Should Cucurella goal have stood? Spain ‘furious’ after opener chalked off amid Tah comparisons

It was the moment that had the entire Spanish bench on their feet, and not in celebration. Marc Cucurella’s first-half strike was ruled out, the ref’s flag went up, and Spain were left fuming at a decision that’s already being pulled apart from Madrid to Manchester.

The goal was disallowed for offside, but replays suggested it was a desperately tight call. Spanish players and coaching staff were visibly incensed, and social media lit up almost instantly with comparisons to the Jonathan Tah incident earlier in the tournament, where a similarly marginal call went unpunished.

“If that’s offside, then half the goals this summer should have been chalked off,” was the general sentiment echoing across Spanish football forums within minutes of the final whistle.

The Tah comparison is doing the rounds for good reason. In that game, Tah appeared to be in an offside position before a goal was given; now Spain feel they’ve been on the wrong end of exactly the same inconsistency. Whether that’s fair or just tournament paranoia is genuinely up for debate.

VAR reviewed the decision and upheld it, which hasn’t exactly calmed anyone down. The technology is only as good as the lines it draws, and those lines, measured to fractions of a centimetre, carry enormous weight in a competition at this level.

Spain have every right to feel hard done by. Luis de la Fuente’s side were playing some of the best football of the tournament, and momentum matters. Having a legitimate-looking opener wiped out doesn’t just cost you a goal; it reshapes the entire psychological rhythm of the match.

Cucurella himself cut a frustrated figure, and you can hardly blame him. He’d made a driving run, connected cleanly, and had every reason to expect the ball to count.

The broader question this raises isn’t really about Spain at all. It’s about whether the current offside technology is delivering the consistency it promised, or whether it’s simply adding a veneer of precision to decisions that remain, at their core, debatable.

If tournaments keep throwing up these flashpoints, that conversation isn’t going away any time soon.