Tottenham Hotspur’s manager, Ange Postecoglou, issued a resolute response to critics who questioned his team’s tactics during their exhilarating clash with Chelsea.
Ange Postecoglou Delivers Resolute Response to Critics Following Tottenham’s Thrilling Defeat to Chelsea
In the wake of Tottenham Hotspur’s dramatic loss to Chelsea in a Monday night football spectacle, manager Ange Postecoglou didn’t mince words when addressing questions about his team’s tactical approach, especially in the face of adversity with just nine players on the pitch.
Postecoglou’s response to the media exuded unwavering determination,
“It’s who we are mate.”
He continued: “Even with five men, mate we’ll have a crack.
“It’s who we are… and we’re still in the stages of building a team here and a style of play and I’m not going to chase some short-term fix for what I believe is going to be important for us in the long-term.”
When asked if he was disappointed with the red cards, Postecoglou added: “No, not really. It’s part of football. Romero’s been outstanding for us, he’s a very physical sort of defender and that’s part of his strength.
“Obviously he went a bit too far today, according to the referee, and you’ve got to accept that.
“I thought Destiny was a bit unlucky, I thought there were a number of challenges out there that probably went unpunished. But again, he’s only a young man, he’ll learn from that.”
Ange Postecoglou Expresses Concern Over VAR’s Impact on Referees’ Authority Following Tottenham’s 4-1 Loss to Chelsea
In the aftermath of a high-octane clash between Tottenham and Chelsea that featured five disallowed goals, two red cards, a penalty, and two Spurs players leaving the field due to injury in the first half, manager Ange Postecoglou didn’t hold back in his critique of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system.
The match was heavily influenced by VAR, with two out of nine crucial decisions being referred to the video referee, prompting Postecoglou to lament the diminishing authority of the on-field referees.
“It’s hard to analyse from a football perspective,” said Postecoglou.
“We’re left with a result which is disappointing, but (I’m) super-proud of the players’ efforts and will and desire to get something from the game.
“(Lengthy VAR pauses) are going to become the norm, I think it’s where the game is heading. Unfortunately it’s how we’re going to have to watch and participate in football from now on.
“I don’t like it. I don’t like the standing around, the whole theatre around waiting for decisions. But I know I’m in the wilderness on that.
“In my 26 years, I was always prepared to accept the referee’s decision, good, bad or otherwise, and I’ve had some shockers in my career. I’ve had some go my way as well.
“I’ll cop that because I just want the game to be played. But when we’re complaining about decisions every week, this is what’s going to happen.
“People are going to forensically scrutinise everything to make sure they’re comfortable it’s right, and even at the end of that, we’re still not happy.
“It’s just diminishing the authority of the referee. You can’t tell me referees are in control of games. They’re not. Control is outside of that, but that’s where the game’s going. You have to accept it and try and deal with it.”
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