World Cup final referee responds to claims Messi goal shouldn't have stood

Szymon Marciniak, referee for the World Cup Final, responds to criticism that Lionel Messi’s second goal shouldn’t have counted.

Szymon Marciniak responded:

"The French didn't mention this photo, where you can see how there are seven Frenchmen on the pitch when Mbappé scores a goal.”

It’s unclear from combing through footage which goal exactly Marciniak referencing, but if accurate then there’s no denying that the whole thing essentially becomes a moot argument.

Why are the French media angry with Messi goal?

And it’s not just the supporters either because French newspaper L’Equipe fanned the flames of controversy in the wake of defeat by protesting Lionel Messi‘s second goal of the game.

Brandishing a provocative headline of: ‘Why Argentina’s third goal shouldn’t have been awarded,’ the publication noted how two of Lionel Scaloni’s substitutes were on the pitch before Messi bobbled home the rebound in extra time.

L’Equipe drew attention to Law 3, Paragraph 9 of the Laws of Football, which reads: “If, after a goal is scored, the referee becomes aware before play resumes that an additional person was on the pitch at the time the goal was scored: the referee must disallow the goal if the extra person was: a player, substitute, substituted player, sent off player or official of the team who scored the goal; play must be restarted with a direct free kick from the place where the extra person was.”

Who is Szymon Marciniak?

Marciniak, 41, is a former amateur footballer who became a FIFA-listed match official in 2011, refereeing matches in the Europa League, Champions League and UEFA World Cup qualifiers in the early 2010s.

The Płock-born official oversaw three matches at Euro 2016 and two games at the 2018 World Cup, before being chosen as the referee for the 2018 UEFA Super Cup between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid.

Marciniak missed out on Euro 2020 as a result of being diagnosed with tachycardia after contracting COVID-19, before recovering to become the first Pole to official a men’s World Cup final.