Chelsea vs. Tottenham: Ange Postecoglou says VAR might as well be AI

Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou bemoaned the time-consuming VAR process that saw Pape Sarr’s goal chopped off in their 1-0 defeat at Chelsea on Thursday and said football was heading towards being refereed by artificial intelligence.

Referee Craig Pawson was advised by VAR to check Sarr’s 69th-minute equaliser on the monitor and eventually chalked off the goal for a foul by the Spurs player in the build-up.

“It’s going to be refereed by AI soon,” Postecoglou told reporters after Thursday’s Premier League match.

“We might as well dispense with the players when some genius comes up with a game with no participants at some point. As referees aren’t refereeing.

“Whether I think its a foul or not, does not matter. VAR was called in for clear and obvious errors. How long did it take tonight? Six minutes. For a clear and obvious error.

“I don’t see how it’s benefiting our game. I don’t think anyone would have complained tonight if we just went with referees’ decisions.”

Spurs, who are 14th, host Southampton on Sunday before welcoming Eintracht Frankfurt for the first leg of their Europa League quarterfinal on Thursday.