Everton Cheated by VAR Decision

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Penalty controversy

Everton put in one of their best performances of the season and were outdone by two ricochets and Chris Kavanagh. The game at Goodison Park against Manchester City was always going to be difficult and you could picture the scene of the champions and current league leaders dominating possession and at best Everton trying to hold them. But Frank Lampard's side gave as good as they got, they harried Pep Guardiola's side into making mistakes and were passionate but also showed fantastic focus and a lot of credit has to go down to what Lampard is implementing on the training field. 

With 8 minutes to go the score was 0-0 and it felt as if Everton were getting a huge point in their fight to stay above the bottom three. And then their luck ran out as the ball took two ricochets and landed at the feet of Phil Foden close to goal and City had the lead. But soon after Rodri had given away a penalty as he clearly hand balled in the area, except it wasn't. To his initial credit the VAR assistant Chris Kavanagh signalled to the referee that VAR would be looking into the handball as the referee was going to let it go. There was some confusion also that an offside had taken place rendering a penalty call useless, but it was confirmed that there was no offside- nobody obviously told Pep Guardiola that who ranted afterwards that there was an offside. Frank Lampard had been told that there was no offside, so it's odd that Guardiola wasn't. Let's get back to the penalty call. Now in the FA's rules they state that handball is defined when the 'upper boundary of the arm is in line with the bottom of the armpit, not every touch of a player's hand/arm with the ball is an offence'. That is all very well until you read the next passage- 'It is an offence if a player deliberately touches the ball with their hand/arm or when touching the ball with their hand/arm when it has made their body unnaturally bigger'.

Rodri had made his body bigger and had also controlled the ball giving Everton a corner in the process. It was an incredibly blatant moment and it should have been a penalty. Frustration has led some to suggest that the game is fixed and should we mention that Kavanagh was born a few miles away from the Etihad…. But in truth he did call the incident up. Lampard called the decision incompetence at best, and it really was a poor decision not just in this match but the game of football in general. It would be beneficial if the Premier League adopted the rule in Serie A when a poor decision means you don't officiate for a few weeks. Perhaps the light at the end of the tunnel for the Toffees is that in midweek Burnley lost at home to Leicester, had they won or drew Everton would be coming into this weekend in the bottom three. Perhaps it's a good sign for Everton who have not been relegated in 70 years that they are now not amongst the favourites to go down.

Premier League relegation odds: Norwich 1.08, Watford 1.20, Burnley 2.25, Leeds 2.75, Brentford 3.00

Bielsa Sacked

Marcelo Bielsa has been sacked as manager of Leeds and if you are a Leeds fan this was devastating news, it truly is hard to find a fan who was not upset by the Argentine's dismissal although at the same time Leeds have been in incredibly poor form. It was under Bielsa that Leeds finally returned to the top flight after 16 years and in his first season the club finished in 9th position playing entertaining attacking football. The problem was that Leeds never adapted to a given situation and in a way his swashbuckling gung-ho tactics were the same reason that the club had to sack him, it just couldn't last, not in a league like the Premier League where other teams were able to adapt. Leeds have conceded 14 goals in their last 3 games three less than what Manchester City have conceded all season and with 60 goals shipped that is the most in the league. Bielsa has been replaced by Jesse Marsch and it could be the perfect gamble for the clubs owners who will hope to see their team rejuvenated just at the right time to save them from relegation.

Carabao Cup

Liverpool won the Carabao Cup after a pulsating final against Chelsea even though the game finished 0-0. Edouard Mendy in goal for the Blues was exceptional until he was bizarrely substituted for Kepa for the penalty shoot out. Kepa didn't save any and then when he took a penalty he shot the ball into orbit. One could argue that Thomas Tuchel's decision was silly in hindsight but it really was. In a penalty shoot out there is actually zero pressure on the goalkeeper, this time it felt different as Kepa was only introduced for penalties and Liverpool have won the first trophy of the season. Pundit Jamie Redknapp summed up Tuchel's decision perfectly, "it's rubbish."

Welcome Return

Finally congratulations to Christian Eriksen. The Danish international returned to full time football after his cardiac arrest at last summers European Championships. He came on as a substitute in Brentford's game with Newcastle and it was moving to see everyone in the football stands and players of both teams give him a warm welcome. What a story he has had, can he put the icing on the cake and save Brentford from going down? Who would bet against it?