Bitter Germans take pop at England after Lionesses’ magical Euro win ‘we were robbed!’

German media have taken aim at England by claiming they were robbed in their 2-1 defeat by England in the Euro 2022 final. Bild suggests that Die Nationalelf were denied a clear penalty when the score was still 0-0 after the ball accidentally hit Leah Williamson’s hand in a goalmouth scramble. 

The Lionesses made history by becoming the first England team to ever win the European Championships. It was also the country’s first major footballing success since they won the World Cup, against the same opposition, in 1966. 

The moment of controversy came in the 25th minute following a German corner. It was flicked on by Sara Dabritz before a goalmouth scramble ensued with the chance eventually missed. In the chaos it looked like the ball may have hit Williamson’s arm however despite being checked by VAR nothing was given.

For Bild, the handball claim harked back to that World Cup final with the paper claiming the country was ‘cheated again’ at Wembley and the incident was a ‘scam’. Their headline reads: ‘Even with video proof, we were robbed’. The third goal in England’s legendary success in 1966 has long been the subject of controversy and debate with replays suggesting Geoff Hurst’s shot did not cross the line. 

RELIVE THE WIN: England 2-1 Germany: Lionesses WIN Euro 2022 final as Wembley goes absolutely wild

It was the most crucial moment in the final as England went on to win 4-2 to win the tournament for the first and only time. Now for the bitter Germans, history has repeated itself. 

They even went out of their way to bring on their own refereeing expert. On the issue former German football referee Thorsten Kinhofer said: “For me it’s a crystal clear handball. The hand is above shoulder height, for me it is incomprehensible that there was no indication from the VAR referee.”

Die Nationelf’s coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg was also keen to highlight the incident in the aftermath of the game. 

“‘I’m thinking about the situation at 0-0, there was a clear situation in the box which was a clear handball,” she said. “VAR looked at it but didn’t give it. Why didn’t the referee look at it? That hurt a little.

“We wanted to play courageously to get the first goal and play with a high press. When we actually had the ball more, we conceded the goal.

“In extra-time the 2-1 was just a bit unlucky. Maybe the penalty should have decided it.” 

Despite her misgivings about the penalty she was keen to stress that the Lionesses were good value for the trophy given their performance against her team. 

“England are deserved champions,” she explained. “They win hard like that and look at the support they have got.

“If you score two goals against Germany, you are deserved champions. Congratulations to them.”