Olympic soccer CHAOS as Argentina and Morocco return to complete match
Argentina and Morocco’s players returned to the pitch to finish their opening match of the men’s Olympic football tournament over an hour after the match was delayed.
Both sets of teams were forced to leave the field after Moroccan fans invaded the pitch after Argentina had scored a equalising goal in the 106th minute of the match.
Argentina had fought back from 2-0 down to appear to have snatched a point in the match.
Players were led down the tunnel for their own safety after flare, bottles and cups were thrown at Argentina’s celebrating players.
Fans were instructed to leave the stadium, with messages on the big screen stating the match had been suspended.
Argentina and Morocco returned to the pitch to finish their group match at the Olympics
The match had been delayed for over an hour after pitch invasions after Argentina’s equaliser
Players were granted a 20 minute warm-up before resuming the match in Saint-Etienne
Argentina had believed they had scored a stoppage time equaliser when the match was halted
Fans had been ordered to leave the stadium with the match classed as being suspended
The referee ruled out Argentina’s equalising goal for offside when the match had resumed
Argentina had complained to referee Glenn Nyberg with Morocco’s 2-1 advantage restored
The match resumed behind closed doors with Argentina forced to chase another equaliser
Morocco held on to secure a 2-1 win in a dramatic start to the Olympic football tournament
The match was listed as being delayed with the score level at 2-2, with both Argentina and Morocco listing the match as a result on social media.
In remarkable scenes, players were then recalled to complete the closing stages of the match.
A VAR review on Argentina’s goal found that Medina had been offside, with Argentina’s equaliser subsequently ruled out.
Players were granted a 20 minute warm-up before a resumption at 7pm local time, four hours after the match had kicked off in Saint-Etienne.
The referee began the resumption of play by confirming Argentina’s equalising goal had been ruled out for offside.
Argentina were unable to find another equaliser in the three minutes that were played after the restart, with Morocco celebrating a 2-1 win in extraordinary circumstances.
