“The handball call is the craziest I've ever seen” - Joachim Andersen slams harsh penalty call against Germany
Denmark defender Joacjim Anderson has criticized the harsh penalty call against him during his side's 2-0 loss to Germany on Saturday (June 29). VAR stole the headlines after the game, with the Crystal Palace defender seeing a goal chalked off and a harsh penalty awarded against him in the Round of 16 at Euro 2024
The penalty deflated the Danish effort and after Kai Havertz converted the spot-kick, they conceded another goal to Jamal Musiala. In his post-match interview, Joachim Anderson slammed the decision to award the penalty against him, saying (via EuroFoot on X):
"It was crazy and not a penalty at all. I can't run around with my arms behind my back and play football. He's half a metre away from me and hits the ball on my hand, so I can't see what I could do to prevent it."
Anderson concluded his criticism of VAR:
"The offside call is also difficult to see. It's so minimal that you really have to look for it. But the handball call is the craziest I've ever seen. Margins decided the game. If our goal had been allowed, I'm convinced we would have won the game."
Denmark and Joachim Anderson will take pride in their performances at Euro 2024 despite being knocked out of the competition by Germany. The side conceded just four goals in their four games but only managed to score two.
Joachim Anderson goes from hero to zero against Germany
Crystal Palace defender Joachim Anderson had vastly different emotions over the course of a few minutes when Denmark clashed with Germany. The defender went from scoring what he thought was the game's opening goal to conceding a controversial penalty.
Anderson had enjoyed a decent game in the first half, keeping his side in the game despite the hosts having eight shots in the half. The second half would see all of his efforts go in vain, with his 48th-minute effort ruled out for offside before he was adjudged to have handled David Raum's cross.
Germany went on to secure a 2-0 victory and marched on to the quarter-finals where they will face Spain or Albania. Joachim Anderson will now have to put the match behind him and will be focused on helping his country qualify for the FIFA World Cup.