When we look back on the final Merseyside derby at Goodison Park in years to come, one name will spring to mind above all others – Michael Oliver.
Even with four different goalscorers ensuring a share of the spoils between Everton and Liverpool, unfortunately the referee made sure that he was the headline act on a chaotic night in Walton.
Between issuing red cards to various players and coaching staff after the full-time whistle, to missing a blatant foul on Mo Salah in the lead-up to James Tarkowski’s stoppage-time equaliser, the 39-year-old did everything he could do to have his name front and centre.
It wasn’t just fans of the Merseyside rivals who were questioning some of Oliver’s decisions afterwards, but also a former chief executive of the PGMOL.
Oliver criticised over first Everton goal
Speaking to Football Insider, Keith Hackett insisted that the Northumberland whistler was wrong to penalise Ibrahima Konate for an apparent foul on Iliman Ndiaye, with Everton scoring from the resulting free kick.
The ex-FIFA referee said: “Liverpool were on the wrong end of a poor decision by Michael Oliver to award Everton a free kick which led to their first goal. There was no foul. Oliver got it wrong.”
Oliver made numerous baffling decisions at Goodison Park
That incident came just 10 minutes into the match and was the first of many indiscretions by Oliver at Goodison Park.
Hackett is 100% right – there was absolutely no semblance of a foul by Konate on Ndiaye and the decision to give a free kick was baffling, although Liverpool’s defending of the subsequent set piece was reprehensible as Beto finished to the net with ease.
Later in the match, Idrissa Gueye ought to have been sent off for what looked a second bookable offence, and there appeared to be two fouls by Everton players in the move which led to Tarkowski’s equaliser, which came well beyond the originally indicated five minutes of stoppage time.
As for the red card shown to Slot for what seemed to be no more than a vigorous handshake after full-time, we can only imagine that the Reds boss maybe said something inflammatory to provoke Oliver into such an action. If not, though, the referee overreacted massively.
The rap sheet against the match official is an extensive one, and you can be sure that Howard Webb will be wheeled out for his customary stage-managed TV appearance to try and make sense of a frankly shambolic refereeing performance from the 39-year-old.
Liverpool fans deserve a proper explanation for quite a few mind-boggling decisions made at Goodison Park by a man who accomplished his main aim of making himself the centre of attention.
It’s the 30th anniversary of Heysel soon. Will you post an apology for what you all did?
If you can’t count from 30 to 40, then it was a blessing you lot did not travel around Europe after 1985, you’d probably cause more mischief abroad
“…for what you *all* did”
I’m a Liverpool fan. I was 10 at the time of Heysel. Should I apologise for the appalling behaviour for a small number of abhorrent fans?
Sick mind.
Like this what is the point of having VAR? If the ref makes a wrong decision, surely VAR should be able to intervene and at least ask the on-field ref to review the incident. He can then either overrule VAR, which is his right of course, or change his decision.
Same ref who ignored Doku’s karate kick in the penalty box on Mac Alister last year in the 98th minute to stop Liverpool winning.
This is from a Liverpool fan. When he makes the same sinister calls, you call him a hero yet you are now crying foul. Man up.