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Germany will not qualify for the knockout stages of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and some might think the Germans have a legitimate gripe over the way their round of 16 loss to Paraguay played out.
In the final minutes of the first half of extra time, German defender Jonathan Tah headed in a corner kick that would have given his team a 2-1 lead. However, it was determined that German defender Waldemar Anton had fouled Paraguayan goalkeeper Orlando Gill after a VAR review, disallowing the goal.
Germany then lost on penalties in arguably one of the biggest setbacks in men’s World Cup history. However, before Germany’s defeat, at least one former goalkeeper sided with the Germans on what happened.
“I don’t think it was a foul,” former Denmark and Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel said on FOX’s “World Cup Live” show between extra time. “Actually, I don’t think Anton did anything. He’s just there. The goalkeeper runs into him and I think they made a mistake.”
Not everyone on the panel agreed with Schmeichel. Former Nigerian midfielder John Obi Mikel argued that the striker’s position justified the referee’s whistle, pointing out that the player was blocking the goalkeeper without watching the play.
“I think it’s a foul,” Mikel said. “For me, when he interferes with the goalkeeper, you can see that the goalkeeper has his eyes on the ball. He has his eyes on the ball the whole time and the player just stays there. He’s not thinking about the ball. He’s not looking at the ball. And that’s exactly what happened. To me, it seems a little soft. But I think the referee made the right decision.”
Former U.S. forward Clint Dempsey broke the tie on the panel, choosing to support Schmeichel’s point of view.
“When you have a goalie who is in the goalie union and says it’s not a foul, then it’s not a foul,” Dempsey said.
The disallowed goal ultimately kept the game level, and Germany never had a better chance to take the lead than at that moment. She ended up losing on penalties, 4-3, with Tah missing a penalty in the final round before Paraguay’s José Canale scored, continuing a difficult streak for Germany in recent World Cups.
