‘I thought the referee bottled it’: Kevin Campbell and Jamie Carragher back Anthony Gordon after his ‘stonewall’ penalty claim was waved away in Merseyside derby… as the Everton striker insists Joel Matip’s challenge caused him ‘severe pain’
- Anthony Gordon went down under challenge from Joel Matip in second half
- The Everton youngster had been booked for diving in the first half
- Sky pundits say Everton should have got a penalty – but maybe didn’t because of Gordon’s reputation
Kevin Campbell has said he felt the referee ‘bottled’ a decision to give his former side, Everton, a penalty at Anfield on Sunday afternoon.
With the score level at 0-0, Anthony Gordon, who had caused Liverpool trouble all afternoon, ran through and went down after being bundled over by Joel Matip.
Referee Stuart Atwell waved away the visiting side’s protests and Liverpool went on to win 2-0 thanks to goals from Andy Robertson and Divock Origi, who scored his sixth Merseyside derby goal.
Anthony Gordon (left) went down under a challenge from Joel Matip (right)
Former Everton striker Campbell said he believed the referee ‘bottled’ the decision not to award the penalty.
He said on Sky Sports after the game: ‘This is a pen for me. It’s a push in the back. He’s in the box, it’s a push in the back. He’s nowhere near the ball, he pushes him.
‘You see that. If that was at the other end, I’m sure this stadium would have gone crazy. That’s the one break that Everton needed,’ he added.
Anthony Gordon (right) had been booked in the the first half at Anfield for simulation
‘I thought the referee bottled it a little bit, if I’m honest with you.’
Jamie Carragher warned Gordon to ‘be careful’ in the future and not garner himself a reputation as a cheat in the game.
‘He’s got to be careful, Anthony Gordon,’ he said. ‘He’s a great lad and a great player, one of the best players on the pitch today, caused Liverpool massive problems.’
‘But he’s just got to be careful of that, it’s not the first time, the one in the first half, and it definitely will be in referee’s heads,’ he added.
Kevin Campbell (pictured) said after the game that he felt the referee ‘bottled’ the decision
Graeme Souness, on punditry duty alongside Campbell and Carragher, said Gordon’s first-half dive had ‘planted a seed’ of doubt in the referee’s head and could have counted against the player later on.
‘He’s planted a seed in the referee’s head, in the very first few minutes when he dived to try and get a penalty.
‘You can bet, if we’re players out there, we’re in the referee’s ear: “he’s a diver, ref.” You’re planting a seed in the ref’s head as well.’
Meanwhile, Gordon himself said after the game that he believed Everton ‘could’ have had a penalty but that ‘sometimes these things go against you’.
Graeme Souness (pictured) felt Gordon’s first half antics counted against him later on
Jamie Carragher (pictured) warned the Everton youngster against getting himself a reputation for diving amongst referees
He told Sky Sports: ‘We could have had a penalty in my opinion, but sometimes these go against you, and that’s just how football is at times.’
‘The second one for me was the strongest because he stood on my foot. Clearly, I’ve gone 1 v 1 with him, I’ve got the better of him and he’s stood on my foot, which has caused me severe pain and I’ve gone down,’ he added.
On the first appeal, for which he was booked for diving, he admitted that it was not a clearcut penalty but that there was ‘contact’ so he should not have been reprimanded for simulation.
He said: ‘The first one, I’ve watched back. I felt the contact and went down.
‘From a few angles I can see why he hasn’t given it, but it’s certainly not a yellow card because it’s not a dive. There is contact.’