Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer in complete agreement on Everton v Brentford call
Alan Shearer and Gary Lineker agree that Brentford midfielder Christian Norgaard should not have received a red card in the 0-0 draw against Everton.
Referee Chris Kavanagh dismissed the 30-year-old due to VAR intervention after a challenge on Jordan Pickford in the closing stages of the first half on Saturday [23 November].
However, when discussing the incident on The Rest is Football [25 November, 51m 35s], the co-hosts believe Norgaard was within his rights to challenge for the ball and was unfairly dismissed at Goodison Park.
Shearer said: “The referee saw it at real time, and I know it didn’t look great in slow motion, but [Norgaard] had to go for the ball. I just think the VAR didn’t need to get involved and should have stuck with the referee’s decision.”
Lineker added: “It’s a classic example of where you can freeze a frame, freeze a picture – and you can say, ‘Oh, that looks a bit dangerous’.
“But, if you actually look at it at in normal speed, its not at all – he’s just going in trying to flick the ball in the net as he’s perfectly entitled to do. Yeah, they got that one wrong.”
Everton miss golden opportunity against ten men Brentford
Regardless of the opinions on the sending-off, Norgaard’s needless decision cost his side a potential three points at Goodison Park.
However, Sean Dyche has missed an open goal, allowing Brentford to return to London with a share of the spoils, and his Everton exploits are only going to become more difficult from this point onwards.
While the Blues boss is not in any immediate danger of being sacked on Merseyside [The Athletic], the stance is certainly subject to change and, in all likelihood, will change with a jaw-dropping fixture schedule ahead.
Everton linger only two points clear of safety with clashes against Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City in the coming weeks, with a Merseyside derby at Goodison Park sandwiched between.
Dyche has only managed to record 11 points on the board in 12 Premier League outings, avoiding all the top six sides barring Tottenham, and facing all the newly-promoted sides in that time; what chance does the boss have of making it through the next few weeks unscathed?
Furthermore, the Toffees could not capitalise on their man advantage on Saturday, only creating one big chance out of an eye-watering 27 shots on goal [Fotmob].
This very much feels like the beginning of the end for Dyche at Everton – he should be commended for his miraculous efforts last term in the face of two points deductions, but it is clear he is no longer the man to lead this side.
In other Everton news, the Blues have encountered fresh takeover problems amid a new Premier League deadline.
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