Paul Tierney looking towards circle insets of the Everton and Chelsea badges
Paul TierneyImago

Everton vs Chelsea ref watch: Four truly bizarre calls made by Paul Tierney

Max Wilkins

Senior Correspondent AUTHORITY Senior sports journalist with experience at GRV Media and VAVEL; University of Derby graduate. FOCUS Exclusive content, statistical analysis, and deep-dive reporting across the Breaking Media network. THE INSIGHT Max utilises a network of club and industry contacts to deliver verified, exclusive reporting and data-driven insight. He provides the intelligence behind the stories to ensure fans get the full picture.

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Everton and Chelsea weren't entirely happy with Paul Tierney on Saturday.

The Toffees played host to the early kick-off, but didn't see the performance they hoped for.

David Moyes' side were mostly second best and failed to truly lay a glove on the Blues.

That made it no surprise when Xabi Alonso saw his men go 2-0 up thanks to a Pedro Neto brace.

It was the Portugal international who made all the difference on the day as he took the needle out of the encounter.

There were plenty of moments that saw referee Tierney called into action, as we assess some of his decisions.

Cole Palmer should have faced first-half punishment

There has been a rule in the Premier League about kicking the ball away and delaying the restart.

That is supposed to end with a yellow card for the culprit.

Cole Palmer did exactly that early in the first half as he launched the ball into the air after giving away a free-kick.

Tierney decided not to punish the attacking midfielder, much to the bafflement of the home side.

Paul Tierney looking towards circle insets of the Everton and Chelsea badges
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Harrison Armstrong card raised tensions for Everton

If Palmer should have been booked, it feels very harsh that Harrison Armstrong was.

The midfielder flew into a tackle on Josh Acheampong but certainly got all the ball while doing so.

Tierney blew for a foul and was quick to book the Englishman for what he described as a "scissor" challenge.

It feels as if it was a good old fashioned tackle and that even winning the ball wasn't good enough.

Emi Martinez timewasting didn't pay off

If there is one thing that Emi Martinez is known for, it's his gamesmanship.

The Argentina international loves the dark arts and trying to get under his opposition's skin.

That didn't quite work at Hill Dickinson Stadium as Tierney was quick to award a corner against him for taking too long to release the ball.

The keeper was baffled by the call and Neto was even booked for dissent after arguing against the decision.

Martinez took around 10 seconds, so there can't be many complaints, although it isn't often punished.

We wish him well after his injury nonetheless.

James Garner and Morgan Rogers clash

Armstrong was shown a yellow, but how did James Garner and Morgan Rogers miss out for a 50:50 challenge?

The two went in and both seemed to come off quite badly.

The Everton man required treatment, while Rogers took his time getting up.

Neither was shown a card, but with the Chelsea star already on a yellow, it could be said that he was lucky not to get a second.

It was just unusual to see the whistle blown in this circumstance, but no punishment be handed out.

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