I was rude but to an idiot: Jose Mourinho accepts yellow card during Southampton tie

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Tottenham Hotspur manager Jose Mourinho has said that his yellow card during their English Premier League game against Southampton was fair as he was rude to an "idiot".

Mourinho was booked by referee Mike Dean in the 77th minute after the Portuguese approached the Southampton bench.

"I clearly deserved the yellow card as I was rude," Mourinho was quoted as saying by ESPNFC after the game. "But I was rude to an idiot. Because I was rude I deserved the yellow card."

Tottenham lost to Southampton 0-1 in a contest that saw skipper Harry Kane limp off the pitch with an hamstring injury.

"It is negative, hamstring is always negative. Is it a tear, is it a small thing, is it a spasm, is it a contraction? At this moment I cannot say," Mourinho said of the injury.

Mourinho also complained that Tottenham should have been awarded a penalty for a foul on Dele Alli, also chastising the controversial VAR.

"For me, at this moment, the referees are not the referees. VAR should be called by video referees. Our (disallowed) goal I also don't know, but I confess that I didn't watch it yet.

"What I know is that the Dele Alli penalty was a penalty and the VAR didn't interfere. Then they interfered in the analysis of a penalty that from 75 yards away I knew was not a penalty.

"I think they gave the VAR analysis to try to make us blind about the penalty that was a penalty. They decide not even to analyse on the VAR. This is going in a very bad direction," Mourinho said.

Tottenham remain on 30 points, six behind fourth-placed Chelsea, in the Premier League standings.