Key Points
- Tottenham were held to a 1-1 draw by Leeds United on Monday night, leaving their Premier League survival hopes under pressure.
- Roberto De Zerbi suggested the officiating in Tottenham’s match may have been affected by the controversy surrounding West Ham’s defeat to Arsenal the previous day.
- West Ham had a stoppage-time equaliser ruled out against Arsenal after a VAR review involving David Raya, prompting reported anger and a possible complaint to PGMOL.
- The Premier League later said Leeds’ late penalty appeal was checked by VAR and no spot-kick was given because the ball had been played first.
- The draw left Tottenham two points clear of West Ham with two games remaining, keeping the relegation battle open.
Tottenham Hotspur (North London News) May 12, 2026. As reported by The Standard, De Zerbi said he believed the officials “were not calm” and suggested they may have been affected by the pressure created by the previous day’s West Ham v Arsenal VAR incident. He added that he could not understand the argument over the Arsenal decision, insisting the West Ham player had fouled goalkeeper David Raya “200 per cent.”
According to SPORTbible, De Zerbi also said:
“Maybe they suffered the pressure of yesterday, the West Ham and Arsenal game, the VAR,”
while stressing that his own team had also been “frenetic” and rushed during the match. He later declined to intensify the issue, saying he had not watched the late Leeds incident back and did not want to enter the wider controversy.
Why did West Ham’s Arsenal defeat trigger fresh scrutiny?
West Ham’s 1-0 defeat to Arsenal on Sunday became the centre of debate after a late equaliser by Callum Wilson was disallowed following a VAR review.
The decision hinged on contact with goalkeeper David Raya, and the Premier League’s later explanation was that the foul had occurred and the goal could not stand.
The controversy appears to have had consequences beyond that match, with reports saying West Ham were considering a complaint to PGMOL, the body responsible for refereeing in English football.
The suggestion made by De Zerbi was not that the officials deliberately influenced Tottenham’s match, but that the earlier uproar may have affected the confidence or composure of the refereeing team.
How did Tottenham’s draw with Leeds unfold?
Tottenham were unable to turn their home game against Leeds into the decisive result they needed in the relegation fight. The match ended 1-1, and multiple reports described it as a missed opportunity for Spurs to move further away from the bottom three.
The late penalty claim in the game became another flashpoint when the referee initially allowed play to continue before VAR reviewed the challenge.
The Premier League later stated that the decision stood because the Leeds player had made contact with the ball before the heavier contact, meaning no penalty was awarded.
Goal’s match report said Tottenham remain just two points ahead of West Ham with two games left, and described their next fixture at Chelsea as a difficult trip. WSLS reported that Spurs had taken a small but potentially crucial step toward survival, but also noted that their fate remains in their own hands.
What have journalists reported from the match?
The Standard, in its match coverage, said De Zerbi felt referee Jarred Gillett did not have control of the game and referenced the pressure from the previous day’s Arsenal-West Ham controversy. The same report said the Spurs boss admitted he had not studied the late incident back and did not want to deepen the dispute.
Goal focused on the implications of the result for Tottenham’s league position, saying the draw left them two points clear of West Ham in 18th with two games to go. Claret & Hugh, a West Ham-focused outlet, described the result as a major boost for West Ham after the “VAR controversy” against Arsenal, because it kept their survival hopes alive.
Taken together, the coverage shows two separate but connected storylines: the on-pitch consequences of Tottenham dropping points and the wider debate about how high-pressure refereeing decisions can echo across multiple matches.
Why does this matter for the relegation race?
The draw means Tottenham cannot yet secure survival, and the margin between safety and danger remains narrow. With two matches left, any further slip could draw West Ham closer and intensify pressure on Spurs.
The dispute over VAR also matters because it shapes the atmosphere around the final run-in. In a relegation fight, every refereeing decision is examined closely, and comments like De Zerbi’s ensure that the debate over match officials will continue alongside the football itself.
Background of the development
The latest row sits within a wider run of tense Premier League matches involving Tottenham, West Ham, Arsenal and Leeds.
West Ham’s disallowed equaliser against Arsenal on Sunday created immediate controversy, and the fallout then carried into Tottenham’s draw with Leeds the following night.
That context matters because both Tottenham and West Ham are in a survival battle, so each result and each refereeing call has consequences far beyond a single match. The public discussion has therefore moved beyond one decision and into a broader question about the pressure placed on officials in matches with major table implications.
Prediction for supporters
For Tottenham supporters, this development is likely to mean a tense finish to the season, with survival still not mathematically secured and little room for error. For West Ham fans, the draw gives renewed hope that the gap can be closed if results fall their way in the final two matches.
For viewers and followers of the relegation race, the VAR controversy is likely to remain part of the conversation if another close call happens in the last round of fixtures. That means the final weeks may be judged not only by results, but also by how refereeing decisions are handled under pressure.
