Virgil van Dijk criticized referee Felix Zwayer’s reaction following England’s victory over the Netherlands in their Euro 2024 semi-final on Wednesday evening.
England secured their spot in the Euro 2024 final and will face Spain at 8 pm on Sunday after Ollie Watkins’ 90th-minute goal clinched a 2-1 win against the Dutch.
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The Netherlands initially took the lead with Xavi Simons’ impressive long-range shot, but England was given a chance to equalize through a contentious penalty decision.
Denzel Dumfries tried to block a shot from Harry Kane but ended up clipping the England captain’s foot. After a lengthy review, the VAR team advised referee Zwayer to reconsider, leading the German official to award a penalty to Gareth Southgate’s side.
Kane converted the penalty to level the score, which angered the Netherlands players and coaching staff.
Speaking soon after the defeat, Van Dijk noted that Zwayer immediately left the pitch and suggested that the referee’s refusal to engage with the Dutch players and staff post-match “says it all.”
When asked about Zwayer’s performance by beIN Sports, Van Dijk responded: “I don’t know what to say, I don’t know if I should say something about this.
“But I think it says it all that the referee went in quite quickly after the game, had no time to shake his hand.”
When questioned by Dutch broadcaster NOS, Van Dijk added: “But to blame it on that, I don’t want to do that either. I just don’t know what to say. It hurts a lot.”
Van Dijk also lamented the Netherlands’ failure to capitalize on their opportunities as England grew stronger in the second half.
“If you concede it so late in the match, then that is of course terrible,” Van Dijk said.
“You put everything into it, everyone gives everything, and then when it falls like that in the last minute… that just sucks, sorry to say it like that.
“You have more possession and want to punish the little moments that you get. It felt like we could make it 2-1. But that didn’t happen and now we’re standing here empty-handed.”
Meanwhile, former Netherlands striker Pierre van Hooijdonk has called for Zwayer to be removed from UEFA officiating after the Netherlands’ Euro 2024 exit.
“They can thank Felix Zwayer. He really needs to be blacklisted,” Van Hooijdonk said. “Terrible.
“Also in the second half. A duel with Cody Gakpo where he simply blew his whistle again, ten meters from the linesman. Those are moments that were crucial in this match.
“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 on the spot in the final. Really terrible.”