VAR expert Dale Johnson has claimed that a Tottenham star should have been sent off during their 4-3 defeat to Chelsea on Sunday. It was another embarrassing display from Ange Postecoglou's men, who threw away a two-goal lead as they capitulated against their London rivals. The result sees them sitting 11th in the Premier League table and having picked up one win in their last six.
Despite the final scoreline, one Spurs player can consider themselves fortunate not to be sent off, according to ESPN's Johnson. The man in question is Dejan Kulusevski, who avoided punishment for an elbow on Romeo Lavia that left the midfielder requiring stitches. Johnson has now revealed why he believes the wrong decision was made.
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Why Kulusevski Should've Been Sent Off vs Chelsea
ESPN's Johnson was left stunned that VAR didn't intervene
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Johnson explained why it was a surprise to see the incident, which took place directly in front of referee Anthony Taylor, not being reviewed by VAR. In his column, the expert wrote:
"When you look at the context of the incident, and missed red cards for use of the arm last season, it's difficult to see how this didn't go to a VAR review. This could be violent conduct for the use of the elbow, or serious foul play for challenging for the ball in a way which endangered the safety of an opponent."
Johnson went on to cite similar incidents in recent times in which players avoided punishment last season, including Bruno Guimaraes against Arsenal and Joao Palhinha for a challenge on Brighton's Pascal Gross. The Premier League's Key Match Incidents Panel both ruled that the players not being sent off were a mistake, and Johnson claimed that the speed and the force in which Kulusevski made contact with Lavia was worthy of a review and a red card.
However, the VAR specialist did side with the decision to keep Moises Caicedo on the pitch despite a reckless challenge on Pape Matar Sarr. While Johnson admitted that if the onfield decision was for Caicedo to be sent off it wouldn't have been overturned, the lack of force in the tackle meant that there was no need for a review as was the case in an incident involving Manchester United's Lisandro Martinez earlier in the campaign:
"All the boxes aren't quite ticked for Caicedo, but any more contact on Sarr and it would have been a VAR red card. At the same time a red card given on the field wouldn't have been overturned.
"Manchester United Lisandro Martinez caught Cole Palmer on the knee last month, but due to the low level of contact the KMI Panel unanimously voted it wasn't a VAR red, and will likely do so for this too."
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Johnson is not the only one who agrees that Caicedo rightfully avoided punishment, as the same sentiment was also shared by former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher.