Toni Kroos has reacted to UEFA Referees Committee’s admittance that the contentious handball involving Spain’s Marc Cucurella against Germany in the quarter-final of Euro 2024 should have resulted in a penalty.
Kroos, who retired from football after the encounter, pointed out the timeframe it took for the administrative refereeing team of UEFA to “realize” that Cucurella had handled the ball.
Cheekily, Toni Kroos subsequently asked that after they acknowledged their errors can he proclaim himself a European champion before responding to his question by saying, “I don’t think so.”
The German great said: “It took them three months to realize it was a handball, something that almost everyone saw in just a second.”
“Thank you, it wasn’t that big of a deal (ironically)” 😄
“Can I proclaim myself European champion now that they’ve officially said it was mistake? I don’t think so”.
How The Handball Incident Involving Marc Cucurella That Was Snubbed By The Referee Occurred
The handball incident involving Marc Cucurella was one of the most controversial moments of Euro 2024.
Jamal Musiala struck the ball in extra-time and his effort appeared to have made contact with Cucurella’s arm, while the Chelsea defender was present inside Spain’s penalty area.
Quickly, English referee Taylor was swarmed by German players, including Musiala, Florian Wirtz, and Niclas Fullkrug, who led the appeals for a penalty.
However, Anthony Taylor turned deaf ears to their protest, with VAR Stuart Attwell backing his colleagues’ decision.
Spain went on to score a last-minute winner through Arsenal’s Mikel Merino to secure passage to the semi-finals of Euro 2024 after Dani Olmo’s second-half strike had been canceled out by Florian Wirtz’s 89th-minute equalizer.
La Roja also subsequently made it past the semi-finals, beating France 2-1, before identically submerging England on July 14, 2024, to claim the 2024 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 afterward converted, Spain might not have ended up as champions.
What Has Toni Kroos Being Up To After Retiring From Football
Kroos has been spending time with his family alongside working at his youth academy in Madrid.
Toni Kroos has also been involved in a small-pitch football competition called “The Icon League,” which he founded alongside live-streaming star and former footballer Elias Nerlich.
The tournament was launched on September 1, 2024, and it is a six-a-side tournament that fans can watch on the internet.
Fascinatingly, the teams play every Monday in Dusseldorf’s Castello, a multi-purpose event hall in Germany.
Toni Kroos’ Achievements?
The former Bayer Leverkusen man won several trophies in his stellar career, including; 1 FIFA World Cup, 7 league titles, and 6 UEFA Champions League crowns.
Toni Kroos’ Career Stats?
Toni Kroos made 718 club career appearances, scoring 62 goals and providing 161 assists in all competitions.
Internationally, the 34-year-old made 114 appearances for Germany, scoring 17 goals and providing 21 assists across all competitions.
Toni Kroos’ Family?
Kroos is married to long-term girlfriend Jessica Farber, who he tied the knot with on June 13, 2015.
They have three children together, a son; Leon, born in 2013, a daughter, Amelie, born in 2016, and a second son, Fin, born in 2019
