Michael Oliver causes ‘avoidable’ incident as Everton v Liverpool explodes – Hackett
Arne Slot was one of the four men to receive red cards after full-time in Liverpool’s 2-2 draw away at Everton in the Premier League on Wednesday night.
James Tarkowski’s late equaliser led to some of the most dramatic Merseyside Derby scenes in years as fans piled onto the pitch to celebrate the final local derby at The Grand Old Lady.
After referee Michael Oliver blew up for full-time, Everton star Abdoulaye Doucoure celebrated in front of the Liverpool fans, leading to an angry reaction by Curtis Jones.
Police and stewards had to break up the melee, which resulted in Doucoure and Jones both receiving second yellow cards and a red.
Oliver accused of causing Slot red card after Everton v Liverpool
After they were both shown red cards, Liverpool manager Slot and his assistant Sipke Hulshoff were also sent off for remonstrating with Oliver.
Former Premier League referee Keith Hackett believes Oliver could have avoided dishing out those two cards if he and his assistants hadn’t dallied around in the middle of the pitch because they invited more protests by doing that.
“I cannot understand why at the final whistle, the referee stands with his colleagues in the middle of the field,” Hackett told Goodison News.
“The game is over and the match officials should exit the field of play.
“It invites the conflict that resulted in the Liverpool manager getting a red card.
“It was all avoidable.”
Everton and Liverpool quartet now face bans
Doucoure and Jones were both sent off for second yellow cards so they will only miss their teams’ next games.
For Everton, Doucoure will be ruled out of this weekend’s trip to Crystal Palace while Jones will be unavailable for selection when Liverpool take on Wolves at Anfield on Sunday.
Slot and Hulshoff also look set to serve a touchline ban for that game.
Doucoure has been an ever-present for Everton this season, playing in all but two of the Blues’ Premier League matches. He’s also started every league game since missing the loss at Southampton on 2 November.
However, David Moyes’ signing of Carlos Alcaraz in the winter transfer window does provide some extra cover for that game.