Gary Neville says Spurs v Arsenal VAR mayhem will lead to ‘fury’

'It was so close.'

Gary Neville says Spurs v Arsenal VAR mayhem will lead to ‘fury’
Micky van de Ven celebrates his goal for Spurs against Arsenal before it was disallowed by VAR
Micky van de Ven’s first-half equaliser was controversially ruled out (Picture: Getty)

Gary Neville says Micky van de Ven will have an inner ‘fury’ after the VAR mayhem between Arsenal and Tottenham in Sunday’s north London derby.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s own goal saw Arsenal lead 1-0 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium but Spurs thought they were level as Van de Ven fired past David Raya.

It was brilliant finish as he sent the Arsenal goalkeeper the wrong way to spark huge celebrations as Spurs looked to put a dent in their rivals’ title hopes.

Those celebrations were put on hold, though, with VAR deciding to take a long look at the goal and eventually decide to rule it out for offside.

Just moments later, with Spurs’ players clearly dejected at the decision, Bukayo Saka went up the other end and doubled Arsenal’s lead.

Reflecting on Spurs’ controversial disallowed goal, Neville told Sky Sports: ‘Gabriel Magalhaes’ backside might play him onside.

‘Boos are ringing out around the stadium in anticipation at what might come.

A screenshot of Sky Sports' coverage of Spurs against Arsenal, showing VAR deciding to rule out a goal for offside
Mark Schwarzer said the decision was ‘very unfortunate’ for Spurs (Picture: Sky)

‘They might just be alright… oh… he’s offside… well, it was so close. [Micky van de Ven] is calm on the outside but I’m sure on the inside there will be fury.

‘They did [deserve a break]. Tottenham have been the better team [after 26 minutes].’

Fellow pundit Mark Schwarzer told the BBC: ‘That is a tight call and it is very unfortunate in so many ways. Slightly offside.’

Meanwhile, Neville has labelled Gunners star Ben White a ‘nuisance’ for his role in Arsenal’s opening goal after he riled up Spurs’ Guglielmo Vicario at a corner.

‘It’s been the same set-up all year for Arsenal and it has been good all year,’ Neville said as Arsenal conjured up their 20th set-piece goal of the season.

‘Ben White the nuisance, the five big lads getting across that near post. Tomiyasu just does enough. He bugs Hojbjerg and he can’t get a full head on it. Vicario has no chance. It’s past him in a flash.’