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Ange Postecoglou has called on football to start respecting referee\u2019s decisions or risk losing officials entirely to technology, in what appeared to be a barb directed at Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta. <\/p>\n
Postecoglou watched on as his Tottenham side fell to pieces against Chelsea on Monday night. Defenders Cristian Romero and were both sent off as nine-man Spurs slumped to a 4-1 defeat.<\/p>\n
It followed Arsenal\u2019s 1-0 weekend defeat by Newcastle, which meant Manchester City were able to climb above both north London clubs to the top of the table with their 6-1 win over Bournemouth. <\/p>\n
But where Arteta was furious with decisions which he felt went against his side, and was backed up by an Arsenal club statement criticising the quality of officiating in the Premier League, Postecoglou warned that referees need more respect because criticism is \u201ceroding their authority\u201d on field.<\/p>\n
Asked whether he had any complaints over the two red cards, in a wild game which also saw three goals disallowed, Postecoglou \u2013 who was booked himself by referee Michael Oliver for stepping outside his technical area \u2013 said: \u201cAt some point you have to accept the referee\u2019s decision, that is how I grew up.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis constant erosion of the referee\u2019s authority is where the game is going to get \u2013 they are not going to have any authority. We are going to be under the control of someone with a TV screen a few miles away. The decision is the decision. In 26 years I have had plenty of bad decisions, I have had plenty fall in my favour. It is what it is.\u201d<\/p>\n
Postecoglou also said he \u201cdoes not like\u201d the amount of time it takes for VAR to come to their decisions, after a game which accumulated to 21 minutes of added time across both halves. <\/p>\n
The Australian believes there is a risk that football becomes increasingly run by Video Assistant Referees (VAR) watching on screens at the Premier League\u2019s headquarters at Stockley Park, rather than by officials on the pitch. <\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t like it, it is the way the game is going.\u201d Postecoglou told BBC Sport when asked about the VAR calls. \u201cSome of it is self inflicted because if we come out every week complaining about decision that is what will happen, every decision gets forensically checked and we will be sitting around for a long time in every game trying to figure out what is going on.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t like it but I am probably in the wilderness with that because I keep getting told that\u2019s where we want to go. I am too old school, I\u2019ll respect the referee\u2019s decision right or wrong. But it is the way the game is going.\u201d<\/p>\n
When giving a post-match interview to Sky Sports the Spurs boss added: \u201cThere will be a forensic study of every decision out there, I think that is the way the game is going and I don\u2019t like it. If you look at all that standing around we did today, maybe people enjoy that sort of thing but I\u2019d rather see us playing football.\u201d<\/p>\n
The defeat is Tottenham\u2019s first in the top-flight this season, and they stay a point behind league leaders Manchester City in second place. <\/p>\n