Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite Goal against Liverpool Might Not have Stood With the Introduction of New Technology in the Premier League

Scrutinizing the goal scored by Jarrad Branthwaite in the Everton vs Liverpool clash

Jarrad Branthwaite scored the opening goal in the Everton vs Liverpool Merseyside Derby for the hosts at the Goodison Park. He notched Everton into a 1-0 lead in the first half of the game. His goal stood as a massive one for Everton considering their relegation battle leading towards the end of the season and also considering the enormity of the occasion as the Toffees were facing their arch-rivals Liverpool who were chasing the Premier League title themselves.

However, things could have been different if the Premier League’s idea of introducing the semi-automated technology from the next season would had been placed at the Everton vs Liverpool clash itself. What might occurred as an onside and allowed the goal to the hosts, could have been deemed as an offside offense, and thereby the goal wouldn’t have counted.

ESPN’s football expert Dale Johnson stated his views on how Jarrad Branthwaite’s goal could have been termed under the offside parameters with the semi-automated technology –

“Jarrad Branthwaite was within the tolerance level of the current offside technology. Next season with the introduction of semi-automated technology, which has no tolerance level, it may well be disallowed”, Johnson reportedly asserted.

After Branthwaite scored, the VAR took a decent amount of time to check for the possible offside offense in the build-up to the goal. However, when lines were drawn, it was concluded that the Everton player was played onside by the Reds defender Ibrahim Konate as he was pretty much on equal terms with him on the lines drawn. But, with the current offside technology used, only the green (onside) line was highlighted by the VAR pictures and not the other one, the red (offside) parameter.

Everton defeats Liverpool at Goodison Park and jeopardizes their title hopes

Everton defeated Liverpool by 2-0 at the much anticipated Merseyside Derby as Jarrad Branthwaite’s early goal was supplemented by Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s second-half goal to secure all three points for the hosts. The win was the Toffees’ first win over the Reds in about 14 years at the Goodison Park. As much as it aided Everton’s Premier League survival hopes, the victory for them dented their rivals Liverpool’s title hopes.

The Sean Dyche team is now eight points clear from the relegation zone for the time being and sits in the 16th place in the league table with 33 points to their name. On the other hand, Liverpool is now three points behind the league leaders Arsenal, having played the same number of games, and one point ahead of Man City, having played two more games.

Also Read:

• Everton denied an early penalty by VAR against Liverpool
• Initial Contacts Between Arne Slot and Liverpool Deemed Positive as the Feyenoord Manager Keen on Joining the Reds
• West Ham vs Liverpool Preview, Prediction, and Betting Tips | Premier League
• Nottingham Forest to Receive VAR Audio Recordings Following Defeat by Everton