‘Might have actually’ - Dermot Gallagher gives Everton v Fulham penalty verdict

Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher has commented on Everton’s penalty situation that took place during their 1-0 loss to Fulham over the weekend.

Everton were heavily frustrated by Marco Silva’s side, as they spurned numerous golden opportunities to take all three points on the opening weekend of the Premier League.

There were chances for Neal Maupay, Abdoulaye Doucoure and Nathan Patterson that stood out as Sean Dyche’s side racked up an expected goal total of 2.93 - a figure that was higher than any other team from last season without scoring.

But the most frustrating part was clearly their disallowed goal, as James Tarkowski was penalised for seemingly doing little wrong. Bernd Leno jumped to catch the ball as the defender held his ground, the German keeper dropped the ball and Keane was on hand to fire it in, but it was ruled out nonetheless - much to the annoyance of every blue in Goodison Park.

Fulham penalty explained

Speaking on Sky Sports Ref Watch, he believes that despite the clear ‘harsh’ foul we see, Michael Keane may have been offside anyway.

“They might have actually got to the right decision (but via the wrong means). I think it’s a very harsh foul but if you watch, the guy who scores is actually offside. So if the referee hadn’t whistled, it would have been given offside by VAR.”

Also on hand to offer their opinion was former Premier League defender Stephen Warnock: “I was furious when I saw it because I thought the goalkeeper was being looked after again. Hopefully, they learn from that because it wasn’t a foul.”

Former England international Sue Smith also weighed in on the situation: “It wasn’t a foul. Leno goes over the top of him and drops the ball. What else could Tarkowski have done? But now you’ve convinced me so I have no argument!”

Sean Dyche’s reaction

The Everton manager was furious with the decision, as he feels it cost his side a precious win at the start of the new campaign.

His frustrations were clear to see speaking post-match, especially given that his side created the best chances:

“I think VAR (Video Assistant Referee) is there to make sure that doesn’t go the wrong way because our defender has done nothing,” a frustrated Dyche told BBC Sport. “Tarky (Tarkowski) just stands there, the keeper catches it and drops it on his head.

“He did not try to impede him, it bounces out of his (Leno’s) hands, we score and bizarrely they get a foul. That is the modern game - you touch a keeper and it is a foul.”