Denmark defender, Joachim Andersen, launched a scathing critique of VAR following two contentious calls that went against Denmark in their 2-0 loss to Germany at Euro 2024.
The hosts secured their place in the quarter-finals with second-half goals from Kai Havertz and Jamal Musiala, but the spotlight was on the technology after it ruled out Andersen’s goal and later penalized him for a handball.
Andersen appeared to have given Denmark the lead shortly after halftime, but his goal was disallowed due to Thomas Delaney being marginally offside.
The semi-automated offside system showed Delaney had strayed by a minuscule amount.
Shortly thereafter, Andersen conceded a penalty when David Raum’s cross struck his arm.
Initially, referee Michael Oliver dismissed the appeals but awarded the penalty upon reviewing the incident on the pitchside monitor.
Havertz converted the penalty, beating Kasper Schmeichel from the spot.
After the match, Andersen expressed his frustration with the decisions.
“It was crazy and not a penalty at all. I can’t run around with my arms behind my back and play football,” the defender told TV2. “He’s [Raum] half a metre away from me and hits the ball on my hand, so I can’t see what I could do to prevent it.”
Regarding his disallowed goal, Andersen said, “The offside call is also difficult to see. It’s so minimal that you really have to look for it. But the handball call is the craziest I’ve ever seen. Margins decided the game. If our goal had been allowed, I’m convinced we would have won the game.”
When asked if he had spoken to Oliver after the decisions, Andersen replied, “You can’t speak to the referees nowadays.”
Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou, serving as a pundit for ITV, echoed Andersen’s sentiments, criticizing VAR’s impact on matches.
“If I hear one more person say, they’re [VAR] not re-refereeing the game, I will blow up,” said Postecoglou, a known critic of the technology. “Seriously, that is exactly what they do. That is not why we brought in technology, for that decision, that decision to me is quite an easy one.”
A visibly frustrated Schmeichel admitted to ITV that he does not understand the handball rules in football.
“This is football nowadays,” he said. “I’ve played professionally now for 23 years and I still don’t know the rules yet.”
