Tottenham Hotspur star Lucas Moura has been interviewed by Brazilian outlet Esporte Interativo after Wednesday’s clash against Manchester City in the Champions League.
Despite the 4-3 defeat, Spurs managed to get qualification for the tournament’s semifinals, and are now facing Ajax for a place in the final.
Lucas Moura has talked a lot about the incredible game at the Etihad Stadium, and just as expected, there was a lot about VAR.
Asked about watching the goal which would have sent Manchester City through, and then having the decision reversed, Lucas Moura claims he’s still getting used to the situation.
“Man, it’s a subject I still confess I’m adapting to. I don’t have an opinion yet. The point is that football gets fairer. The referee there made the right decisions by looking at the VAR,” Lucas Moura told Esporte Interativo. “Of course, sometimes it makes the game slower because it stops it. And there’s the thing of celebrating, then stopping to look at the VAR. But we can’t deny that football is fairer.
“And maybe if we were disqualified here today and saw later that it was with an offside goal, it would hurt a lot. I hope it will come to improve football, as it has been, as it was today, with the right decisions. And there on the pitch, we have to do our best regardless of the decisions of VAR or the referee.”
The Tottenham player was also asked if it feels weird to see things changing so quickly, and admitted he was ‘almost crying’ on the bench when Raheem Sterling scored the goal which would put Spurs out of the competition.
“Very much. I was on the bench, on Sterling’s goal. And at the bench you can’t see if it’s offside or not. So I was there in distress, so my reaction was to bow my head. And I was practically crying, mourning it already, and listening to the noise of the stadium during the celebration. And when I lift my head and look at the screen, I see that it was disallowed, and it was a blast.
“Man, really, it’s hard to explain. First time I go through this. And all I could do was look up, thank God, there were only a few minutes to go. Man, I guess it was meant to be that way. I think it was for us to qualify. Because our team fought hard, we had a great match there in London, and today we came here against one of our favourite teams.
“And we managed in a good part of the game to fight on an equal basis, to get in, to put danger on them. I think that the qualification was deserved. And it’s football. Now we rest, think of Ajax, which is sure to be difficult.”
Hopefully Lucas Moura and the rest of his Tottenham teammates have managed to calm down by then.
