Euro 2024: Van Dijk Aims Cheeky Dig at Anthony Taylor for Denying Netherlands ‘Fair’ Goal

• Virgil van Dijk aimed a subtle dig at Anthony Taylor after the English referee's contentious call denied the Netherlands a win
• Taylor chalked off Xavi Simons' goal as the Dutch played out a goalless draw with France, the first 0-0 scoreline at Euro 2024
• While the Oranje will rue the disallowed goal, they will take solace in the fact that they sit at the top of Group D with four points

Netherlands captain, Virgil van Dijk, has voiced his dissatisfaction with English referee Anthony Taylor for disallowing Xavi Simons' goal in their Group D match against France on Friday night.

A contentious offside ruling deprived the Dutch of a significant victory over one of the pre-tournament favourites, resulting in Euro 2024's first goalless draw.

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Anthony Taylor's controversial offside call

Simons appeared to break the deadlock with 21 minutes remaining, but Taylor annulled the goal, citing Denzel Dumfries being in an offside position and interfering with goalkeeper Mike Maignan.

The video assistant referee, Stuart Atwell, conducted an extensive review while fans in the stadium, unable to see the replay, expressed their frustration until the on-field decision was upheld, The Telegraph reports.

The incident was one of the first major VAR controversies of the tournament, along with Romelu Lukaku's disallowed goal due to a Lois Openda's handball in Belgium's 1-0 loss to Slovakia.

Van Dijk aims dig at Anthony Taylor

The ruling has sparked divided opinions among fans, but Van Dijk is convinced that the referee's decision was incorrect, costing them a legitimate goal.

"We scored a goal that is a fair goal, he had no chance to get into that corner... But yeah, the English referee decided to disallow it," the Liverpool defender told the press, as cited by Centre Goals.

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Disallowed goal leaves Dutch boss frustrated

In a related article, Sports Brief reported that Anthony Taylor's controversial call left Netherlands manager Ronald Koeman frustrated, and he voiced his dissatisfaction in his post-match comments.

He contended that the English referee should have awarded the goal, given the narrow margins involved.

Koeman, the former Barcelona manager, criticised the extended decision-making process for offside calls, arguing that if there is significant doubt, the goal should be given.