😡 Arsenal not English champions: Klopp fumes over VAR call | OneFootball

After the bitter World Cup exit in the penalty shootout, the VAR decision to disallow Jonathan Tah’s goal in particular sparked debate. Waldemar Anton was judged to have fouled Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill in the buildup. That caused major frustration in the Germany camp.  

"It’s not just a scandal, it’s a complete scandal. That’s not even remotely a foul," Julian Nagelsmann said bluntly to ZDF. ZDF’s refereeing expert also took a similar view. "We’ve seen very different situations at the World Cup before, and the goalkeeper gets up immediately. That’s normal contact, never ever a foul. I’m at a loss for words," said Thorsten Kinhöfer. 

Patrick Ittrich, who was working for Magenta TV, criticized the VAR intervention: "For me, that’s not a clear and obvious error by the referee." Former referee Manuel Gräfe agreed. "It’s a joke," he told 'Bild', pointing to the incident involving Leon Goretzka in extra time, when he was being held in the penalty area. In Gräfe’s view, that foul should then also have been called, just like the Anton incident. "That is never a foul. There’s no holding, no pushing, no bringing him down. The Paraguayan simply tries it and gets rewarded. That is unacceptable at this level. It’s a farce," Gräfe continued.

Jürgen Klopp felt similarly when he was asked about the incident on Magenta TV after the final whistle. "If that goal is illegal, Arsenal won’t be English champions. We win the game if the ball goes in," he said, referring to Arsenal’s goals from corners last season.  

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.

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