Disappointment and anger. These are the emotions of Denmark on the day after the elimination from the European Football Championship. The red and whites believed in it, and for a long time even managed to hold their own against the home team Germania only to then succumb to the blows of Havertz and Musiala. But what doesn’t go down well Ct Wheelman and his group is the race direction by thereferee Oliver and above all the continuous interventions of the VAR which would have influenced the match.
An evening all about VAR: many episodes
Let’s start with the incidents, because there were many during the match. In total, three goals were disallowed and a penalty was awarded to Germany for a handball by Andersen on a cross by Raum. In each circumstance, the intervention of the VAR was necessary because referee Oliver and his assistants on the pitch had essentially caught nothing. The numerous interruptions, combined with the weather issue that blocked the match for over 20 minutes, clearly influenced the judgment of the post making the atmosphere more nervous.
Coach Hjulmand’s outburst and the rules to be changed
At the end of the match, Denmark’s referee Kasper Hjulmand complained a lot about the refereeing. These are the coach’s words in the usual post-match press conference: “I have to congratulate Germany, but the match was decided by two VAR decisions. I have the photo on my phone! He’s offside by an inch. I’m not against VAR, but we need to be faster and improve it. In my opinion the decision should be clear as the moon and not like we saw today“.
There was also controversy over the penalty awarded in favour of Germany: “I’m fed up with the ridiculous handball rule – continues the 52-year-old from Aalborg in his bitter outburst -. We can’t make our defenders run with their hands behind their backs. It’s frustrating. Football shouldn’t be like this“.
Denmark’s final balance sheet
Regardless of the refereeing and VAR issues, the Danish coach still declared himself satisfied with what his team did in the face of a battleship like the Germans. The red and whites, however, closed the tournament without winning a match. After three draws in the group stage, yesterday’s defeat put a definitive point on the European Championship for Denmark. The exit of Eriksen and his teammates, however, was undoubtedly dignified with a positive final performance.
