Manchester City star Ruben Dias was left perplexed after the referee failed to award a penalty for Portugal during their 1-0 quarter-final defeat to Morocco.
Youssef En-Nesyri gave the African side the lead just before half time after he capitalised on a defensive mix-up at the back. Portugal felt that the should have had the chance to bring the game level moments later when Bruno Fernandes was brought down by Achraf Hakimi.
Following a VAR check, the officials decided that no further action needed to be taken and the play resumed. Protestations from the Portuguese players continued at the break - Fernandes making his anger particularly clear - and Dias was still smarting with the decision at full time.
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Speaking to the media, the City man said: "He raised the decisions of the game. He didn't smile at us, but the team was there, the attitude too.
"We tried to do everything we could. Penalty shot? It seemed very clear to us.
"It ended up scoring the game. A draw at that time it made everything go back to square one."
Dias' defensive partner Pepe had even stronger criticism for the Argentine referee, bringing his professionalism into question. "This is stronger than me and I'll have to say it," he added.
"It's unacceptable for an Argentine referee to referee our game. The feeling and arrogance of the referee on the field, I can bet everything I have that Argentina will be champions."
Portugal had their chances to break down a resilient Morocco side but both Cristiano Ronaldo and Joao Felix were denied in the second half. The African country made history with the result, becoming the first-ever team from their continent to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup.
They will now face France in Al Khor on Wednesday after Didier Deschamps' men beat England 2-1 in Saturday's late kick-off.
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