match and two goals in the World Cup, apologized to the fans after leaving the tournament. He explained: 'From the start of the match, we were not afraid of anything, we entered to win,' and repeated: 'In the second half, strange things happened, questionable fouls, and a goal for us was disallowed, and I don't understand why.' Ziko scored two goals against Argentina; the first was disallowed after a VAR review, and the second was counted, strengthening the Egyptians' lead. But the 2022 champions scored three goals starting from the 79th minute, turning their deficit into a hard-fought victory.