Everton implode as Lampard disputes officials’ decisions
Goodison pain after three Brentford goals... ... and two red cards
Frank Lampard will hold a Zoom meeting with a Football Association independent regulatory commission this week to explain his controversial remarks in the wake of last month’s Merseyside derby defeat by Liverpool.
After another tumultuous afternoon when Lampard felt his team were again on the wrong end of some contentious refereeing decisions in their fraught battle to beat the drop, it is fair to assume the Everton manager will have a lot more to unload on that disciplinary panel.
A game that Everton twice led was ultimately turned on its head by the 18th-minute dismissal of Jarrad Branthwaite, which would have been frustrating enough for Lampard had it not been directly preceded by the denial of what he believed was a clear-cut penalty for Richarlison after a pull of the shirt by Kristoffer Ajer.
There would be further frustration when the penalty that Richarlison converted in first-half stoppage time to restore Everton’s lead did not also result in a second yellow card for Brentford defender Mads Bech Sorensen, who was on a booking and really should have walked.
Things may have been different in the second half had both sides been playing with 10 men but that numerical disadvantage against a side who move the ball as well as Brentford, and switch systems just as effectively, eventually took its toll on Everton, even if this was not simply a hard luck story.
Everton’s enduring inability to defend their box helped Brentford to score twice in 121 seconds through Yoane Wissa and Rico Henry shortly after the hour mark to lead 3-2, and was also a factor in their initial equaliser. Similarly, the indiscipline that has now seen Everton rack up five red cards in their past 11 league matches reared its head again late on, when Salomon Rondon was sent off four minutes after his introduction as a substitute for a terrible challenge on Henry.
Goodison Park, which had fizzed with intoxicating intensity early on, was flat by the end as Everton supporters were left to sweat for another few days at least. Victory at home to Crystal Palace on Thursday will be enough to keep them up but the players may take some picking up after this, even if Lampard argued otherwise. “It’s in our hands,” he said.
The drama was unremitting. Everton could have been a couple of goals to the good before Dominic Calvert-lewin got the faintest of touches to Richarlison’s hooked shot from an Anthony Gordon freekick to score after 10 minutes. Goodison was rocking, Everton were firmly in the ascendency and Brentford could not believe what they had walked into. And then it all started to go wrong for the hosts. There was little disputing the game’s turning point, even if opinion will be split over whether Ajer should first have been penalised for pulling Richarlison’s shirt before Brentford went straight down the other end and Branthwaite got himself sent off. Lampard was furious when Gordon was denied a penalty and accused of being a diver at Anfield last month after going down under a challenge from Liverpool’s Joel Matip. After claiming the situation would have been different had Mohamed Salah been in that situation, Lampard was subsequently charged by the FA and so sought to tread carefully here while still making his frustration felt.
“I thought it was a penalty, it was a clear shirt pull, it’s a foul in the box,” Lampard said. “This clear and obvious phrase, I don’t know if it still counts but it’s a nonsense. The decision is either right or it’s wrong. Is a shirt pull a foul? Yes. Is it in the box? Yes. It’s a penalty.
“I’ve got a lot of respect for the referees because they do one of the toughest jobs. But the reality is we’ve been on the bad end of a lot of decisions this season. That’s just a reality and it’s hard because I have to represent the club and fans and those small margins can affect our position.
“A penalty on the shirt pull maybe means 2-0 and 11 men and I think we all know how that game goes.”
Sure, but the other reality is that Branthwaite could have done a lot better than he did. Thrown in for only his second league start of the season after Michael Keane fell ill overnight, this always had the look of a big afternoon for the 19-year-old up against Ivan Toney and his inexperience showed in allowing the Brentford striker to get the run on him on his underside after Mathias Jensen’s long ball upfield. Once Toney had nicked in front, Branthwaite was in trouble as the last man and, after clipping his opponent’s heels, Michael Oliver wasted no time brandishing the red card.
Everton’s lead was gone just 20 minutes later. Jensen split Everton’s defence with a disguised pass. Toney’s cross was missed by everyone but collected by Wissa on the far side. He sent the ball back across and Seamus Coleman headed it past Jordan Pickford into his own net.
After Richarlison scored from the spot just before the break, and Soresen mysteriously escaped a second yellow for blocking off the Brazilian, Everton headed into the second half with renewed impetus but slowly they began to tire and the mistakes crept in.
Brentford equalised for a second time when Wissa stooped in front of Richarlison to head home Christian Eriksen’s corner – the 17th goal Everton have conceded from set pieces this season – and two minutes later Thomas Frank’s side were in front for the first time. Christian Norgaard floated a cross into the box where Henry rose above Gordon to thunder home a header.
Brentford have now won seven of their past 10 games in the league. Everton can at least take some comfort from the knowledge that relegation rivals Leeds are unlikely to have it easy against Brentford on Sunday, although Lampard will hope to already be safe by then. Palace is a huge game.