Former Germany star Ilkay Gundogan voiced strong disapproval of a disallowed extra-time goal that he believes significantly impacted his nation's shocking World Cup elimination by Paraguay. Germany's tournament run ended in the Round of 32 after a penalty shootout loss to Paraguay.
Gundogan took to social media to question the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) decision that overturned Jonathan Tah's 105th-minute header, which would have put Germany ahead 2-1. "Today’s team performance definitely doesn’t need any sugarcoating…but what the hell was that VAR decision?" Gundogan posted, translated from German. He added that in the Premier League, "they’d just give a weary smile over something like that – especially taking back a decision."
The disallowed goal stemmed from an apparent foul by defender Waldemar Anton on Paraguayan goalkeeper Orlando Gill. However, former Premier League referee Graham Scott argued that the contact was incidental and players are entitled to their space on the field. "Getting in an opponent’s way is not an offense in itself," Scott stated.
Former England captain Alan Shearer, who was part of the broadcast for the match, described the decision as "soft," noting that "Yes there’s contact, but it’s a contact sport."
The elimination marks another early exit for Germany, which has not advanced past the first knockout round since winning the World Cup in 2014. Paraguay secured their advancement to the next stage of the tournament via penalty kicks.