Referee Admits Mistake That Cost Chelsea Against Tottenham

Former referee, Mike Dean has reportedly claimed he decided against interfering in a crucial VAR decision because he didn’t want to bother “a mate.”

Harry Kane scored an equalizer in the waning seconds of Chelsea’s match against Tottenham at Stamford Bridge last season that should not have stood.

That occurred as a result of Cristian Romero pulling Marc Cucurella down by the hair at the initial corner, which VAR ought to have resolved.

That day, which has since become famous for its tense conclusion involving a fiery clash between Antonio Conte and Thomas Tuchel. Dean served as the VAR.

What Did Mike Dean Say About The Incident?

According to talkSPORT, Dean acknowledged to Simon Jordan on his podcast Up Front that he chose not to step in because he didn’t want to antagonize further, his “mate” Anthony Taylor, who was serving as the referee at the time.

“I missed the stupid hair pull at Chelsea versus Tottenham which was pathetic from my point of view,” Dean told Jordan.

“It’s one of them where if I had my time again, what would I do? I’d send Anthony [Taylor] to the screen.

“We knew if I did send him to the screen… he’s cautioned both managers, he’s had a hell of a game, it’s been such a tough game end to end.

“I said to Anthony afterwards: ‘I just didn’t want to send you to the screen after what has gone on in the game’.

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“I didn’t want to send him up because he is a mate as well as a referee and I think I didn’t want to send him up. Because I didn’t want any more grief than he already had.

“If someone pulls their hair now it’s dead easy. It’s just a brainwave by me, a really bad call by me, and it kind of affected me as VAR going forward.”