Jack Grealish blasted the referee’s performance after Everton’s loss to Liverpool.
In a heated post-match interview, Jack Grealish blasted the referee for implementing a Premier League regulation he had ‘never heard of in his life’.
Liverpool defeated Everton 2-1 at Anfield on Saturday.
Ryan Gravenberch opened the score in the tenth minute, and Hugo Ekitike doubled his team’s lead with a crisp finish.
Everton came out battling in the second half and were rewarded for their perseverance as Idrissa Gueye equalized shortly before the hour.
As David Moyes’ team increased the pace, the Toffees continued to press for an equaliser.
In the second half, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall attempted a fast free kick to catch Liverpool’s defence off guard, but match referee Darren England intervened.
England not only refused the swift free kick but also booked Dewsbury-Hall, much to the dismay of Moyes and TNT Sports analysts Darren Fletcher and Ally McCoist, both of whom questioned the decision.
Grealish spoke with TNT Sports following the game and slammed England’s decision to show Dewsbury-Hall a yellow card for taking a fast free kick.
The 30-year-old lamented the caution, claiming he had never seen a player receive a penalty for such offense.
“I’ve never seen a footballer in my life be booked for taking a quick free kick…. “I’m not sure where that rule came from,” he exclaimed.
Grealish remarked about the Merseyside derby: “It was what I expected; coming here, it was nasty and faster. I don’t believe we performed well in the first half; we came in at halftime and spoke with the manager, and then we lost the game in the second half.
“It’s frustrating because if we’d played and pressed like that from the start, the game would have been different. In the end, we were unable to achieve that final target.
“where I’ve seen them [Liverpool] this season, they’ve been fantastic, but there have been a few occasions where they’ve gone 2-0 up and then dropped two goals, and we still believed. We got one back with a beautiful finish from Idrissa [Gueye], but we couldn’t grab the last goal.”
Grealish delivered another great effort but was unable to push his team to victory.
Everton will play Wolves in the Carabao Cup next Tuesday before returning to the league against West Ham United on September 29.
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