Lukaku's goal was denied by technology that has never appeared in football

Highlight: Belgium unexpectedly lost 0-1 to Slovakia

In the 86th minute, when Belgium was still trailing Slovakia 1-0, striker Romelo Lukaku celebrated his goal enthusiastically after a close-range shot past goalkeeper Dubravka.

On the sidelines, Belgium coach Domenico Tedesco also ran along the touchline to celebrate wildly after seeing Slovakia's net shake.

Striker Lukaku (number 10) celebrates the equalizer 1-1 for Belgium in the 86th minute (Photo: Getty).

But the referee disallowed the goal after determining that Openda had handled the ball earlier (Photo: ITV).

However, the joy of the Belgian players was short-lived when referee Umut Meler received a signal from the VAR room to run to the sideline to review the VAR screen before deciding to disallow Lukaku's goal.

Accordingly, VAR technology determined that there was a mistake in letting the ball touch the hand of substitute player Lois Openda before assisting Lukaku to score. It is worth mentioning that to make the above decision, the referee was supported by a technology that has never appeared in football history, called the snickometer.

"The Snicko feature (short for snickometer) helps referees determine the impact of handball on the ball's flight and decide whether or not to disallow a goal," The Sun said about the reason why the referee disallowed Lukaku's goal.

The official match ball for Euro 2024, made by Adidas, has a motion-sensing microchip that can track every touch at a rate of 500 times per second. The system detected that Openda's hand had indeed made contact with the ball, despite the very small impact.

Notably, Lukaku was not only unlucky in the above situation but in the 55th minute, the Belgian striker was also denied a goal due to offside. This was the match in which Lukaku was considered a "sinner" for missing 3 good opportunities in front of Slovakia's goal, in addition, he was unlucky when he was denied two goals.

Meanwhile, talking about the situation where Lukaku was denied a goal due to the new technology applied, former Premier League striker Chris Sutton said the referee's decision was a big mistake: "It's ridiculous, it really is.

Openda didn't mean to put the ball in his path. That's harsh. In the Premier League that goal would have stood."

However, Christina Unkel, a refereeing expert at the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), explained: "The interpretation of handball has recently changed. It will be considered a deliberate foul because the arm is close to shoulder level, the arm is extended and the touch helps control the ball.

We've previously reported on how fans at home watching Euro 2024 will benefit from a cricket equivalent of a 'speedometer' this summer, and this is a prime example.

With the shocking loss to Slovakia, Belgium must win their final two matches against Ukraine and Romania to secure a ticket to the round of 16 of Euro 2024.

Vietnamese football fans can enjoy the full UEFA Euro 2024 Finals for free on TV360 at: https://tv360.vn/

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/lukaku-bi-tu-choi-ban-thang-boi-cong-nghe-chua-tung-xuat-hien-trong-bong-da-20240618094727044.htm