Pochettino calls for VAR delay

Pochettino is not a fan of the video assistant referee system, even though it helped Tottenham win their League Cup semi-final first leg against Chelsea earlier this month.

VAR awarded Tottenham a penalty after ruling Harry Kane was onside in the build-up to his foul.

There was confusion as the linesman did not keep up with play and there was a lengthy wait for VAR to confirm the decision before the Tottenham striker slotted home the match-winning spot-kick.

Pochettino and Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri criticised the system after that match.

Now Pochettino wants the governing bodies to wait until it is more refined before using it.

“For me, I think it is a good idea to delay because if we don’t have all the information and 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,” he said.

“That is my opinion if people ask me — I don’t know if (chairman) Daniel (Levy) will ask me or the Premier League.

“But watching every single game in Europe now, nobody is happy. I promise you — nobody! What worries me a bit is that there is going to be a situation where football starts to annoy fans.

“This business is so important and our fans — football fans — must be happy. If you stop for five minutes for a decision, I don’t know how they are going to behave.

“The Premier League today is the best spectacle in the world, maybe with the NFL or NBA in America. But certainly it is the best show in Europe or in football. So we need to be careful how we develop this system and how we use it.”