Everton missed the chance to pick up a third consecutive victory in the Premier League on Sunday as they were defeated 2-1 by Manchester United.
The Toffees got themselves ahead thanks to an early goal from Alex Iwobi, only for the away side to score twice before the interval.
The result could have been worse for Frank Lampard’s side as United’s Marcus Rashford managed to put the ball past Jordan Pickford in the second half, only for VAR to rule out the goal for handball after the Red Devils attacker seemed to have handled the ball in the build-up.
Gallagher on Rashford handball
Speaking on Sky Sports‘ Ref Watch [via Goodison News], former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher was adamant that the correct decision was made.
He said: “It does strike his hand but he’s the only player involved in the move. He scores and it doesn’t go to any other player. You can argue that he’s still got to go on and score but there’s not another player involved. The fact that an Everton player plays it onto him is immaterial. It’s about whether it strikes his hand or arm. And it does strike his arm.”
Didn’t make much difference
While United ended up taking all three points on the night, this decision to rule out Rashford’s goal presumably helped Everton to keep pushing to find an equaliser in the closing stages of the match.
All in all, looking back on the game, this decision will ultimately be seen as irrelevant, as the points on offer and his team’s performance will have been the only things of interest to Frank Lampard.
With Everton only having 40% possession against United and taking fewer attempts at goal than their opponents (11 vs 12), the 44-year-old will undoubtedly be hoping that his team can put in a more assertive performance in their upcoming league clash against Tottenham Hotspur at the weekend.
Lampard must also be hoping that no more VAR decisions will be the centre of attention, either, especially if they go against Everton this time.
