Postecoglou 'falling out of love' with football due to VAR / Photo: Glyn KIRK - AFP
Postecoglou 'falling out of love' with football due to VAR
Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou said on Friday he will no longer celebrate goals after being stung by Pape Sarr's disallowed effort in a 1-0 defeat to Chelsea.
Postecoglou cupped his ear towards the Spurs fans when Sarr's shot hit the net on Thursday, minutes after the Australian's decision to bring on the Senegal international for Lucas Bergvall had been met with chants of "you don't know what you're doing".
After a lengthy delay, the goal was disallowed for a foul by Sarr on Moises Caicedo earlier in the move.
Caicedo also had a goal ruled out after a long VAR check for offside.
Postecoglou said after the match that VAR was "killing the game" and spectacle as 12 minutes of time was added on due to the stoppages.
"I am falling out of love with the game because I loved celebrating goals," the former Celtic boss said at his pre-match press conference ahead of Southampton's visit to north London on Sunday.
"Last night I did and I'm paying a massive price for it. I'll make sure I don't do it again but I think that's kind of sad."
Postecoglou's future at the club appears to rest on the outcome of Tottenham's Europa League campaign.
Spurs sit 14th in the Premier League after a 16th defeat in 30 matches.
They face Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League quarter-finals as they aim to win the club's first trophy since 2008.
Postecoglou is hoping that any fan frustration towards him will be put aside to encourage the team in the closing weeks of the season.
"It's been a ridiculously challenging season on all fronts and every fan has the right to show their frustration," he added.
"It is up to us to try and find a way to get them back on board with what we're doing.
"I still can't get away from the fact we have a real massive opportunity for ourselves between now and the end of the season. I think it would be different if that didn't exist. It would be a tougher road to navigate.
"But I am hoping that irrespective of how the fans feel about me, what I'm doing and the project we've embarked on, I hope when the games come around, they just get behind the players and the team because they can make an enormous difference."
X.Bassam--al-Hayat
