VAR admit Lo Celso red card decision was wrong after reckless challenge on Azpilicueta

Video Assistant Referees (VAR) on Saturday admitted to reaching the wrong decision after Tottenham’s Giovani Lo Celso avoided being sent off following a reckless challenge on Chelsea captain, Cesar Azpilicueta.

READ: EPL: Alonso, Giroud on target as Chelsea humble Tottenham

Chelsea ran out 2-1 winners in the contest but should have had it easier as Lo Celso, who stamped on Azpilicueta’s leg, was allowed to stay on the pitch despite his infringement.

The incident happened shortly after the second half commenced, with video assistant referee David Coote originally reaching the conclusion that the Argentine midfielder’s actions were completely accidental.

“We have been speaking to Stockley Park who have admitted they got the decision wrong and Lo Celso should have been sent off,” Jake Humphrey, who works for BT Sport, said on Twitter.

After the game, Lampard said the incident represented Just “another huge question mark” for VAR which was introduced to the Premier League this season.

“I was just waiting for the red card to be shown,” he said. “It’s just not good enough. Saying afterwards they made a mistake is not good enough. They had… a couple of minutes they took to try and get it right.”

Spurs manager Jose Mourinho said his team had been on the wrong end of similar decisions by VAR not to give red cards to opposing players in other games this season.

“Why they didn’t say (that) when they made the mistake against Liverpool and against Watford?” former Chelsea boss Mourinho asked. “I hope the noise is exactly the same.”

Premier League clubs will consider making changes to the way VAR reviews are used from next season, including the scant use by on-field referees of pitch-side monitors to review incidents themselves, the league’s chief executive Richard Masters said earlier this month.

Most of the controversy about the system has related to close offside calls often involving goals that are ruled out when an attacker is a few millimetres ahead of a defender.

Although, a poor run of form had weakened Chelsea’s grip on fourth spot but they controlled the lunchtime derby from the moment Frenchman Giroud, making his first league start since November, rifled home in the 15th minute.

Spaniard Alonso, back for only his seventh league start after falling out of favour under coach Frank Lampard, doubled the lead three minutes after the interval with a thumping left-foot finish at Stamford Bridge.