Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho has hit out at the officiating of his side’s 1-1 draw with Manchester United in the Premier League.

A powerful strike from Steven Bergwijn after a fine solo run gave Spurs a first-half lead in London, but they came under pressure and conceded from a penalty in the second period.

United might have had a second spot kick in the closing stages of the game but after referee Jon Moss had initially made the decision to whistle for a foul by Eric Dier on Bruno Fernandes, the call was overruled by VAR.

Despite this apparent let off, Mourinho felt that his side were let down by the officiating, both by those at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and those behind the monitors, citing what he felt was a soft award for Dier’s earlier foul on Paul Pogba.

“It was hard to manage the game. I am not happy with the penalty and not happy with the second penalty,” he told Sky Sports in the aftermath of the encounter. “I am unhappy with the VAR, not the referee on the first, the referee can make a mistake but VAR is there to do the job.

“Paul Pogba did his job. That is it. I think Jonathan Moss was also trying to do his job the best he could. I think the VAR is a different situation.

“In the second I am unhappy with Jon Moss because he did not give the free kick leading up to it and then gave a penalty. In this case, the VAR gave the truth.”

The share of the spoils leaves Mourinho’s side facing an uphill task to finish in the Champions League spots, even though fifth would likely be sufficient to earn a place in Europe’s premier club competition given that Manchester City have a pending appeal against a ban to be heard.

Spurs are currently eighth on the table, four points behind United in fifth, with the Old Trafford side with a far more appealing fixture list in their final eight matches.

Sheffield United and Wolves are both in the running to claim that coveted spot, with the former able to leapfrog Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side this weekend and the latter able to draw level on points with them.