Retired official says professional should be axed after Everton mistake
Date: 5th October 2016 at 1:41pm
By Harvey Byrne
Ex-chief of referees Keith Hackett believes official Jon Moss is not up to the standard of officiating in the Premier League following his latest error in Friday evening's clash between Everton and Crystal Palace.
Moss awarded the Toffees a free-kick during the fixture at Goodison Park, which resulted in a goal from Romelu Lukaku.
However, Hackett states that the rules say the set-piece should have been an indirect free kick as Palace defender Damien Delaney didn't make contact with Everton's Phil Jagielka and that the goal should not have stood.
"The law is very clear. When a player commits an act of dangerous play, if there's no contact it's an indirect free kick," said Hackett, as quoted by the Mirror. "I expected Lukaku's effort to be retaken and it wasn't, that was 100% incorrect."
"Moss is a referee who is a consistent bottom of the table performer. Every time he referees it's a bit of a disaster.
"For me he either needs a rest or he needs taking off the panel. We've got professional referees, so let's be professional. He's not up to the standard in my opinion."
The Toffees would have won the match from the free-kick if not for former Liverpool striker Christian Benteke, who equalised and finished the scoring at 1-1.
Ronald Koeman's side currently sit in fifth place after an impressive start as they look to improve on last season's 11th placed finish.
They will face a tough battle against league leaders Manchester City in their next fixture, who will be keen to bounce back from their first defeat suffered at the hands of Tottenham.
In other Everton news, James Tomkins believes the Toffees will be a difficult side to beat this season.