Everton ‘goal’ against Tottenham ‘should have stood’ – ex-refs chief blasts VAR after re-analysing footage
Tottenham were lucky to not concede against Everton as the referee should’ve stuck with his original on-field decision.
That is according to former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA official, Keith Hackett, who exclusively told Football Insider that VAR shouldn’t have intervened in a potentially game-changing goal.
Micky van de Ven was the shining light for Tottenham against Everton as he netted twice to secure a vital set of three points away from home.
Jack Grealish was also inspired for Everton, yet couldn’t drive his side to overturn the 3-0 deficit in their first home defeat of the season.
Keith Hackett ‘disappointed’ to see Everton goal ruled out
In the 27th minute, minutes after conceding the first Van de Ven goal, the Evertonians were on the up as they increased the pressure on the Spurs backline.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall whipped in a delightful ball to the front post which was nodded in by the towering Jake O’Brien.
On-field the goal was given, yet VAR flagged the strike for offside with both Iliman N’Diaye and Jack Grealish appearing to interfere with Guglielmo Vicario.
The decision was turned over yet there were doubts over the goalkeeper’s exaggeration of being impeded by the Toffees duo.
Speaking to Football Insider exclusively, ex-PGMOL chief Hackett was shocked by VAR’s decision to intervene in ruling out the goal when he felt it should’ve stood.
He said: “[It was] disappointing to see the Everton goal ruled out.
“Craig Pawson in a good position, awards the goal. Sadly, we then have VAR Stewart Attwell, once again, coming in and indicating to the referee that he should go to the monitor.
“There is a slight nudge but when we see the amount of grappling that goes on inside the penalty area going unpunished, this is minimal.
“This goalkeeper is not going to save this goal. So, the indication is that two Everton players are in an offside position, they were.
“But, they’re behind the goalkeeper, not in front of him. The line of sight is clear, they have not interfered with the opponent. This goal should’ve stood.”
Tottenham fortunate as Everton will feel aggrieved
The disallowance of the goal at such a critical point in the match is a bitter below for Everton fans.
A swift equaliser could’ve been monumental in changing the momentum of the match with the Toffees faithful proving to be a vital 12th man.
Both Ndiaye and Grealish were in an offside position but, as Hackett explained, they were not interfering with Tottenham’s shotstopper.
Goalkeepers are one of the most protected groups of players in the game and this decision exacerbates those claims.