Report: Match official not working this weekend after Chelsea and Spurs controversy

After controversy plagued the London derby between Spurs and Chelsea on Sunday, Mike Dean has not been allocated VAR duties for the upcoming round of Premier League games. Referee Anthony Taylor however, will officiate a fixture this weekend.

A heated affair between the London rivals ended in a 2-2 draw, with Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel claiming in his post-match interview that both of Spurs’ goals should not have stood. His comments about Taylor are now being investigated by the FA (Evening Standard).

Tottenham’s first goal, a long-range equaliser from Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, caused uproar in the Chelsea dugout for two reasons.

Firstly, the Blues believed Rodrigo Bentancur had fouled Kai Havertz at the other end of the pitch before Spurs launched a counter-attack. Replays did indicate Bentancur got the ball first, though there was still contact with the Chelsea attacker.

Secondly, Richarlison, who was in an offside position, may have impeded the view of Chelsea keeper Edouard Mendy, preventing him from stopping Hojbjerg’s effort. Both Anthony Taylor and Mike Dean in VAR saw no issue with this goal.

Then, in the build-up to Harry Kane’s 96th-minute match leveller, an incident in the box between Spurs defender Cristian Romero and Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella appeared to have been overlooked by match officials.

The nature of these controversies, twinned with Tuchel’s comments after the game, sparked an online petition from Chelsea fans to ban Anthony Taylor from refereeing their games in future. The petition had garnered over 100,000 signatures by Monday (Football.London).

While we are unlikely to see a respected official banned from overseeing a certain club’s fixtures, the fallout from the weekend’s game has seen recently-retired referee Mike Dean dropped from VAR duties for the next set of games.

A report from the Premier League indicates Dean has the week off for game week three of the Premier League season. The Mirror claimed the VAR had been ‘ditched’ from the fixture list. Anthony Taylor meanwhile will take charge of West Ham versus Brighton on Sunday.

Spurs Web Opinion

Unfortunately, mistakes happen, even with the introduction of VAR. To suggest that a tried and tested match official has an agenda against a certain club is ludicrous, and any efforts of an online petition are sure to be ignored by the Premier League. Nevertheless, it wouldn’t hurt to keep Anthony Taylor away from Stamford Bridge for a few weeks at least.

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