Anger in Denmark: “You can’t ask a defender to run with his arms behind his back”

Kasper HjulmandDenmark coach, regretted this Saturday the penalty called in favor of Germany, due to a handball by Andersen, and remarked that he is “tired” of the rules regarding this fact within the area, after the defeat in the round of 16 of Euro 2024 against the German team by 2-0.

“I would like to congratulate Germany on their victory. We were under a lot of pressure in the first 15 minutes. We survived. It was pure survival. Then we got into the game. The offside is a maximum of one centimeter (in Andersen’s goal, annulled by the VAR). And then, 16 seconds later they give us a penalty,” he explained.

“I’m tired of the rules of the hand. It cannot be understood that they ask a defender to run with his arms behind his back. The defender has to run with his arms behind him and the opponent normally. It is a completely natural gesture. It hits a meter away. They are both things. It’s frustrating for our team. Going ahead 0-1 here against Germany would have changed things,” he continued at a press conference.

“Congratulations to Germany. They have a good team, they play well, I like what I see. Julian (Nagelsmann) is doing a good job. I wish him the best in the tournament,” he added.

Hjulmand recalled his team’s level against big rivals: “We have faced France and we have won. We have played against England four times and we have not lost in regulation time. “We played a very, very good game, but we still lack something, our ability to take risks and create chances.”