UEFA have admitted that the contentious handball involving Spain’s Marc Cucurella against Germany in the quarter-final of Euro 2024 should have resulted in a penalty.
The governing body of European football have agreed that referee Anthony Taylor should have pointed to the spot for a penalty to Julian Nagelsmann’s side, according to a report from UEFA’s Referees Committee.
How The Penalty Incident Occured
This was perhaps one of the most controversial moments of Euro 2024, with Jamal Musiala’s strike in extra-time appearing to make contact with Cucurella’s arm, while the Chelsea defender was present inside Spain’s penalty area.
In a flash, English referee Taylor was swarmed by German players, including Musiala, Florian Wirtz, and Niclas Fullkrug, who led the appeals for a penalty.
Anthony Taylor turned deaf ears to their protest, with VAR Stuart Attwell backing his colleagues’ decision.
Subsequently, Spain went on to score a last-minute winner through Arsenal’s Mikel Merino to book their place in the semi-finals of Euro 2024 after Dani Olmo’s second-half strike had been canceled out by Florian Wirtz’s 89th-minute equalizer.
Marc Cucurella seemed to have his left arm down at his side, away from his body, with Musiala’s goal-bound effort making contact.
Germany boss Julian Nagelsmann was incensed by the call, and he voiced out his displeasure at the decision after the game, while Cucurella was booed by home fans in La Roja’s semi-final clash against France and the final against England.
Surprisingly, nearly 2 months after the incident and Spain’s triumph at Euro 2024, UEFA have also agreed with the thoughts of many that the penalty should have stood.
Germany Should Have Been Handed A Penalty For Marc Cucurella’s Handball In Their Euro 2024 Quarter-final Clash Against Spain – UEFA Shares
UEFA’s Referee Committee has told international referees that there was an error and that Taylor should have awarded a spot-kick to Germany, based on reports from Relevo.
The administrative refereeing team of the governing body of football in Europe also added that VAR Stuart Attwell should have also intervened.
Via reports from Relovo, UEFA shared: “In this case, the defender [Cucurella] stops the shot on goal with his arm, which is not very close to the body, making itself bigger, so a penalty kick should have been awarded.”
However, the committee also indicated that Marc Cucurella should not have received a yellow card for the infringement.
German fans were enraged by the decision not to hand the Die Mannschaft a penalty, with the national side’s coach criticizing the decision after the match as aforementioned.
Julian Nagelsmann Became Incensed After Anthony Taylor Failed To Hand Germany A Penalty In Their Euro 2024 Quarter-final Clash Against Spain
Anthony Taylor was reportedly heard being “loudly insulted” by Nagelsmann in his dressing room after the contentious call.
Julian Nagelsmann, who was seen teary-eyed after the game also maintained that his side didn’t deserve to lose against Luis de la Fuente’s side before calling for a revision of the handball rule.
Speaking in a presser after the intense clash between Germany and Spain on July 9, 2024, Nagelsmann said: “I don’t understand why we don’t take into account what is happening with the ball. If Musiala kicks it towards Stuttgart center and it hits the hand, I won’t say anything.
“But it was going towards goal. And for me, you should look at where it is going. Is it going into the clouds or is it going in the goal? In one case, it is a penalty; in the other, it is not. If it is going into the stands, then it is no penalty.”
The Handball Rule Should Be Made Simpler – Julian Nagelsmann Expressed
Julian Nagelsmann also called for the rule to be made simpler, stressing that one can’t talk about intentions.
The former Bayern Munich boss added: “The rule should be simpler. You can’t talk about intentions. You have to see where the ball is aimed.
“We have 50 robots that bring us our coffee so there should be an AI that calculates where the ball is going.”
Meanwhile, Spain defeated England 2-1 in the final on July 14, 2024, to win the European Championship for the 4th time in their history.
It can be said that if referee Anthony Taylor had handed the penalty to Germany and it was subsequently converted, Spain might not have ended up as champions.
