Thomas Muller issued a scathing assessment of VAR after Germany suffered a shock exit in the Round of 32. FIFA World Cup 2026, with a controversial decision to break Jonathan Tah’s extra goal, which ensured a great defeat for Paraguay.Speaking to German broadcaster Magenta TV after the game, Muller questioned the intervention that denied Germany what it believed was the winning goal in the 101st minute of extra time.“Honestly I don’t even know what the VAR is looking at. What kind of call is that? From everything I’ve seen, Germany have scored a legitimate goal. Jonathan Tah attacked the ball smartly, won it fairly and finished with authority. That’s football. This should not be removed,” said Muller.Germany were already celebrating when Tah headed home from a corner, but referee Jalal Jayed was instructed to review the incident after a VAR check. According to reports, the goal was missed due to Waldemar Anton’s actions against Paraguayan player Orlando Gill during the build-up.Muller, however, was not satisfied with the idea and argued that Germany had been treated unfairly during the crisis.“We, the Germans, feel that we have been used and robbed. This is wrong. This is daylight robbery on the biggest football stage,” he said. “If this is a mistake, then football has lost its stability because we have seen problems that are allowing the whole competition.
‘Moment erased’: Muller laments lost World Cup drama
For Muller, the disappointment went beyond the result, focusing on what he described as an impact on players who believed they had won the match.“You work your whole life to play at the World Cup, you fight for every ball, you finally score a goal that could be the winner, and then someone in the room a meter away decides to take that moment away,” he said. “It’s frustrating for every player on the field.”Germany lost the tournament on penalties after the match ended 1-1 after extra time, while Paraguay converted their advantage after Germany missed three goals in a tense game.Muller added that while he accepted defeat in the game, he struggled to accept the situation.“I can accept losing to a good team. I can accept missing an opportunity. But I can’t accept having a good goal ruled out because of an interpretation that no one understands. Germany deserves more than this, and football deserves more than this,” he said.
Paraguay stunned Germany as the tournament progressed
The defeat marked Germany’s first World Cup exit in the modern era, with Paraguay progressing to the round of 16 after one of the tournament’s most dangerous performances.The South American team, ranked 41st in the world compared to 10th in Germany, held on in the shootout after extra time following a disallowed Tah goal.The result adds to a growing list of controversies surrounding VAR in major leagues and is likely to deepen the debate over the role of technology in decisive knocks.
