“Never a penalty, if I was a Dutch fan I’d be absolutely raging” - England legend delivers verdict on Harry Kane penalty in Euro 2024 semi-final
England great Alan Shearer has questioned the penalty awarded to the Three Lions in their Euro 2024 semi-final win over the Netherlands. He claimed it was Harry Kane who caught Denzel Dumfries in his follow-through, and not the other way round, as the referee ruled after VAR's intervention.
Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast, Shearer said that England were lucky to get the call. He added that he would be furious if he was a Netherlands fan and the penalty was awarded against his team. He said:
"Never ever, ever a penalty for me! Never a penalty, If I was a Dutch fan I'd be absolutely raging that was given against them. The defender is actually trying to block the ball and it's only because of Harry Kane's follow through that he connects with the defender."
He added:
"The referee didn't give it [at first], so for then the VAR to give it, you've made an absolute howler. Remember this is what they told us, VAR is only going to be brought in for the howlers and not going to re-referee the game. That was a classic of them re-refereeing the game. We got lucky with that decision."
The Three Lions managed to equalize from the penalty through Harry Kane after Xavi Simons had handed the Netherlands an early lead. Ollie Watkins then scored in injury time to seal a 2-1 win and a spot in the final against Spain.
Gary Neville believes the England penalty decision was disgraceful
Gary Neville was also of the same opinion as Alan Shearer and stated that it was a disgraceful decision to give England the penalty. The former Manchester United defender claimed that not many England players called for the spot-kick as well. He said (via The Independent):
"As a defender, I think it's an absolutely disgraceful decision. To have that given against me as a penalty at any time, let alone in such an important game. He just goes in naturally to try and block the shot. It's not a penalty for me. It's nowhere near a penalty. I have to say, there weren't many England players asking for it either."
The Three Lions lost the Euro 2020 final to Italy in a penalty shootout and would hope to go all the way this summer.