‘Gone from the law’ – Ex-PGMOL chief: Everton fans wrong to fume at ‘spectacular’ incident vs Tottenham
Everton supporters were wrong to complain about Craig Pawson not being awarded a penalty against Tottenham.
That is according to former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA referee, Keith Hackett, who exclusively told Football Insider that Mohammed Kudus did not deserve to be punished for his clash with Idrissa Gueye.
Micky van de Ven bagged a brace before Pape Sarr netted a third for Spurs as David Moyes‘ side suffered their fourth Premier League defeat of the season at the Hill Dickinson Stadium on Sunday, 26 October.
Jake O’Brien had a goal disallowed for offside, which would have been an equaliser for the Toffees, and that moment has sparked debate amongst fans of all Premier League teams.
Idrissa Gueye and Mohammed Kudus clash inside the penalty area
As well as seeing a goal disallowed, many of the home supporters felt that a penalty should have been awarded in their favour, but the referee was completely unmoved, and VAR agreed.
In the final 15 minutes, Gueye went up to win a header, being brought down in dramatic style by Kudus, causing most of the stadium to cry out for a spot-kick, but to no avail.
Guglielmo Vicario was blasted against Brighton, but after several stunning saves on Merseyside, the goalkeeper single-handedly kept his side in the lead before the attackers finally sealed the win.
The closing stages could have been very different had Pawson pointed towards the penalty spot, but Hackett believes the correct decision was reached, and rather quickly too.
Craig Pawson right not to award a penalty to Everton
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the penalty call, the former referee said: “No. We’re going to get contact in sport, and while this looks pretty spectacular, I’m not awarding a penalty kick.
“We have situations where penalty kicks should be awarded for coming-togethers, but this is not one of them.
“We see grappling go unpunished, but here, there’s no intention from the player. Intention has now gone from the law, but I’m happy that no penalty was awarded.”
The win sees Thomas Frank‘s side move to within five points of league leaders Arsenal, rising to third after the first nine games of the Premier League season.