One of the biggest talking points from Liverpool’s 2-1 derby win over Everton was the strange yellow card given to Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall for taking a quick free-kick. Amid confusion over the decision, former PGMOL boss Keith Hackett has now explained if referee Darren England was right to book the midfielder for his action.
The Reds strengthened their spot at the top of the Premier League table with another three points thanks to goals from Ryan Gravenberch and Hugo Ekitike. That said, it was a nervy end to the game, with Idrissa Gueye pulling one back with about half an hour to play.
In the closing stages of the game, Everton understandably were playing with a sense of urgency. That’s why players, coaches, commentators and viewers were all left baffled when Dewsbury-Hall was handed a yellow card after he took a quick free-kick.
Keith Hackett Slams Darren England’s Officiating
Addressing the incident after the game, Hackett – who officciated a number of Premier League games in the 1990s – made it clear that England’s officiating was poor. He explained to Goodison News that the referee should not have punished Everton man Dewsbury-Hall, saying:
“David Moyes has every right to be annoyed. This is frankly a crass piece of officiating.
The referee, by his action, has prevented the quick free kick from being taken.”
Hackett was referring to Moyes’ comments in his post-match interview, where the Everton boss was quite clearly frustrated with the game’s refereeing. He questioned a number of calls, saying:
“Three minutes was very strange. Every quick free-kick had to be stopped and brought back for the whistle, and then we get a booking for it. I find it quite unbelievable.”
Grealish Baffled By Dewsbury-Hall Yellow Card
Grealish also caused a stir with his comments on his teammate’s yellow card. The Englishman on loan from Manchester City was baffled by the officiating, exasperatedly claiming:
“I’ve never seen a player in my whole life get booked for taking a quick free-kick. I don’t know where that rule’s come from.
“Even the stoppage time, I think it was three minutes and one minute. Like, come on, I’ve never seen that in the Premier League in the last two or three years.”
TNT Sports commentator Ally McCoist was also among those to slam England’s call. After watching it happen before his eyes, he couldn’t hold back as he said live on air: “It’s nonsense, I mean it is just. They will say that is the rule, but how about a bit of common sense?”
Of course, as it was just a yellow card, VAR had no remit to get involved with the incident. On top of that, Everton also cannot appeal the decision, as it was not a sending off.