Olaleye Idowu
Spain defender Marc Cucurella has claimed that UEFA changed the rules because of a controversial handball he was involved in during a Euro 2024 quarter-final clash against Germany.
Cucurella has, however, insisted that it was deliberate.
The ball struck Cucurella’s arm inside the box, but the referee did not award a penalty.
Spain won the match 2-1 thanks to Mikel Merino’s stoppage-time header.
The decision called into question the subjectivity of handball calls under the laws at the time.
Cucurella told AS, “Yes, that handball has been talked about all over the world.
“In fact, UEFA recently came to give us a talk and used my handball against Germany as an example.
“And they told me it was because of me that they had to change the rules.”
He also denied that he purposely tried to handle the ball: “They took a shot at me from close range and the ball hit me, but I didn’t mean to hit it with my hand, I didn’t do it on purpose.
