Everton defender James Tarkowski was 'lucky' not to see himself sent off at Anfield versus Liverpool on Wednesday evening for his first-half tackle on Alexis Mac Allister in the Merseyside derby - and respected football journalist Henry Winter has slammed the Premier League's VAR for not picking up and 'intervening properly' to send the former Burnley defender off.
Just 11 minutes into the naturally feisty affair, Tarkowski won the ball first in his forceful tackle against Mac Allister, but followed through - with his studs catching the Argentine's leg whilst it was planted into the ground.
Winter: Premier League's VAR Decision 'Shocking' Amid Tarkowski Incident
The former England international wasn't given his marching orders at Anfield
alexis mac allister
Referee Samuel Barrott immediately blew for a free-kick and issued Tarkowski with a yellow card, despite protests from Liverpool players and Arne Slot for Tarkowski's actions to be punished further - and even though VAR checked the decision, they went with the on-field decision of a free-kick and a yellow card.
Liverpool Statistics Everton
3 Shots on target 0
5 Shots off target 2
11 Corners 5
7 Fouls 11
2 Yellow cards 2
74 Possession (%) 26
That has come under much criticism from fans, players and pundits alike - with Winter being one of those after deeming VAR's decision as 'bemusing and shocking'. The journalist posted on X (formerly Twitter) just moments after the incident:
"That’s surely close to a red. Dangerous. Tarkowski on Mac Allister. How VAR not intervened properly on that Tarkowski challenge is bemusing and shocking, really.
"VAR is supposed to catch refereeing misjudgements/mistakes like that. Tarkowski lucky not to see red. Mac Allister lucky not to be seriously injured."
The incident kept the game at 11 men vs 11 men, and Everton almost profited when Beto looked to have beaten Virgil van Dijk in the offside trap as he rifled home, though the goal was ruled out for offside just 10 minutes after Tarkowski's incident on Mac Allister.
From there, Liverpool started to take control of the game and eventually went ahead thanks to Diogo Jota's first strike since early January, going 12 points clear of Arsenal in the Premier League table with just eight games to go - and should they win their next four games, any Arsenal slip-up in that period would see them crowned as champions before the start of May.
Slot's side could have had a quadruple to their name, but an FA Cup shock exit to Plymouth Argyle, defeat on penalties against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League and a loss in the final of the League Cup vs Newcastle United means that they are likely to end the campaign on just the one trophy.
Statistics courtesy of LiveScore. Correct as of 03-04-25.
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PGMOL admit James Tarkowski red card error following Liverpool Everton Merseyside derby
According to reports, Premier League referee chiefs have acknowledged that James Tarkowski should have been sent off for his horror tackle on Alexis Mac Allister during last night's Merseyside derby between Liverpool and Everton. The Everton defender went flying into a tackle on the Argentine which left the Reds' midfielder in a whole heap of pain. VAR reviewed the incident to see whether the challenge met the threshold for serious foul play, eventually determining that it did not. However, it is understood that after reviewing the incident, Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) have now accepted that Tarkowski’s tackle constituted serious foul play and should therefore have seen the Everton captain be red carded via a VAR review.
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