The rejection of this goal made even the expert thoughtful: “Yes, as a football fan, it feels bad” | Sport

European Football Championships on channels 14.6.–14.7. Go to the competition website from this link.

The rule reform brought to the European Football Championships has looked like a successful addition to the eyes of an experienced judge.

Urheilu’s referee expert Jan-Peter Aravirta completed 400 Veikkausliiga matches as an assistant referee in midsummer week and shared his thoughts on the events of the first two match rounds of European Championship football on Saturday.

The most significant observation is that the referees have obtained a peace of work.

– According to the new rule, only the captain can talk to the referee. That’s a big deal. Now, there have been very few conflicts where many players would have come near the referees or mass gatherings. The judges have been able to do their work in peace, Aravirta said in connection with the evening match between Belgium and Romania.

– The referees can better explain the background of the decisions to one player. It’s easier when there aren’t 5-10 players around.

There are exceptions. Italy’s captain is a goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarummawho received a warning in the top match of Group B against Spain after protesting the referee’s decision.

– Donnarumma came 25 meters away to protest the situation. He’s the captain, but he still doesn’t have that right. That’s why he deservedly got a card.

The most exciting situations of the tournament so far have been the disallowed goals. On Friday, Holland was amazed how the English referees, after a long video review, rejected the 1-0 goal into the French net as offside.

Except was Denzel Dumfries did not touch the ball, but the goal was disallowed precisely as a result of his actions.

– It was not an easy situation. It was visible from the jury, because the decision did not come immediately. Dumfries was clearly in an offside position when the shot went off, Aravirta explained and said that the offside rejection was based on the position of Dumfries, the French goalkeeper Mike Maignan to the road.

– The goalkeeper could have had a chance to at least try to block the ball, if Dumfries had not stood right in his trajectory. The question remained, could he have done anything about the situation? Possibly not, but he still had a chance to at least try to parry. Rightfully so, the referees rejected the goal.

Another situation that required interpretation was Belgium’s disallowed goal in the opening round against the Czech Republic. Romelu Lukaku’s the goal was celebrated for a long time before the referee disallowed the hit. The reason was a slight sleight of hand before the ball was even passed to the attacker.

– On the field, no one reacted to the situation other than the closest defender. That’s why it’s understandable that even the jury didn’t notice the small hit behind the players. When you look at the situation, the hand does go towards the ball, Aravirta stated.

Especially in Belgium, the understanding of the VAR video referee system is being tested. Belgium had two goals disallowed in the first match after video reviews. In the second match played on Saturday, Lukaku completed the goal for Belgium again, but the referee’s hand was raised almost a minute after the hit. The referee on the field did not see the offside, and based on the line drawn on the VAR image, it was a matter of a couple of centimeters.

– Yes, as a football fan, it feels bad when a goal like this is conceded. But technology has been brought to football and we live with it, Aravirta stated.

Fortunately, Belgium also scored two accepted goals on Saturday and got a victory over Romania, which means that all the teams in Group E are tied on points before the last round of matches.

We were also careful in Saturday’s previous match. Portugal beat Turkey 3-0, but the AC Milan winger With Rafael Leão didn’t quite click. Leão lost the ball to a defender’s tackle, but followed up with a tiger leap at the edge of the penalty area. The referee did not go cheap, but gave Leão a yellow card.

Strangely enough, Leão got a card for the same reason in Portugal’s first match as well. Two cautions automatically result in a suspension, so Leão will be sidelined for Portugal’s final group stage match due to his jumping.

Portugal secured their place in the next round on Saturday, so Leão’s absence shouldn’t be too bad. Three of the playoff teams are known, as Germany and Spain are also sure to participate.

There is still one round of matches to be played in the group stage. It starts today when the A group is played to the end. Germany will face Switzerland and Scotland will face Hungary. The matches will be played back-to-back at 10 p.m.

Switzerland is firmly in the second place, but Scotland could still push it into the comparison of the best group threes with a win. Hungary, with no points, cannot advance directly to the playoffs, but a win over Scotland could send it to the playoffs as one of the top four in the group.

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