Jurgen Klopp Criticizes Arsenal Following Germany's Defeat

The German national team's unexpected defeat to Paraguay in the World Cup quarter-finals and their subsequent exit from the tournament caused a huge stir in the football world. Controversial refereeing decisions in the match and Germany's unsuccessful run led to sharp protests from former Liverpool head coach Jurgen Klopp. While analyzing Germany's disallowed goal, Klopp also commented on the playing style of his Premier League rivals, Arsenal. This was reported by Goal.com news reports.

The score was 1-1 in regulation time. Julio Enciso opened the scoring for Paraguay, while Arsenal forward Kai Havertz restored the balance. However, a goal scored by Jonathan Tah in extra time was disallowed due to a foul on the goalkeeper. This situation decided the fate of the game, and Germany eventually lost in a penalty shootout, exiting a World Cup via penalties for the first time in their history.

Klopp's sharp views on Arsenal

Appearing on an analytical program on Magenta TV, Jurgen Klopp called the referees' decision incomprehensible. He linked his thoughts to the English league, pointing to Arsenal's actions in set-piece situations. According to Klopp, if Tah's goal was deemed a foul, then most of the London club's goals should also have been disallowed.

“If this goal is illegal, then Arsenal cannot be English champions. Because they score 60 percent of their goals in exactly this manner. If the ball crosses the goal line, it's a goal. Such decisions shatter a team's dreams. There are 500,000 ways to win in football; you just have to find one of them,” the specialist noted in a report by ixbt.com.

For reference, Arsenal set a record for goals from corner kicks in the Premier League during the 2025-26 season. The Londoners scored 19 of their 71 goals that season directly following corner kicks. Klopp highlighted this specific aspect to emphasize that the referees were unfair to Germany.

Germany head coach Julian Nagelsmann also could not hide his anger during the game. Team star Kai Havertz took responsibility for the defeat. Expressing regret over failing in the World Cup knockout stages for the second consecutive time, he apologized to the German fans.

The Paraguay national team secured a place in the quarter-finals with this victory. They defended deeply throughout the match and successfully repelled the attacks of the German machine. This defeat was a historic blow for Germany, as the team had previously won all four of its penalty shootouts in World Cup history.