Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher says that a clock-stop would have resolved the added-time controversy during Liverpool’s 2-1 win over Everton on Saturday, which kept the reigning champions’ perfect start to the season intact.
Arne Slot’s side took control with first-half goals from Ryan Gravenberch and Hugo Ekitike, but Everton threatened a comeback after Idrissa Gueye pulled one back for the visitors.
With the Toffees piling on pressure late in the game, many were left surprised after referee Darren England added only three minutes of stoppage time for a half that featured one goal and three stoppages for substitutions.
While Everton boss David Moyes described the ending as “very strange”, Jack Grealish also criticised the referee, saying: “I’ve never seen that in the Premier League in the last two or three years.”
Dermot Gallagher Reacts to Merseyside Derby Controversy
Speaking on Sky Sports after Liverpool’s 2-1 win over Everton on Saturday, Gallagher explained how stoppage time is calculated in the VAR era:
“Normally, you have got the VAR feeding back, ‘This has taken X amount of time’, substitutes or a VAR review and things like that.
“It’s all added up and fed to the fourth official, fed to the referee because they are all in communication, so it should be better than ever.”
Gallagher admitted he was unsure whether more minutes should have been added in the second half but said a clock-stop might have prevented the controversy:
“How would I know? I would have to clock everything. This goes back into my thing, why don’t we play 35 minutes each way, stop the clock like they do in other sports?”
The 2-1 defeat on Saturday afternoon extended Moyes’ winless run at Anfield, with the Everton boss still without a victory in 21 Premier League visits (six draws and 15 defeats) to Liverpool’s stadium.
Nevertheless, the Scottish tactician could take some positives, with summer arrival Grealish once again a major source of creativity and Iliman Ndiaye also looking dangerous.
Everton have started the Premier League season with seven points from their first five games, sitting 10th in the table ahead of this weekend’s home clash with West Ham United.
The Toffees next visit Wolverhampton Wanderers in the EFL Cup on Tuesday, where they will be aiming to repeat last month’s 3-2 league win at Molineux.