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Ange Postecoglou in prickly interview with reporter ranting on VAR and gesture to Spurs fans

Ange Postecoglou felt the heat in a rather prickly interview with a reporter on VAR, Spurs fans and ear cupping after defeat to Chelsea.

Postecoglou made a substitution, Pape Matar Sarr replaced Lucas Bergvall, a decision that was met with boos and chants of “you don’t know what you’re doing” from the away end.

Tottenham initially looked to have levelled through a long-range strike by substitute Pape Matar Sarr in the 69th minute.. However, the goal was disallowed after a lengthy VAR review determined that Sarr had fouled Chelsea’s Moises Caicedo in the build-up, leaving Tottenham empty-handed.

When Sarr’s goal went in, Postecoglou turned to the away end and cupped his ear, a gesture widely interpreted as a sarcastic or defiant response to the fans’ earlier taunting.

When Davison asked if it was a reaction to the fans’ boos, Postecoglou snapped, “Jesus mate, it’s incredible how things get interpreted. We’d just scored, I wanted them to get really excited.”

He insisted his intention was to rally the supporters, not to mock them, saying, “I wanted them to cheer – because they haven’t had a lot to cheer about.”

His tone grew defensive as he downplayed any suggestion of a rift, though pundits like former Spurs captain Jamie Redknapp later noted on Sky Sports that the gesture clearly showed tension between Postecoglou and the fanbase.

The manager’s frustration didn’t stop there—he also unleashed a rant about VAR and the long wait, which he has criticised repeatedly in the past.

Addressing the disallowed goal, he argued, “Look, it’s killing the game, man. The referee didn’t see it, he then needs to see it for six minutes, but he gets the right outcome so you’re happy.”

His sarcasm was evident as he challenged Davison’s perspective on the call, retorting, “Did you think it was a foul? Right, there you go.”

Postecoglou’s broader point was that VAR’s prolonged interventions disrupt the flow of football, a sentiment he’s expressed before, such as in December 2023 when he remarked, “I don’t like the way VAR is being used.”

Tottenham are languishing in 14th in the Premier League table, intensifying scrutiny on Postecoglou.

Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou, speaking to Sky Sports after Thursday’s 1-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge: “A difficult night, a tight game and not an easy place to come. We had to work hard to stay in the game. We let in a disappointing goal then fought our way back into the game but weren’t able to get anything out of it.

“It is still a work in progress. In the final third, we could’ve been a bit cleaner with our football but for the most part we handled it quite well.

“It’s a tough ask coming here, there was still enough there tonight to show the lads are getting back to the level we need.”

On the intervention of VAR after it ruled out a Pape Matar Sarr equaliser: “It’s killing the game mate, it’s not the same game it used to be.

“You are standing around for 12 minutes. It’s just killing the game, but no-one cares about that – they just love the drama and controversy and I’m sure there will be 24 hours’ discussion about it and that’s what everyone wants. They’re not really interested that it’s killing the spectacle of the game.

“If a referee sees that and he needs to see it for six minutes, what’s clear and obvious about it?”

 

On claims he cupped his ears towards Spurs fans: “Oh, jeez mate. It is incredible. We just scored – I wanted to hear them cheer, I wanted them to get excited. I wanted to win the game with the momentum – it wasn’t the first time my substitution was booed.

“I am at some disconnect with the world these days – I don’t know. Maybe you are right.”

When asked about the incident where he appeared to cups his ears to the Spurs fans, manager Ange Postecoglou said: “Jeez mate, it’s incredible how things get interpreted. We’d just scored, I just wanted to hear them cheer. Because we’d been through a tough time, and I thought it was a cracking goal.

“I wanted them to get really excited. I felt at that point we could potentially go on and win the game. I just felt momentum was on our [side]. It doesn’t bother me. It’s not the first time they’ve booed my substitutions or my decisions. That’s fine, they’re allowed to do that.

“But we’d just scored a goal, just scored an equaliser, I was just hoping we could get some excitement. If people want to read into that that somehow I’m trying to make a point about something, like I said, we’d been through a tough time, but I just felt there was a bit of a momentum shift there.

“If they get really behind the lads, I thought we had the momentum to finish on top of them.”

 

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca speaking to Sky Sports: “The result is an important part because we are close to the end of the season. At the same time we try to achieve the result playing in the way we want to play. At some moments the team was very good, then we don’t work every day, we don’t like to finish the game like we did in the last five minutes. If we want to become an important team we need to win in a dirty way, ugly way and [I’m] quite happy.

“Overall, I think it was a very good performance, I think we deserved to win the game we created enough chances already in the first half to score. In the last 10 minutes I think the team showed effort, togetherness, spirit and it’s something that we need.

“If you measure on the result then for sure if we achieve Champions League is an important thing but from my point of view, I try to see how we improve day by day and I can see, since the first day, I think the team is getting better and better.”

Chelsea defender Levi Colwill speaking to Sky Sports: “It was a tough one out there but it meant everything to me, the boys and the fans, especially. The fans were amazing out there. they got us through that I can tell you that.

“It was giving the Tottenham fans stick and that was what we needed. That gave us the extra 10 minutes, the runs at the end and the boys were buzzing from it. That was amazing.

“We felt comfortable. We knew how they play and we knew how to hurt them. Today we played really well and we could’ve scored way more chances.

“Everyone always says I have a load of potential but I don’t think potential means anything, you’ve got to show it every game. This season, at times, I have at times I haven’t. I need to keep progressing and learning because I know where I can be and under this gaffer he’ll take me there I’m sure.

“We need to win games at the end of the day. we’re fighting for Champions League. To win games we have to change style sometimes. We knew they have a high line and we have Nicolas Jackson. He’s a huge threat, to feet and in behind and we know if we play to his advantages we’ll score goals and today we did score goals through that.”

Twitter users reacted to Ange Postecoglou in a prickly interview with reporter ranting on VAR and the gesture to Spurs fans…

@pedalsingh: 19 clubs voted for VAR. and of course it’s killing the game. Stick your neck on the line then and vote against it 🤷🏽‍♂️ or shut up and put up!

@HarryBrent: This, fundamentally, is why VAR’s so unsatisfying. Even in situations where they get the decision right, if they have to spend 6 minutes working it out, it defeats the point of having the technology. Technology was brought in to eradicate mistakes – not to microscopically analyse every other decision. Clear and obvious was the promise, and it’s been broken since day one.

@caviarkopite: We all love to see a melt down, but in all fairness to Ange he is 100% correct, VAR is shambolic, the interpretation of those operating are too. It shouldn’t have ever been introduced, and if its removed would dramatically improve the sport as a whole, back to the good old times.

@HLTCO: People will inevitably focus on the unnecessarily prickly final minute of this interview with Postecoglou but I make him right about how long it takes VAR to make decisions. It’s a foul, we could all see it, it shouldn’t take 6 minutes to deal with.

@thfc_cil: As much as he’s a dickhead and want him gone, I really cant help but just feel sorry for Ange, he’s been thrown into the deep end and told to swim. He’s clearly not coping with all this pressure at all and just needs to be put out of his misery. Hope he has a good life man

@robinacoles: A quick glance at the replay showed that it was a foul. The issue is what the referee was doing looking at it 20 times on the pitch side monitor. Perhaps he was trying to decide if it was a red, he isn’t have been deciding if it was a foul

@NS_THFC: I wanted it to work with Ange but I fear the disconnect between him and our fans will see him leave. The results and performances have been poor, the confidence of the group is on the floor and it’s very difficult to recover from that. A change might be the only answer now.

@Cheryl_Hawk: No need for it incl telling the players to F off at the end. The media should also shut it – patronising questions looking to cause friction, nothing credible about the game asked at all. Embarrassing

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