Group D remains firmly in balance as they head into matchday six after Wednesday’s chaotic stalemate at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where Harry Kane A winner was denied the last gasp that his team would have sent on after former Spurs youngster Marcus Edwards’ first-half goal was overturned by Rodrigo Bentancur.
The England captain nearly hacked into the final kick of the game, causing a pandemonium on the pitch, in the stands and on the sidelines in north London, although his attempt was ultimately disallowed for marginal offside after a lengthy VAR check.
Conte was sent off by Dutch referee Danny Makkelie for his angry protests and bitterly complained about the use of VAR in his furious post-match interviewsclaiming it “did a lot of damage” as his team needed to get at least a draw in Marseille next week to reach the last 16.
“I want to see if in another stadium of a big team they are willing to disapprove of goals like this,” noted an enraged Conte. “I would like to know this. A lot of injustice.”
However, smiling Sporting counterpart Amorim defended the use of the technology in his own sunnier post-match press conference following a potentially significant result for the Primeira Liga giants looking to advance to the knockout stage.
“I like it because it’s fair,” the Portuguese said of the VAR. “Usually. I know there are a lot of problems sometimes because it’s a hard decision, but like I said, I haven’t seen the footage.
“For me it was very good. In front of Antonio Contea, it was very bad. It’s football. For me it is a good tool to improve football.
“For the fans sometimes it’s not so good, but I think it’s fair.”