England were blasted by Rafael van der Vaart after clinching a "really unbelievable" win over the Netherlands at Euro 2024.
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Three Lions awarded controversial penaltyReferee Felix Zwayerunder scrutinyDutch legend Van der Vaart furious with resultWHAT HAPPENED?
England secured a dramatic 2-1 victory over the Netherlands in the Euro 2024 semi-final, setting the stage for a final showdown against Spain in Berlin on Sunday. The match, held on Wednesday night, saw Ollie Watkins score a last-minute winner, propelling Gareth Southgate’s team into the final.
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However, when Dutch defender Denzel Dumfries attempted to block a shot from England captain Harry Kane he was adjudged to have clipped Kane in the process. Initially, referee Felix Zwayer did not award a penalty. However, after a VAR review, Zwayer overturned his original decision, awarding the spot-kick to England and Kane converted the penalty, levelling the score.
WHAT VAN DER VAART SAID
Former Dutch footballers were quick to express their anger over the match's officiating. Rafael van der Vaart, who featured for Real Madrid and Tottenham during his playing career, was livid.
"I was getting so worked up about those English guys," he told . "What a sh*t team they are. Slowly, they didn't want to do anything anymore. They have such top players on the field. We didn't do much either. We had a few chances. There could have been so much more in it."
"I find it really unbelievable. When you see that second half, in a semi-final, and then such a lousy team… such top players on the field and I think they played well for half an hour. Keep going, show that you are the best. At a certain point, you just felt that the Netherlands were getting better and better. We were getting more and more out of it. We had two or three chances if they played out a bit better [Netherlands might've won]. And then in the last second [to lose it is hard to take]…."
WHAT VAN HOOIJDONK SAID
Pierre van Hooijdonk, the ex-striker who had successful stints at Celtic and Nottingham Forest, called for the referee to be banned from officiating in major matches.
"They (England) can thank Felix Zwayer. He really needs to be blacklisted. Terrible," Van Hooijdonk told
"Also in the second half. A duel with Cody Gakpo where he simply blew his whistle again, ten metres from the linesman. Those are moments that were crucial in this match. Where England was much better in the first half, the Netherlands really had the better of the game in the second half. The Dutch team did not come in front of the opponent’s goal much, but it was balanced.
"We can talk about it at length, but if you’re going to award a penalty for this then you could end up with eight of them in the final. Really terrible."