Exclusive: Kulusevski saved Pickford from punishment in Everton win vs Tottenham
Dejan Kulusevski helped Everton star Jordan Pickford avoid punishment during their win over Tottenham, Keith Hackett has said.
The former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA official exclusively told Football Insider that Jordan Pickford’s challenge on James Maddison in the build-up to the goal would have been subject to recrimination had the ball not found the net.
After a frustrating defeat to Aston Villa in David Moyes’ first game since returning to the club in midweek, the Toffees picked up a much-needed victory with their 3-2 win over Spurs at Goodison Park on Sunday (19 January).
They had raced into a 3-0 lead by haf-time in that game, only to be given a scare with a late fightback that started with a Kulusevski goal that may have got Everton ‘keeper Pickford out of some trouble.
Jordan Pickford made risky challenge as Tottenham began their resurgence at Everton
It was the 77th minute when Tottenham began their fightback through Kulusevski, as he fired in a brilliant curling effort from the edge of the area.
The ball come to him after a scramble in the area which began with Pickford’s challenge on Maddison, with the goalkeeper having raced of his line in an attempt to beat the Spurs attacker to the ball inside the Everton area.
But with Maddison having got there first, the goalkeeper then produced a sliding challenge on the attacker, which saw him bring down his opponent, who had is ankle trapped between the two legs of the Toffees man.
As a result, Hackett believes even if Kulusevski hadn’t scored, Spurs would still have had the chance to pull a goal back from the spot, while Pickford would have been issued with a card by referee Darren England.
When asked by Football Insider if Kulusevski scoring actually helped the Everton goalkeeper to avoid punishment, the former referee said:
“Absolutely. Ultimately at the end of the day what I think we’ve got to look at is the referee did really well in not blowing immediately for that challenge, which would have resulted in a penalty kick.
“So he’s not done that, the goal’s gone in and he’s gone ‘right forget it move on, I’m giving a goal’.
“I think Pickford could easily have been penalised but by the very nature of the fact the ball has gone in the net it has saved him, no question.
“If it hadn’t have gone in the net it would have been a penalty kick and a yellow card.”
Victory over Spurs ended a run of six Premier League games without a win for Everton, giving them a much-needed lift in the battle to avoid relegation.
Tottenham by contrast have now won after 90 minutes just three times in their last 15 matches in all competitions, piling the pressure on manager Ange Postecoglou.
In other news, Everton and Leicester have missed out on the signing of a Brighton player.
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