Tottenham Hotspur got back to winning ways at the weekend after what has been a scrappy start to their 2024/25 campaign, albeit it didn’t come without much controversy as the North Londoners goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario handled the ball outside his box.

There has been a lot of debate on social media channels about the incident, with many questioning the PGMOL and how inconsistent and mistake-ridden they have been over the new season.

Did Spurs Get Away with One?

While the Italian international saved a couple of excellent efforts against the Bees, he had a couple of moments of madness that could have played hefty on any other day.

One of those poor moments came in the second half when the Lilywhites were leading the game 2-1 and the 27-year-old came out of the box to intercept a long ball. His forward momentum carried him outside the box, where the former Empoli goalkeeper panicked and touched the ball with his hands.

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In doing so, he took the ball away from the opposition player just outside the penalty area.

The VAR did not interfere, and there have been explanations (via. The Sun) that it was because it was not an obvious and clear error leading to a red card.

Ange speaks

Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou was quizzed about the decision where the Australian tactician sarcastically joked that his side were lucky to get the three points. Speaking to Fox Sports, the former Celtic coach said:

“I saw exactly what you saw. If it wasn’t an obvious goalscoring opportunity which means even if he’d been penalised it would’ve been a free kick and that’s a big turning point? I guess we were lucky to get the result.”

Tottenham and Vicario got away from one there; we have seen goalkeepers aplenty given red cards for such incidents, and that one deserved nothing less. The Italian has had his fair share of panic moments that have cost Spurs games, most recently against Arsenal last weekend, and this one could have gone away from Spurs hands as well.

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Spurs now turn their heads to the Europa League as they host Azerbaijani side Qarabağ FK on Thursday night, where Vicario will get an opportunity to get some confidence. 

Do you think VAR was wrong to not interfere in Vicario’s incident? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.