Frank Lampard set to avoid FA charge for anger at Everton penalty decision – report
Everton manager Frank Lampard looks set to avoid FA punishment for his outraged comments about VAR after defeat to Manchester City, reports The Times.
Rodri appeared to have controlled the ball with his arm at Goodison Park on Saturday but, after referee Paul Tierney didn’t award a penalty apparently due to obstructed view, the video official Chris Kavanagh decided there wasn’t enough evidence to even give his on-pitch colleague a second look.
Following the final whistle the Toffees boss told Sky Sports, via The Times: ““We’ve lost a point because of a professional who cannot do his job right. [It’s] incompetence at best, at worst — who knows?”
The FA tend to crack down on criticism of officials, particularly if decisions are implied to be anything more than a mistake, with Ralf Hassenhutl fined £20,000 earlier this season for comments about Mike Dean.
Former Aston Villa striker Gabby Agbonlahor accused the officials of showing “favouritism” towards Manchester City on talkSPORT, in exactly the sort of thing that would draw punishment had he still been playing.
But Lampard is reportedly due to avoid the same fate following after the weekend’s events.
Lucky escape?
It is somewhat of a surprise that the former Chelsea man has avoided an FA response for his comments.
The content of them is difficult to argue with since virtually everybody, with the exception of City boss Pep Guardiola, agreed that it should have been a penalty.
But considering he did heavily imply the possibility of something greater than incompetence, it is the sort of thing that is often picked up on.
Lampard appeared to see exactly what he was heading for as he hesitated and equivocated, but it would have added insult to injury to have been fined.
First-team coach Ashley Cole likely felt something like that when he received a yellow card after the final whistle for remonstrating with Tierney.
It can’t be escaped that it was a highly-debatable decision not to award a penalty, and an inexcusable one to not refer the man in the middle to the pitch-side monitor.
If a point ends up being crucial to the Toffees chances at the end of the season then there will be further outrage, as there will if the beneficiaries secure the title by the same margin.
In other Everton news, the FA attempted to offer an explanation for the decision.