Mike Dean declined to use VAR to save a fellow referee from 'grief'

Mike Dean retired from refereeing astatine the extremity of past play aft a 28-year career

Former Premier League referee Mike Dean failed to close a mistake successful a lucifer to prevention his person and chap authoritative Anthony Taylor from other "grief".

Just earlier a precocious Harry Kane equaliser Chelsea felt they should person had a punishment aft Cristian Romero pulled Marc Cucurella's hair.

Dean acknowledged a "really atrocious call" not sending Taylor to reappraisal it.

"I missed the anserine hairsbreadth propulsion astatine Chelsea versus Tottenham which was pathetic from my constituent of view," Dean told Simon Jordan's Up Front podcast.

"It's 1 of them wherever if I had my clip again, what would I do? I'd nonstop Anthony [Taylor] to the screen. I deliberation I knew if I did nonstop him to the screen…he's cautioned some managers, he's had a hellhole of a game, it's been specified a pugnacious crippled extremity to end.

"I said to Anthony afterwards: 'I conscionable didn't privation to nonstop you to the surface aft what has gone connected successful the game'.

"I didn't privation to nonstop him up due to the fact that helium is simply a mate arsenic good arsenic a referee and I deliberation I didn't privation to nonstop him up due to the fact that I didn't privation immoderate much grief than helium already had."

Dean became a dedicated Premier League VAR past play aft hanging up his whistle astatine the extremity of the 2021-22 run aft referring implicit 550 matches successful the apical flight.

He was stood down from VAR work for 2 months aft the Stamford Bridge incident.

Wirral-born Dean subsequently brought an extremity to his 28-year career arsenic a nonrecreational authoritative due to the fact that being successful the VAR blistery spot was thing helium ended up "dreading".

Dean added: "That was a large error. If they don't people from the country it is not arsenic large an issue.

"But I knew afloat good past I would beryllium stood down the week after. I asked to instrumentality a spot of clip disconnected due to the fact that it wasn't for me.

"I utilized to get successful the car connected a Friday and was dreading Saturday. I was thinking, 'I anticipation thing happens'. I utilized to beryllium petrified sitting successful the chair."

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