Arsenal earned three points against Everton thanks to a Viktor Gyokeres penalty, but it wasn’t the only call for a spot-kick in the contest.
Arsenal will sit top of the table at Christmas thanks to the win at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
A first-half penalty ended Gyokeres’ scoring drought and eventually won the game for Mikel Arteta’s side.
It was a smart decision to hand Gyokeres the ball to take the penalty, as the Swede earned some much-needed confidence amid his struggles to adapt.
The game was won by a moment of madness in the box from Everton’s Jake O’Brien, but it could have been drawn by an error courtesy of William Saliba.
Give us your three-word review on Arsenal’s win over Everton
Shay Given fumes that Everton weren’t awarded a penalty for William Saliba’s foul on Thierno Barry.
In the 57th minute, the ball landed in front of Saliba after he missed the chance to clear the danger from an initial header.
Barry then got his foot up to contest the bouncing ball, which resulted in Saliba following just after, unknowingly kicking through the striker’s foot with his eyes on the ball.
The incident was checked, and Sam Barrott’s on-field decision of no foul stood, seeing the game resume, a call that angered Shay Given.
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“I think there’s a lot more than significant contact in this. I’m really strong on this,” Given said on BBC Match of the Day.
“People will argue it’s not a penalty, but Barry gets the ball before Saliba, and for me, it’s a clear penalty. I don’t understand, maybe the laws of the game anymore, but this is a clear penalty.”
The former goalkeeper was insistent that Everton should have had a penalty in that moment, sharing his view that Barrott was wrong, saying the call wasn’t a ‘difficult’ one to make.
“Barry gets the ball, Saliba kicks through the back of his foot, and for me, there’s plenty of significance in that.
“It’s inside the box, I don’t think it’s actually a difficult decision, I really don’t, the referee said no, but I do believe that VAR should’ve said ‘Sam, at least come and have a look at this’, for me that’s a penalty all day long.”
VAR did check the penalty claim and concluded that play should resume, a decision that has rustled some feathers.
What PGMOL said about Everton’s penalty claim
During the game, the Premier League Match Centre issued a statement on X to explain why a penalty was not awarded.
“The referee’s call of no penalty to Everton was checked and confirmed by VAR – with it deemed the contact from Saliba on Barry wasn’t sufficient for a penalty.”
The decision angered many fans, as, in fairness, Saliba did make enough contact with Barry to see the striker left in pain on the floor.
The decision stood, and perhaps this time, it’s fair to say Arsenal were fortunate.
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