Spain beat Germany in extra time, taking a 2-1 lead with a late header to secure their place in UEFA Euro 2024. Just before that, in the 105th minute, Germany's Jamal Musiala shot with his right foot towards the goal, and Spain's Marc Cucurella slid in to defend, but as he lowered his arm to his side, his left hand touched the ball.
The details of this incident, in which no penalty was imposed, are as follows:
The hand was not awarded in this case, do you agree with this decision? pic.twitter.com/tEcm0x0VtT
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) July 5, 2024
Many fans on social media thought this was a clear penalty.
This is getting out of hand. These referees are supposed to be the best. We have amateur referees at the Euros and the Copa America.
— Football Lounge (@FootballLoungee) July 5, 2024
That's a penalty…
— ⚽Santiago Alejandro⚽ (@SantiAlejandro_) July 5, 2024
Some thought the no-call was the right decision.
Judging by the reactions here, it appears I'm in the minority. No pen. Keep your arms down. There's not much he can do. I always say that intent isn't hard to judge in these situations. But I also think there are too many pens on handball.
(I think it's Germany by the way) https://t.co/Tu714IUMz1
— Steve Ceruti (@Ceruti) July 5, 2024
The rules of the game state that for players other than the goalkeeper, “Every time a player's hand/arm touches the ball, [handball]The rulebook further states that handball will be penalised if a player intentionally touches the ball with his hand or arm, or makes his body “unnaturally large” during play, or accidentally scores directly into the opponent's goal with his hand or arm.
The rule was discussed at UEFA in April last year.
This is one of those grey area plays that can be very tricky to call. At first glance, it looks like a clear handball, but if you re-read the rules of the game, you can make the argument that Cucurella was not using his body too much and did not intentionally touch the ball.
But such an explanation would be unconvincing to Germany's supporters.
In the end, there was no handball call and Spain advanced to face the winner of the match between France and Portugal on Tuesday.
