- Denmark drew 1-1 with England in their second match of Euro 2024 on Thursday
- Viewers noticed that Denmark did not fully comply with UEFA’s new ruling
- Listen to It all starts! Declan Rice ‘had a shock’ against Denmark – but is the Arsenal midfielder the victim?
Denmark have found a way around a new rule that has been one of the talking points of Euro 2024 so far during Thursday’s 1-1 draw against England.
The Danes put in an impressive performance against the Three Lions in Frankfurt, controlling large parts of the match and putting themselves in a good position to qualify for the knockout stages.
And the viewers noticed something during the match that was not the norm during this tournament.
UEFA made headlines on the eve of the competition – announcing a rule change aimed at preventing players from surrounding a referee after a controversial decision.
The rule states that the captain is the only player on each team who may discuss a decision made by the referee.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg was nominated to speak to the referee instead of the Denmark captain
If a player is not captain and approaches the referee to dispute a decision, he will be booked immediately.
However, goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel is Denmark’s captain, which meant midfielder Pierre Emile Hojbjerg was nominated to speak to the referee instead.
It’s the second time we’ve seen this in Germany, with Italy also taking the same approach.
Goalkeeper Donnarumma, recently named Italy captain, said he and his teammates had devised a plan to combat the rule ahead of their opener against Albania.
‘We have spoken [UEFA referees chief] Roberto Rossetti and it was very clear,” he said.
Kasper Schmeichel handed the responsibility to Hojbjerg because he is a goalkeeper
‘If there are situations near the penalty area, I go across and speak to the match officials, but before the matches we decide who will address the referees for situations far from the penalty area.
“Maybe it will be Jorginho or Nicolo Barella, we will decide that just before kick-off.”