Mauricio Pochettino has outlined his grave misgivings about VAR and called on the authorities to postpone its introduction to the Premier League next season because there remain too many grey areas.
The video assistant referee has been used in the Carabao and FA cups and Pochettino says nobody has been entirely sure why and when the on‑field referee will turn to it, suggesting inconsistency is one of the problems.
The Tottenham manager does not believe the system is slick enough, which has led to lengthy delays while decisions have been reviewed. They are particularly damaging to the high‑tempo English game, he argues, where breaks in play feel more pronounced. Pochettino also says that football is about emotion, tension, intuition and even refereeing mistakes – and he fears VAR could dilute this.
Spurs visit Chelsea on Thursday night in the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg, having won the first leg 1-0 with a Harry Kane penalty awarded after VAR review.
Pochettino said: “It is a good idea to delay [VAR’s introduction to the Premier League] because if we don’t have all the information or don’t know how it will work or how we can better develop the system, it is better to stop for one year or more.
“Nobody in Europe is happy with VAR and what worries me is that there is going to be a situation where football starts to annoy the fans. If you stop for five minutes for a decision, I don’t know how they are going to behave.
“Goalline technology is the best but, after that, it is about how the referee perceives things. The emotion is not going to be there, the feelings and the tension. Maybe technically it is a handball but we know very well when it is intentional and only the referee and the players around can decide that. On the video, you cannot perceive that.”
Pochettino recalled his team’s FA Cup fifth-round replay win against Rochdale last season, which was marred by a series of long-winded and baffling VAR reviews, and he suggested that if supporters in Spain and Italy were having problems with the system, it would be much worse when it arrived in the Premier League.
“That’s because the game in England is more dynamic,” Pochettino said. “If you compare to Spain or Italy, the ball is in play more in England. Fans in this country are used to play, transition, corner, goal, boom. It is more instant.
“In the Rochdale replay there was an incident in the first half that took forever to decide. There were 10,000 less fans after half-time. That situation was difficult to accept and I’m not sure if you get a benefit. Those who are pro‑VAR say the technology will help but football is also about mistakes – players, managers and referees.
“I am telling the people responsible that we need information [on why and when VAR should be used] because if we don’t know, it is going to be a big problem.”
Pochettino’s quest for the first trophy of his 10-year managerial career will be back under the spotlight at Stamford Bridge and when he told a story about how he had been a serial accumulator of silverware as a schoolboy footballer, the punchline was that it was a long time ago.
“From the age of eight to 14 I played for a team called Centro Recreativo Unión y Cultura in Murphy and we’d win tournaments in the surrounding towns every weekend,” he said. “I’d get a trophy for winning, another for being the best player – always – and the top scorer, too. So sometimes three. I’ve kept all the trophies in my house in Murphy. There’s maybe 100 of them but they are rusty now.”
Pochettino will be without Dele Alli, Kane and Victor Wanyama, who are injured, and Son Heung-min, who is at the Asian Cup, but Moussa Sissoko and Lucas Moura are in contention after groin and knee injuries.
Pochettino was also asked about the notorious Battle of the Bridge from May 2016, which seems to symbolise the animosity between Spurs and Chelsea. “Yes but there is no Cesc Fàbregas now,” he replied, with a smile; Fàbregas left Chelsea for Monaco two weeks ago. “I always remember his comments. The players remember. When he said: ‘We would love that Leicester won the title.’ The relationship after that was much better between the players and the staff. It’s going to be a battle but a sporting battle.”