Pundit rages after controversial Alex Moreno incident at Aston Villa in January
We’re delighted to welcome former Aston Villa full-back Alan Hutton as our exclusive columnist. Each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at Villa Park…
Alan Hutton was left enraged by the decision to disallow Alex Moreno’s first-half goal during the clash between Aston Villa and Everton and has called for a change in officiating in the Premier League.
Unai Emery’s side thought they had taken the lead at Goodison Park through the Spanish left-back, only to see Moreno’s strike chalked off after a lengthy VAR check, as Leon Bailey was adjudged to have drifted offside in the build-up.
In total, the check took four minutes before concluding that the goal shouldn’t stand with the draw meaning that Villa missed the opportunity to move level on points with Liverpool at the top of the Premier League table.
While Hutton admits that the Premier League officials have a difficult job, he has urged referees to speed up their decision-making as the current process has become too frustrating for players and supporters alike.
“I genuinely don’t get it,” Hutton told Villa News.
“We obviously see it towards the end that its offside, it’s a good goal. I think it’s McGinn that plays it into Bailey and then he cuts it back and he’s offside. I don’t really know what they were checking, if it was some sort of other issue or what had happened but these are the things that go on and that’s why people get frustrated.
“Fans especially in grounds, people watching at home, you’re actually saying to yourself, ‘Why is this taking so long?’
“Then you add on seven minutes at the end of that half, then eight minutes at the end of the second half, it’s like come on!
“They need to speed it up. I know it’s a difficult job, they need to get it right, they’re under pressure to get it right and I think that’s why they take more time because they know the scrutiny that they’re under if they get it wrong.”
Having failed to pick up all three points at Goodison Park, Aston Villa now get to enjoy their Premier League winter break before making the trip to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea in the FA Cup fourth round on Friday (26 January).
In the meantime, Emery and the rest of his side will be keeping an eye on the results of Liverpool and Arsenal this weekend, hoping that Jurgen Klopp’s side in particular don’t pull away from the rest of the trailing pack at the top of the table.
In other Aston Villa news, Hutton has suggested that Ollie Watkins can help Villa complete a transfer that “ticks all the boxes”
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