VS 
EVERTON
vs LIVERPOOL
FA CUP
(Replay)
Wednesday, 4 February
2009
Channel 24: 4:05 am
- (Live) (Thurs
Morning)
David Moyes has accused referees of favouring Liverpool
during Merseyside derbies as the Everton manager turned up the heat
before the teams’ FA Cup fourth-round replay at Goodison Park this
evening. He believes that his club have suffered in recent matches
against their neighbours because officials are unwilling to punish
Liverpool players.
Moyes was particularly incensed by Javier Mascherano’s apparent
attempt to get Tim Cahill sent off during the first tie at Anfield
ten days ago, when the Argentina midfield player tumbled under a
challenge from the Everton player, who had already been booked, and
motioned to Steve Bennett, the referee, to show a second yellow
card.
Moyes felt that Mascherano’s actions warranted a card in their
own right and was dismayed that Steven Pienaar was not awarded a
penalty when Álvaro Arbeloa appeared to trip the Everton midfield
player in front of the Kop. “I think Liverpool have had an awful
lot going for them,” Moyes said as they prepared to meet for the
third time in 16 days. “We are wholehearted, but when you get
players lying on the floor waving their hands suggesting cards and
the referee is missing challenges, it’s very hard.
“But we will keep going. We won’t be provoked by it. We will be
disciplined but, more importantly, we will keep doing what we have
been doing.
“We thought we had a penalty kick when Steven Pienaar was
tackled from behind. Was it much worse than the one Mikel Arteta
gave away at Old Trafford on Saturday? There are moments in games
when you think it could have gone for you, but it doesn’t.”
Rafael Benítez, the Liverpool manager, having claimed during his
infamous rant at Sir Alex Ferguson last month that the Manchester
United manager wields too much influence over referees, is likely
to view Moyes’s remarks as little more than an attempt to put
pressure on Alan Wiley, the referee this evening.
Since Moyes took charge at Goodison in March 2002, Everton have
had eight players sent off and Liverpool two in 15 derby matches.
Moyes conceded that some of those dismissals had been warranted,
but he pointed to the decision not to show Dirk Kuyt a red card for
a waist-high challenge on Phil Neville, plus the refusal to award
Joleon Lescott a penalty after he was dragged to the ground by
Jamie Carragher during the 2-1 league defeat at Goodison Park in
October 2007, as examples of poor officiating. “We’re no angels, we
admit that, but there is always a bit of fairness required,” Moyes
said.
Benítez expressed the hope yesterday that Everton would attack
more after accusing Moyes’s team of being over-defensive in the 1-1
draw at Anfield, but if it was an attempt to goad Moyes into
changing tactics, it does not appear to have worked. “It won’t
bother me two hoots what anyone is thinking or saying,” Moyes
said.
One player that Moyes will not have to contend with this evening
is Robbie Keane, who returned to Tottenham Hotspur on Monday, with
Benítez claiming that the £16 million offer was too good to resist
and that David Ngog and Ryan Babel are more capable of filling in
for Fernando Torres — or complementing the Spain striker — than a
proven goalscorer who cost Liverpool £20.3 million.
“Could you see Keane scoring a lot of goals?” Benítez said
yesterday. “We were talking about ‘maybe, maybe’. He was not
playing at the level he can play at. We had a very good offer for a
player who is 28 and wasn’t playing at the level we were expecting,
so maybe it was a good deal for him and us.
Everton (probable; 4-4-1-1): T Howard — A
Hibbert, P Jagielka, J Lescott, L Baines — L Osman, P Neville, M
Arteta, S Pienaar — M Fellaini — T Cahill.
Liverpool (possible; 4-2-3-1): J M Reina — Á
Arbeloa, J Carragher, M Skrtel, F Aurélio — D Kuyt, X Alonso — D
Kuyt, S Gerrard, R Babel — F Torres.
Referee: A Wiley.
<!--#include
file="m63-article-related-attachements.html"--><!-- BEGIN:
Module - M63 - Article Related Attachements --> <!-- BEGIN:
Comment Teaser Module -->
