Argentina v Morocco at Olympics mired in chaos following pitch invasion

The Argentina coach Javier Mascherano said he had never witnessed such a circus after a pitch invasion triggered a dramatic and long-delayed climax to the country’s 2-1 defeat against Morocco in their Olympic opener in Saint-Etienne on Wednesday.

The match on the first day of men’s football at the Games was mired in chaos after a pitch invasion forced it to be suspended for more than an hour. Play eventually resumed behind closed doors and although Cristian Medina thought he had salvaged a 2-2 draw for Argentina, when he scored deep into injury time, the goal was subsequently ruled out for offside by VAR when play resumed for a few minutes after the long stoppage to clear the stadium of fans.

The eventually ruled-out equaliser had sparked wild scenes at the Stade ­Geoffroy-­Guichard in Saint-Étienne, with objects also thrown at the South American ­players by spectators in what had been an angry climate throughout.

Argentina were booed by sections of the crowd in what appeared to be a clear response to footage ­showing their players chanting a song the French Football Federation has labelled “racist and discriminatory” following victory at the Copa América this month.

After Medina’s goal both sets of players were taken off the pitch by the referee, with Paris 2024’s ­official website deeming the contest to have been “interrupted”. It was ­eventually announced that the final three ­minutes of the game would be completed behind closed doors, which proved the case – but only after Medina’s 106th-minute strike was disallowed for an offside infringement in the build-up.

Mascherano said there had been a lack of communication from ­organisers about what was going to happen as the team sat in the dressing room before the resumption.

“I can’t explain what happened. We spent about an hour and a half in the dressing room where they never told us what was going to happen,” Mascherano told reporters.

“The Moroccan captains didn’t want to play, we didn’t want to continue, and fans threw things at us. It’s the biggest circus I’ve ever seen in my life, I don’t know why they spent an hour and 20 minutes ­reviewing a play. If there is offside in Medina’s goal let the game go on with the momentum we have, I don’t think the game should be played for three minutes after an hour and a half.

However, the former Argentina midfielder said he did not want to indulge in excessive complaining and had encouraged his team to focus on their upcoming Group B fixtures against Iraq and Ukraine.

“It’s no use complaining, we don’t like this kind of thing to happen but we have to turn the page, look for positive things and we will look for the two victories we need to qualify,” Mascherano said.

Argentina will next face Iraq in Lyon on Saturday.

Organisers said that they were ­working to understand the causes of the fan invasion and determine ­appropriate measures. All in all, it was an ugly start to the tournament and one that will bring into question the ability of those in charge to run a smooth and safe Games.

Argentina, gold medal winners in 2004 and 2008, were generally short of their best despite containing Copa América winners in Julián Álvarez, Nicolás Otamendi and the goalkeeper Gerónimo Rulli. ­Soufiane Rahimi put the Atlas Lions ahead following a superb passing move in the final seconds of the first half and Rahimi struck again from the penalty spot in the 49th minute.

Giuliano Simeone pulled one back for Mascherano’s side in the 68th minute and Argentina hit the frame of the goal twice before Medina secured what the midfielder thought was a last-gasp equaliser in this Group A encounter.

Meanwhile, Spain beat Uzbekistan 2-1 in Paris thanks to goals from Marc Pubill and Sergio Gómez either side of half-time. Uzbekistan, cheered by an ecstatic crowd, had equalised just before the break in the Group B match thanks to Eldor Shomurodov’s ­penalty following a VAR review on a foul by Pau Cubarsi.

“For me, Uzbekistan were no surprise,” the Spain coach, Santi Denia, said afterwards. “We have achieved our objective, but it’s been a very difficult game and now it is time to improve. That’s my job, I have to transmit better.

“I told the team at half-time to improve ball circulation, which was what we were missing. We have to improve that. If we do it we will have more options to achieve victory.”