Everton’s game against Leeds United sparked plenty of controversy on Monday evening after the penalty award.
David Moyes will now be preparing his side for their first Premier League game at the Hill Dickinson Stadium on the weekend.
Frustration was high among those at Everton on Monday, with a real feeling that the Blues had been harshly done out of a point by referee Chris Kavanagh.
Mark Clattenburg agreed with Leeds’ penalty decision, but there are numerous people across the game who have shared contrasting opinions.
Everton were by no means at their best in their curtain raiser in Yorkshire, but the Toffees did return to Merseyside frustrated.
However, it was not just the penalty decision which sparked some controversy in the media, with one Everton player also coming under fire.
Leeds United v Everton - Premier League
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Everton’s Jordan Pickford slammed for penalty trick
Jordan Pickford previously put Erling Haaland off his penalty last season. This was just one of the England number one’s array of penalty tricks.
This time around, the 31-year-old was seen checking his penalty ‘cheat sheet’ on his water bottle as to which side the taker could potentially go.
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Speaking on TalkSPORT, Jamie O’Hara has slammed this tactic from Pickford, claiming it should actually be banned.
“I’m not having it. I think that should be knocked on its head. It’s got to be banned,” said O’Hara.
“Pickford should not be allowed to look at his bottle five seconds before the penalty; that’s an unfair advantage.”
Moyes was actually left furious with Pickford during the game at Elland Road, following a risky pass in the lead-up to the penalty incident.
That’s not to say it was the goalkeeper’s fault, but Moyes was definitely far from impressed by Pickford’s distribution.
Jordan Pickford used water bottle tactic for England
Other members of the media, like Jamie Carragher, have praised Pickford in the past as Everton’s best player.
This is not the first time the 31-year-old has used this technique in a penalty shootout for England at the most recent Euros.
England were sent to the semi-finals after beating Switzerland in a penalty shootout, where Pickford saved Manuel Akanji’s spot kick.
With this in mind, it will be interesting to know whether O’Hara shared this viewpoint when it involved a game he was invested in.