LONDON : Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou was left fuming despite their 3-1 Premier League win over Southampton on Sunday after the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) took nearly five minutes to chalk off a Spurs goal for offside.
Lucas Bergvall thought he had made it 2-0 from a set-piece in the 33rd minute when he found the bottom corner, but VAR ruled out the effort for a marginal offside after a check lasting four minutes and fifty seconds.
While impatient fans booed, Postecoglou was seen flipping an imaginary coin and playing rock-paper-scissors, as if to imply that it was all down to luck.
“If you told me a few years ago that we would be spending five minutes during a football game standing around I would never have believed you,” Postecoglou told reporters.
“They draw those lines (to check for offside) – is anyone convinced by those? This is not a slight on anyone… but the fact we’re waiting five minutes, I really don’t think that’s what technology was brought in for.
“I think it’s gone too far down the road for anyone to claw it back. We used to allow the assistants to make those decisions and we all accepted it.”
The 59-year-old manager said offside decisions were never meant to be “microscopically adjudged” and that he would welcome such decisions being made instantaneously.
The Premier League said semi-automated offside technology will be used for the first time later this month following successful testing in the FA Cup.
“I just can’t believe that this is what we brought it in for, to stand around for five minutes for something that in the end is still, in my view anyway, inconclusive,” Postecoglou added.
