Alan Shearer rages at what he saw in Everton v Crystal Palace – ‘Terrible’

Alan Shearer couldn’t believe James Tarkowski avoided a controversial penalty for Everton in their 2-1 win against Crystal Palace.

   The Blues went a goal down with a goal from Dwight McNeil to take the lead on Saturday [28.  September] secured their first Premier League win of the season at Goodison Park.

   But Shearer, discussing the match on The Rest is Football [30  Sep 42:27] believes the Toffees were lucky not to be two goals down at half-time after Tarkowski challenged Jean-Philipp Mateta on the edge of the box.    area.

   He said: “I thought it was a terrible decision. Palace should have had another penalty – it might have been 2-0 if they had had a penalty.

   “I thought it was a terrible challenge, but they did it.”

   James Tarkowksi is lucky not to cost Everton against Crystal Palace

   For every Premier League team, there are moments in the season that can be described as watershed.    Everton will surely look back on this decision as their luck finally turned in their favour.

   Perhaps Tarkowski should have been booked for the foul on Mateta, the film shows the player himself thought the same, but the Blues were one goal behind to turn it around and the incident should not have overshadowed their performance.

   Sean Dyche will be the biggest reliever on Merseyside this week, with his side four points off the table after six games and have climbed from the bottom of the table out of the relegation zone.

   Unlike previous years, Everton have quality depth at centre-back, should Tarkowski be punished for his near-costly mistake, Jake O’Brien is waiting in the wings to replace the 31-year-old.

   The Blues’ performances have been excellent despite the results, but this result feels monumental for the club and a turning point for Dyche, who has been under fire since opening day.

   Jarrad Branthwaite was sorely missed and reminded Evertonians how defensively solid the team becomes when he is on the pitch, and with Nathan Patterson and Seamus Coleman nearing returns, Everton can re-establish their reputation as one of the best defenses in the Premier League.  .