Denmark goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel made his feelings known towards the officiating for his nation’s Euro 2024 affair with Germany, in which they lost 2-0, while Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou, working as a pundit for ITV, also publicly vented his frustration over the use of VAR.
It was a night of controversy during the last 16 tie. Nico Schlotterbeck had an early goal disallowed for a foul in the build-up, and in the second half, Joachim Andersen also had an effort disallowed for a tight offside, before Die Mannschaft were then awarded a penalty following a VAR intervention. Andersen was judged to have handled the ball in the box after it struck him from close range.
Speaking after the final whistle, Danish goalkeeper Schmeichel gave a frank assessment of the decisions made during the game. Asked about how he was feeling following the result, he said:
“I think it’s a mixture of disappointment, anger, rage right – a bit of everything at the moment.”
Asked about the origin of his whirlwind of emotions, the former Leicester City man, a glovesman who could’ve played for England, said that after his 23-year career, the rules are yet to make sense to him.
“I’ve played professionally for 23 years, I still don’t know the rules yet. The offside’s the offside. It can be over the line, it can’t be just a little bit over the line. It is what it is.
Referring to the incident involving his compatriot Andersen, the 37-year-old said: “I’m not sure what a player is supposed to do when he’s running and the ball is whacked at his hand from, what, a yard away. Not really sure what he’s supposed to do with his arm. There was definitely a sense that the margins were on their side today.”
Postecoglou’s Explosive Rant about VAR
‘This is not on Michael Oliver’
Claiming that proximity should be a mitigating factor in such cases, the general consensus of those on the ITV panel was that Andersen should feel hard done by, with Arsenal legend Ian Wright suggesting that such a decision would ‘never sit right with him’.
In terms of Postecoglou’s view, when the Greek-Australian was quizzed about the efficiency of English referees – and Michael Oliver, in particular – at the summer tournament, he said that his issue lies with VAR rather than the respective men in black.
“That’s the issue. Michael Oliver is not making this decision. That’s been my issue all along. He saw the action, he deemed it wasn’t necessary to be a penalty. That’s my problem. If I hear one more person saying that they’re [VAR] not re-refereeing the game, I will blow up. Seriously, that is exactly what they do.
Continuing his explosive rant, he suggested that this issue is not by virtue of his bad performance but instead on VAR, which is supposed to be definitive. Insisting that he believes the decision made was ‘quite an easy one’, Postecoglou backed Oliver.
“That is not why we brought in technology, for that decision. That decision, to me, is quite an easy one. If that wasn’t paid [given], we wouldn’t be talking about it tomorrow. This is not on Michael Oliver.
“We’re criticising technology, which is what I’ve criticised consistently. I fully back the referee. If he didn’t pay that [give that], if he did pay that, we’d say ‘okay’. Technology is supposed to be definitive.”
Kasper Hjulmand Expresses VAR Fury
Also aggrieved by the officiating and use of VAR on show was Denmark manager Kasper Hjulmand. On the back of their Euro 2024 exit, which was temporarily halted due to poor weather conditions, the 52-year-old, per MailOnline, had some choice words for the technology, which he claims needs to be quicker.
After congratulating the host nation on their Round of 16 triumph, Hjulmand exclaimed that the game was decided by two decisions focused around VAR, all while insisting that defenders should not be made to run with their hands out of the way.
“I must congratulate Germany but the game was decided by two VAR decisions,” he said. “I have the picture on my phone here. It is offside by one centimetre. And I am so tired of the ridiculous handball rule. We cannot make our defenders run with their hands behind their back.
“It’s frustrating. This is not how football is supposed to be. I’m not against VAR, but we have to be quicker and improve it. In my opinion, the decision should be as clear as the moon and not like we saw today.”