Germany cruised into the quarter-finals set for Stuttgart next Friday, following a 2-0 victory over Denmark, with goals from Kai Havertz and Jamal Musiala, in the European Championships’ round of 16. However, the game, which took place on Saturday night at the Westfalenstadion in Dortmund, was not without contoversy, attributable to two Video Assistant Referee (VAR) calls.
Denmark’s manager, Kasper Hjulmand, expressed his frustration over Thomas Delaney’s goal being disallowed for offside by a narrow margin of one centimetre, terming the offside rule as “ridiculous”. Adding to the controversy, a penalty was awarded to Germany following a lightweight contact of the ball with Andersen’s arm in the penalty area, a decision made by English referee Michael Oliver upon VAR consultation.
Havertz successfully converted this penalty into the opening goal of the game, leaving the scoreline at 1-0 in favour of Germany. German coach Julian Nagelsmann acknowledged the controversy but defended VAR saying it’s fairer than no VAR at all.
The game was further disrupted due to a thunderstorm which led to a suspension of play for 23 minutes and an unforeseen security breach at half-time when a masked person climbed into the stadium rafters. This resulted in Oliver briefing both team captains, Ilkay Gündogan and Schmeichel about the situation. The intruder was apprehended at the end of the match.
In a rapid response to what they perceived as a threat, Danish authorities recalled the incident from 2009 when Jonathan Richter lost a section of his leg due to a lightning strike. Richter’s trainer at the time had been Hjulmand from FC Nordsjælland.
The match had to be paused at 9.36pm while the score was still 0-0 as the stadium started to fill with water due to a heavy rainstorm. Play continued at 9.59pm after a brief warm-up and the ball was dropped at Toni Kroos’ feet by Oliver. As soon as the ball is close to Kroos’ foot, the Germans feel confident that they can recapture a title that they haven’t held since 1996.
Nagelsmann expressed his team’s intention of swiftly outmanoeuvring the opposition during the break and prided on their commendable performance in the first 20 minutes, despite facing significant resistance. He emphasised the importance of patience and seizing the right opportunities.
With 10 minutes left before the half-time, Germany was relentlessly attacking Schmeichel’s goal, recalling their previous unsuccessful attempts during the 1992 European final against Peter Schmeichel. Despite the Danes’ unyielding defence, the hosts were remarkable in their play.
The game almost took a turn towards Denmark’s favour during the compensational time of the first half when Musiala lost control of the ball. Christian Eriksen quickly passed it to Delaney, creating a direct race between Rasmus Højlund, Manchester United’s forward, and Manuel Neuer, Germany’s goalie. Højlund attempted to dodge Neuer, but the experienced goalkeeper managed to deflect it to Robert Andrich.
Finally, the persistent efforts paid off when Musiala secured the second goal in the 68th minute after successfully chasing a long pass and finishing in style, setting sights on Stuttgart.