Premier League — Matchweek 16

No Eze and Olise is on the bench. It could be crap or crystanbul. Hoping for the latter. Cmon Palace.

Palace penalty!

Definite foul on Endo.

Looking for a way not to give the spot kick.

Because it was a clear foul, Dale. How he doesn't give it in the first place is the mystery. Probably trying to relegate Liverpool as usual.

Deffo foul, no penalty.

Now let's get the VAR to look and see if there was a foul leading up to the Endo foul.

Just being corrupt as fuck...

Palace winning the balls in the air around midfield and getting to second balls. This could get interesting if Olise comes on in the second half.

Go on, David. The ref doesn't give the foul then the same ref looks at the screen and corrects his decision.

Where's the corruption and why would he bother his arse not giving the foul in the first place?

I think the amount of time taken to review the foul is strong evidence of corruption. Ref was clearly being told what to give and getting the story right for after.

How was the original decision when ref clearly saw the entire incident unobstructed and nearby a clear and obvious error?

Andy,

I'm not sure how he made the error but it was a clear error. Any chance it was just the most obvious answer. Or is it just corruption at every turn?

I don’t think corruption is obvious but I am happy to believe that it thrives on incompetence. They deserve the insult running their shop like this.

That is a penalty!

Come on Palace!

Penicillin for VVD

I flicked over to to the racing. What did I miss? Any corruption?😅

Palace properly kicking the shit out of them without fouling. This could hold.

Olise getting ready to come on.

Softest red card ever for Palace, jammy RS

Agreed Rob. Terrible decision. Ref has had a very poor game.

Shane? That first was a rarely carded offence.

Foul after foul by Kounate and still no card!!!

Dale, the first yellow? For stopping play was it? They’ve clamped down this season but it still looked very harsh the one time I saw it. The second one also. Very poor.

The rules can be applied however they like. That is what's causing all the problems. The red card was to me a clear and obvious error but second yellows aren't something looked at by VAR so can't be changed?

The only way to put this right is for the VAR to be the final arbiter for any on-field decision but games would last 12 hours?

Anyone know if Onana will be fully fit tomorrow? Anyone with inside news?

Typical that sending off, you know it’s dodgy when even Roy Hodgson gets booked for abuse.

It should be run as the NHL does it, with announced positions reviewing all major calls to one standard.

Andy, there's talk of VAR being brought in for other issues such as second yellows and corners which is an awful move in my opinion.

Neither yellow has anything to do with VAR though. But I do feel that VAR has made the officials worse as they know they have a back-up, especially when it comes to flagging offside decisions.

The corrupt Premier League help the favourites again

We can’t keep making excuses for pieces of an ineffective system. It all comes under refereeing and it is presently a failure.

Agreed Dale. It’s a difficult and thankless job but it should be better. The lad in the game on Thursday night was very good though I thought. Never heard of him before.

Errors are expected in this type of quick judgement environment. It is when sigificant bias is found that brings the game into disrepute.

Did ya know:

Everton are the only team left in the Premier League this season who have not conceded a headed goal. Conversely, only three have conceded more than the six shipped by Chelsea, whose seven let in from crosses is the second worst (Sheffield United have 12)...

I know, kiss of death and all, but no, clean sheet tomorrow...

The usual Liverpool result!!!! Injury time winner against ten men.

At least Everton beat eleven men.

Well look at it this way, we can possibly run the board on all the teams around us getting nothing this round. All of them have difficult matches and we can destroy Chelsea.

Use technology for off-sides, goal-line decisions and whether a penalty took place inside or outside the area.

Leave all other decisions to the ref and the linesmen, and we accept it when they make a mistake.

I'm actually laughing now. Home or away, RS vs Any Team... it's always the same story.

Running the most corrupt league in the world makes for a very boring script.

I switched off after Palace went down to ten men. I didn't want to see the inevitable winner that was coming.

I could write the script for most of their games with referees and VAR heavily involved along with Billy Bias and Charlie Corruption!

David,

I'm 54 and been able to write the script for the vast majority of their games since they days of Jon Pertwee as Dr Who.

I'll never forget when Jan Molby got a hat-trick from penalties. The way it's always been.

Dave, you really could see it coming. Palace definitely aren't all that this season, and Liverpool have had ungodly levels of good fortune this season.

Sitting in a Norwegian restaurant and not knowing the game was on live, there was a VAR moment that was weird.

Saint Virgil tapped an opponent's ankle and the player went down, much like our game against Palace. But instead of VAR looking at that incident they looked at a previous one where a Palace player had committed a foul in the build-up to Saint Virgil's foul!!

I don't watch many games these days but is it common for that to happen? Or only when it's in favour of the RedShite?

Oh, and the time taken to review the VAR!! They couldn't make a decision so referred it to the referee pitch side and they must have spent five minutes on making a decision when it was obviously a foul that could have been decided in five seconds.

Rob (40),

"Ungodly" is the perfect adjective for those bastards!

This Man Utd really are a poor team, all huff n puff.

How we never beat them a couple of weeks back is a mystery.

Wolves even it up. I wonder if Ten Hag will be fired at halftime

Joe,

I'm 58 and I share your resignation. Still makes me seethe though.

ps: The sooner we're in the new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock and further away from that lot, the better. Mind you, we should keep the Grand Old Lady just to annoy them...

David, don't be surprised if Liverpool FC buy Goodison Park, knock it down and turn it into the LFC museum and business education centre with a huge fanzone on matchdays.

Every fucker around us winning!! 🙄

Eric @41,

Yes mate, that's part of the VAR process, not just for the RS.

Iraola is a right con man. Pretended to be crap for 2 months just to lull everyone into a false sense of security.

Oh wow! All results going against us!!!!

Meltdown time... wait till Goodison News get a hold of this!

It is outrageous, Michael. It is as if these teams are actively competing with us.

You’d think the teams around us would just lie down and surrender, wouldn’t you?

Colin,

They don't have the same kind of neighbourly spirit we have when we do that time and again against the RS.

Michael (50),

When Goodison News get hold of this at 5:15 pm things will be entirely different… erm, I think!

Fucking hell, this is looking like a stinker of a set of results for us.

Plenty of time left for things to change.

Ten Hag out!

Take it easy. We are out of the Bottom 3 with a game in hand.

Newcastle was the best opponent to get off your schedule as well. We're okay.

Dale, I don't think many of us are worried. That said, I still want winners for Brighton and Wolves.

I'm really looking forward to next season. I'm sick of following the scores and results of bottom five clubs, and having to support teams I don't like.

Sorry, Rob, I wasn't trying to be TW Mom or Mum.

I'm watching Man Utd v Bournemouth and I'm really impressed with everything about this display from what I see as a bang-average Bournemouth team. Some top class coaching that is or maybe just a one-off?

I was actually thinking they would be down the bottom end and one of the teams to give us hope of climbing above.

Dale #60,

No better mam.

Ten Hag's gotta be sacked tonight.

Five near winners for Brighton. Great goalkeeping but I've finally seen a club that finishes worse than we do.

Man Utd have lost the same number of games as Everton, scored the same number of goals but conceded two more than us.

Given the expense and depth of the two squads, that doesn't reflect well on them but does on us.

Other than Lopetigui, who'd be in line to replace him?

Such a shame we didn't turn up against Man Utd. Everyone else does!

Rob, I'd say if any job could get Zidane off the beach, this would be it.

Or if the owners think the players need a boot up the ass... Conte.

Others less likely: Villas-Boas, Gracia, Flick, Potter,

Poor old Harry Kane and his quest for guaranteed silverware at Bayern.

Lost their version of the charity shield, dumped out of the cup by a third-division side, thrashed by Frankfurt 5-1 today and 3 points behind Leverkusen.

Maybe he should have joined PSG instead.

Zidane's an interesting shout, but I remain of the opinion that Cristiano Ronaldo carried him to that Champions League trifecta.

As for Conte, he would want a lot of money, both in wages and in terms of a transfer budget, and this set of owners are too busy siphoning money out of the club.

It's interesting times ahead, though. Every year that passes, Jose Mourinho's second place and Europa League win look better. Which is ridiculous.

I hate Man Utd so more than happy to see them get stuffed but, in all honesty, it was a great game to watch. Long may their misery continue regardless of what manager they have.

Plenty of skill in the Mancs but Bournemouth were equal to everything and more. To think that they just brushed us aside recently sort of shows what a mountain we have to climb to get back in the top of the table. Let's just get to safety first I suppose.

Other results weren't perfect for us but could've been worse.

Kieran, whatever's gone wrong at Bayern isn't Harry's fault. 18 in 13 in the Bundesliga is insane. The dude is SO good.

We still need 30 more points to be safe before they deduct us another 9 points.

Mike,

I'm not blaming Kane's efforts… just wondering if he is under some kind of a hex?

Thanks, Brendan!

Please may the football gods not destroy Zizou's reputation at Man Utd.

Didn't he already do that himself, Dale?

Ten Haag probably be booted out after an Anfield humiliation next week. Bayern before then. Two heavy losses on the cards.

Dave, with the headbutt? I don't know, for me that was a cruel moment where he lost it.

He remains the last romantic figure in modern football for me. Who since has captured the stage like he did?

He was a dazzling player, Dale. An all time great.

I was joking about the headbut. That can't be allowed to eclipse all those magical moments.

Great swivel and early first time hit from McGinn

Ah good, Dave, I thought I was about to get schooled.

You don't need schooling from anybody. You know a great when you see one.

I like Drac’s video setup. Seems like they do so me serious in-game analysis.

Good goal from my mate McGinn.

Dale @83, he's just running Love At First Bite on his video screen, he watches when there's a break in play.🧛‍♂️

The win vs Newcastle is starting to look even bigger than it did at the time.

What joy there is to be had in the misfortune of others.
If only we didn't have to play so often!

Ha, Jeff, was that you that dubbed him Drac? I've been using that.

Very kind, Dave, but I was a Gomesjz man.

Nah, not me Dale, but it's a good one, isn't it?

Think it goes back to his Arse days, and the fact he starts every interview with “Good evvvennning, I am the count of Sesame Street.”

Indeed Andy.

There should be a public holiday in honour of the guy who invented schadenfreude.

Penalty. He hooked his leg. Damn!

We didn't turn up against Man Utd?

I was of the opinion that we should have been ahead at half-time in that game, despite the wonder goal that Man Utd scored after 3 minutes.

I know we lost the match 3-0, but the lack of finishing power is what did for us, not a failure to turn up.

Hours behind here. I don't think that this was the best of days for us, was it? On the other hand, I have complete even cocky confidence that we will win tomorrow.

Barry [92], correct and well rebutted.

Unfortuantely, finishing power is what has cost us against Fulham, Wolves, Brighon, Luton and I nearly forgot Sheff Utd.

Hopefully, with DCL back, Beto, Chermiti, McNeill, Doucs and hopefully 2-3 more we will be better at taking chances. Especially, if current results and form are maintained and confidence keeps growing.

We have the nucleus of a decent, hard-working team. Unfortunately, our passing ability and general in-game composure just need improve to the same levels as the in-game effort we have now found under Swan.

PS That exchange elsewhere regards calling Sean Swan has stuck with me.

As a cyclist, leisure only nowadays, he does show superb 'Souplesse', I.e. the ability to calm, measured and in control, whilst all the while, internally turning yourself inside-out with effort!

E.g. a Swan paddling upstream, appearing graceful above the water, but working like a Trojan under the water.

It is what Sean 'Swan' Dyche has been doing since he arrived at Everton.

Great to see Richi flip the bird to Ange with his second goal tonight.

Go Richi, but come home, we Love ya!!

I know it is not respectful hoping for Man Utd to get thrashed at Old Trafford and fail out of Europe entirely. That's why I'm doing it.