Thomas Tuchel has doubled down on his VAR verdict from the Chelsea vs West Ham game and the German even praised the referee in question ahead of their Champions League opener against Dinamo Zagreb. Tuchel believed Jarrod Bowen made a foul on Edouard Mendy in the key incident of the game which eventually culminated in Maxwell Cornet’s disallowed ‘goal’.
Thomas Tuchel said: “It obviously went in our favour. There is a reason I think it went in our favour. It’s my opinion, and I don’t know if everyone shares the opinion that it’s very clear it’s a foul. The first goal we concede is very similar to the situation we had against Tottenham, but I leave it to you to decide if this goal should stand and whether this situation isn’t the same situation as against Tottenham. I will not comment anymore because what happened against Tottenham was so obvious, and I paid a lot of money for commenting, so I will not do it again.”
Ahead of the Dinamo Zagreb Champions League opener on Tuesday, the German was cautious not to say too much on VAR, with the Spurs fine still fresh in his mind.
Thomas Tuchel said: “What can I say now to be clear and to not pay a fine? Maybe it’s better if other people talk about it. Red cards, VAR decisions, goals given, decisions not taken where it’s obvious. Speaking about the last game, I understand the frustrations. I was happy the referee took the chance to review the situation. We will never have a game without mistakes but at least he gave everyone the feeling he took the decision. Now is maybe not the time for me to comment too much.”
