Egypt are set to lodge a formal protest with FIFA about the performance of the referee during their 3-1 defeat by Russia in St Petersburg on Tuesday. Paraguayan Enrique Caceres is the man in question. “We want an investigation into the performance of the whole refereeing team,” Egyptian Football Association president Hany Abo Rida said. Abo Rida, who is also a FIFA Council member, said Egypt felt full-back Ahmed Fathi was pushed in the process of attempting to clear the ball two minutes into the second half and steered it into his own net to give Russia the lead.

He also felt there was a legitimate penalty appeal in the 78th minute for striker Marwan Mohsen, bundled over by Russia defender Ilya Kutepov. “The referee should have used VAR (the Video Assistant Referee system) to check and award the penalty. They should have also seen that Fathi had been pushed,” added Abo Rida. “It is our right to complain and ask for an investigation,” he said. Egypt suffered a second defeat at the tournament and an early elimination in their first World Cup appearance since 1990. They play their final Group A game against Saudi Arabia in a contest between two eliminated teams in Volgograd on Monday. “I know people in Egypt are not happy with our results but it is our first tournament in 28 years. We lacked experience,” Abo Rida said.