“I didn’t think Dumfries was going through Harry Kane” - MLS icon Alexi Lalas makes bold claim on England penalty in Euro 2024 semi-final win
Former USMNT defender Alexi Lalas has shared his thoughts on England's contentious penalty in their UEFA Euro 2024 semi-final clash against the Netherlands. They won 2-1 in Dortmund on Wednesday (July 10) to set up the final against Spain in Berlin on Sunday.
The Three Lions saw themselves 1-0 behind after the seventh minute in the Euro 2024 semi-final against Oranje. Xavi Simons dispossessed Declan Rice and scored emphatically from just outside the box. However, just nine minutes later, England received a penalty.
After a few deflections in the penalty box, the ball rose a bit high and Harry Kane attempted a shot, which flew above the crossbar. In doing so, his leg hit defender Denzel Dumfries's leg as he was trying to block the shot. The England captain went down, appealing for a penalty.
The referee denied the claims but after a VAR check, the penalty was given. Kane scored from the spot to restore parity. Alexi Lalas has now shared his thoughts on the incident, saying on his State of the Union podcast:
“Everybody understands that you can’t go through somebody. That’s where I think this one is one of these [contentious] calls. Harry Kane shot the ball, so we’ve already established that a soccer player can put his foot at that height and not be a foul because he did that."
He added:
“As a player you also have the right to inhabit a space in front of somebody kicking the ball. In this moment, that’s what I think happened. I didn’t think [Dumfries] was going through Harry Kane. If you kick the ball and then with your follow through go into someone, that’s not necessarily a foul.
“But we’ve seen it called before, in other places on the field I’m sure it would’ve been a foul. It was a little suspect [to me though]."
England went on to win the game after Ollie Watkins scored the winning goal in the 90th minute.
England manager Gareth Southgate previews their Euro 2024 final against Spain
Gareth Southgate has asserted that England will need to be at their very best if they are to lift the Euro 2024 trophy on Sunday. He heaped praise on their opponents Spain and insisted that his side need to be perfect to beat La Roja.
Southgate said (via The Guardian):
“They have won a few trophies. They are a bloody good side. Let’s pitch it right. We have got to be perfect to win this game and we will have to find everything that we have got from within us.
“We have got players who have played lots of big matches so they will know what is required on the night but in the next couple of days we have got to get perfectly prepared as it is such a quick turnaround.”
Spain have beaten every side in the tournament they've faced so far. They beat Croatia 3-0, Italy 1-0, and Albania 1-0 in Group C, being the only team to have a perfect record during Euro 2024 group stages.
La Roja then beat Georgia 4-1 before getting past hosts Germany 2-1 after extra time. They beat France 2-1 in the Euro 2024 semi-final.