In Tottenham’s 2-2 draw at Chelsea, Video Assistant Referee Mike Dean admits he should have suggested to referee Anthony Taylor that Cristian Romero’s hair pull on Marc Cucurella be reviewed for a possible red card.
Dean who was in charge of VAR for the contentious game at Stamford Bridge, decided against punishing Romero at the time.
Spurs striker Harry Kane nodded in from the subsequent corner to deny Chelsea victory.
This provoked nasty touchline fights between the two opposing benches.
What Did Mike Dean Say?
Dean acknowledged in his Daily Mail column, “No referee wants to be driving home from a game knowing they should have made a different call.
Mike Dean (VAR for Chelsea vs Tottenham):
“I got it wrong on the Romero/Cucurella hair pull.” pic.twitter.com/42UTjwzwR3
— LDN (@LDNFootbalI) August 18, 2022
“Sometimes in hindsight, you realise you could have acted differently.
“For the second goal by Harry Kane, I asked referee Anthony Taylor to wait while I looked at the incident involving Tottenham’s Cristian Romero and Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella.
“I could not award a free-kick as VAR, but I could recommend to Taylor that he visit the referee review area to consider a possible red card.
In the few seconds I had to study Romero pulling Cucurella’s hair, I didn’t deem it a violent act.
“I’ve since studied the footage, spoken to other referees and, upon reflection, I should have asked Taylor to visit his pitch-side monitor to take a look for himself. The referee on field always has the final say.
Related Stories: Cucurella Says Romero Hair Pull Was A Referee And VAR Error
“It goes to show that no matter how experienced you are, and I’ve spent more than two decades as a Premier League official, you are always learning.
“It’s disappointing for me as this was one incident in an otherwise very good weekend from our officials.”
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