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Algeria has filed a formal complaint regarding alleged poor officiating during their 3-0 group stage loss to Argentina at this week's World Cup, a source directly familiar with the matter told Reuters.
The African nation's football federation sent a letter to FIFA's refereeing committee, specifically citing an incident in the first half where Argentina's Lionel Messi struck the calf of Algerian captain Aïssa Mandi.
Following the incident, Messi, who received no sanction, went on to score a hat-trick for the reigning 2022 World Cup champions.
The Algerian national team also claims that an elbow from Argentine midfielder Alexis Mac Allister to the face of Ibrahima Maza in the second half of the Group J match in Kansas City went unpunished by Polish referee Szymon Marciniak.
The experienced official, who refereed the 2022 World Cup final in Qatar where Argentina defeated France on penalties, was reportedly just a meter away from the incident when Mac Allister blocked Maza with a raised elbow, the Algerian football federation stated on Friday.
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