‘We feel used and cheated’: Thomas Muller criticizes VAR after Germany’s World Cup heartbreak

Germany’s Jonathan Tah (4) leads the goal, which was disqualified after a VAR review. (AP photo) Thomas Muller delivered a scathing assessment of VAR after Germany suffered a shock round of 32 exit at the 2026 World Cup, with the controversial decision overturning Jonathan Taha’s extra-time goal that proved decisive in a dramatic defeat by Paraguay.In an interview with Germany’s Magenta TV after the match, Muller questioned the save that erased what Germany believed to be the winning goal in the 101st minute of extra time.“Honestly, I don’t know what VAR is looking at anymore. What is this call? From everything I saw, Germany scored a perfectly legitimate goal. Jonathan Tah attacked the ball brilliantly, won it fairly and finished with authority. That’s football. It should never have been taken,” Muller said.Germany were already celebrating when Tah headed home from a corner, but referee Jalal Jayed was instructed to review the incident following a VAR review. According to reports, the goal was disallowed due to an alleged foul by defender Waldemar Anton on Paraguayan goalkeeper Orlando Gill during the play-off.However, Muller was unconvinced by the decision and suggested that Germany had been treated unfairly at a crucial moment.“We Germans feel taken advantage of and cheated. This is wrong. This is robbery in broad daylight on football’s biggest stage,” he said. “If it’s a foul, then football has completely lost its consistency because we’ve seen much stronger challenges allowed throughout the tournament. Referees and VAR have been looking for something that just isn’t there.”

‘Moment erased’: Muller laments losing World Cup drama

For Muller, the frustration went beyond the result and he focused on what he described as the emotional impact on the players who believed they had won the game.“You work your whole life to play in the World Cup, you fight for every ball, you end up scoring what could be the winning goal and then someone sitting in a room hundreds of meters away decides to erase that moment,” he said. “That’s heartbreaking for every player on that field.Germany eventually lost the match on penalties after the match ended 1-1 after extra time, with Paraguay converting their chances while Germany missed three free kicks in a tense shootout.Muller added that while he could accept defeat in sport, he struggled to accept its manner.“I can accept losing to a better team. I can accept missed chances. But I can’t accept that a perfectly good goal was taken away because of an interpretation that no one understands. Germany deserves better than this and football deserves better than this,” he said.

Paraguay stun Germany as the tournament heats up

Defeat marks Germany’s earliest exit from the World Cup in the modern era as Paraguay progress to the last 16 after one of the biggest shocks of the tournament.The South American side, ranked 41st in the world compared to 10th-ranked Germany, held their nerve in the shootout after surviving extra time after a disallowed goal from Tahu.The result adds to a growing list of VAR-related controversies at major tournaments and is likely to intensify the debate over the role of technology in crucial knockout moments.