Michael Owen reacts to controversy in Everton v Aston Villa
Michael Owen believes that it was the right decision to award Aston Villa a penalty against Everton when they beat them 2-0 on Saturday.
The Toffees suffered their first defeat at home under Sean Dyche and the big talking point from the game was a penalty call.
Idrissa Gueye appeared to bring John McGinn down inside the penalty area and the referee pointed to the spot and Ollie Watkins then put the ball into the back of the next from 12 yards.
The footage of the video shows that Gueye may have brought McGinn down and the penalty deserved to stand.
Speaking on Premier League’s post-match show, Owen said (25/02, 11:26pm), “Don’t think there’s a huge amount of contact but there is. It’s a penalty.”
Understandable
This was one of those kinds of penalties that if they’re not given, the VAR will not give them and if they are, there isn’t much in them to overturn.
Everton may feel that they were on the wrong side of it but they’ll know that their performance wasn’t good enough to merit a win.
Dyche’s honeymoon period could soon be over and it’s now down to the harsh reality and it’s going to be a real test of his abilities.
He has been in this situation before and has brought his side out of relegation trouble so hopefully, he can do it again with a different club.
Obviously, it’s not going to be easy but he’s gotten a reaction from his players and this side already seems to be far more organised than it was under Frank Lampard.
He’s already started planning for next season and bringing new players in but he knows that all bets will be off if he fails to keep them in the league.