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25th September 2024
11:37am BST
A leaked report on refereeing at Euro 2024 has identified one tournament-changing penalty that the board of referees say should have been given.
As ever, the Euros were a great time full of sun, beer gardens and footballing action, however, like with any football match or tournament, there was plenty of controversy as always.
Whether in the stands or on the pitch, there was plenty to talk about, with onslaughts of pitch invaders, dodgy VAR calls and a certain handball decision that led to massive outcry.
The match in question concerns Spain vs Germany in the quarter-finals of the competition, in which Spain ran out 2-1 winners after a late Mikel Merino goal in extra-time.
However, it was while the match was at 1-1, that Germany felt extremely hard done by when Jamal Musiala smashed a shot from outside the box on target that struck Marc Cucurella squarely on the hand.
Protests for a penalty erupted, however, English referee Anthony Taylor refused to give the penalty, while VAR Stuart Attwell agreed with the on-pitch decision.
Now, this decision has been identified as a mistake by UEFA's Referees’ Committee which reviews the performance of referees at major tournaments.
This report has been leaked by Spanish media, showing that the board believes the English referees made a mistake in not awarding the penalty.
Not only is this a bitter blow for the Germans, but for the English too, who lost to Spain in the final, begging the question of how things could have been different if the English referees had awarded Germany the penalty.
Retired Germany midfielder Toni Kroos, who played his last game in that quarter-final, expressed his frustration following news of the report.
"It took them three months to realise that there was a handball, something that almost everyone could see in a second. That reassures me a lot," he said.
Quoted by Spanish media outlet Marca, Kroos added: "Can I say that I am now European champion because it has been officially confirmed? I don't think so."
Although there still would have been plenty of variables, England fans can only imagine how things may have unfolded if Germany had been awarded that penalty - that's football.
