Football
Reuters 5y

Monaco boss Henry angered by VAR malfunction during 5-1 defeat

Monaco coach Thierry Henry was left angered after the VAR system malfunctioned during his side's 5-1 loss to StrasbourgĀ in Ligue 1 on Saturday, but admitted he regretted a foul-mouth tirade aimed at an opposing player.

TV footage showed the former France international appearing to make an abusive remark to Strasbourg player Kenny Lala as the visitors showed no mercy in routing Monaco, who were reduced to 10 men.

Henry was heard to tell Lala: "It's the 43rd minute, your grandmother's a whore," before turning to an official and adding, "He's got to stop now, that's enough."

"It's street talk, unfortunately," Henry told media in Sunday's post-match briefing. "It's not the first time. I do it in English sometimes too. But yes, take note, I regret it. It's a reaction."

The former Arsenal and Barcelona forward, whose side went on to lose the match 5-1 to remain second-from-bottom of Ligue 1 and without a home win all season, added: "After all, I'm human. There was a string of things that happened. I shouldn't do it. But there are reactions, I'm human."

His mood had not been helped by new signing Naldo's seventh-minute red card, and his demeanour darkened still further when -- with his side trailing 2-1 just after the hour mark - Monaco were denied a penalty in an incident that a furious Henry thought could have turned the game.

"When I asked the fourth official why he wasn't reviewing [what led to the potential penalty], he told me the VAR was not working," Henry was quoted as saying in French daily L'Equipe on Sunday.

"I would like to know why the VAR was not working and I hope you are going to ask why. We were 2-1 down at that moment and if we convert the penalty, it's 2-2. It would have been a game changer."

His Strasbourg counterpart, Thierry Laurey, confirmed there had been a problem with the VAR.

"We were told after the break that the VAR would not be working for a while," he said. "It has happened several times this season. I feel for Thierry Henry, but sometimes, technology does not work." Monaco face a crucial game on Saturday when they travel to third-from-bottom side Dijon.

"I'm going to repeat what I have said: our goal is to stay in the top flight," Henry said.

ESPN FC's France correspondent Ian Holyman contributed to this report.

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