Match Thread Crystal Palace v Everton - Preview, Match Report and MotM Poll

[Prevenger17]

I can't get my head around this. His arm was spread out and blocked the path of the ball. It is a penalty all day long

 

[Blue Shoes]

If you handle it twice in the area in one half of football you run the risk like.

Well he didn't do it on purpose ha its the same as offside the rule makers have totally lost sight of why these rules were brought in in the first place. To stop people standing in front of the goal and basically to stop people punching the ball away.

 

[Jim Hopper]

Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson: "I think the rule is a nonsense. I can't understand how everyone in the game of football - the Premier League, referees, managers and coaches - have allowed this rule to come into operation. It is ruining the game of football, no question of that.

"We can't understand what constitutes a handball and what doesn't.

"The idea that you can look at this on a screen and this constitutes a handball. It is just an absolute nonsense. I don't want to profit from it or lose from it."

He’s old school Roy and makes sense with what he says but not sure he’d be as outspoken if his team would have benefited from the same decision. Ancelotti answered it with more professionalism.

 

[Frenk]

Roy is spot on by that, people will be trying to play the ball to hand to win pens, its really nonsense. Doucoure had a weird game, good and crap at different times but he blends well with the other two, balance is great.

Did he say anything last week? Or is he just being a hypocrite?

 

[TheBigIguana]

I like Roy but I'm so done with the drama every time there is a rule change. No, it is not ruining the game of football so just pack it in would you? Rules can change.

 

[jaycee]

Thought Allans performance today was even better than the spurs game.

Proper 'in the trenches' game from him today...no one seemed to get past him.

Doucoure also top notch but his first half meant the award goes to Allan.

Yes Doucoure improved a hell of a lot 2nd half,feel Allan is the reason the midfield can play more expansively

 

[GwladysBlue]

Jesus Christ. HOW DARE Everton get a penalty kick? Nothing about us going top or anything, all about this penalty.

EVERTON TOP OF THE LEAGUE!

 

[ValBlue]

Roy’s post match was pretty spot on and echos a lot of the feeling around the handball rules (I know we profited today and aren’t complaining) because in general, the rules are ridiculous. His suggestion of players deliberately hitting the ball against hands isn’t that farfetched I don’t think

 

[dan7787]

Hodgson's just given a spot on interview, we were lucky today

 

[f.t.r.s]

All this cry arseing about the pen....
Remember back to the opening day of the season in rooney's first full season...
Arsenal away, henry faces up to stubb's..
Chips the ball onto his arm...pen given...
This is not a new thing

 

[TGW89]

I know it’s a not a happy hunting ground. The next hoodoo is to get a win on the south coast.

Strange place with six toed locals. True we struggle down there, especially with 13 years separating our first two wins at St Marys, but there was also three straight wins at Pompey in their first three PL seasons - two under foul winter conditions with that un-roofed away terrace and porta potties for toilets.

Right now though I'm just chuffed we already have more points after three games than we did after eight last year.

 

[Jim Hopper]

Jesus Christ. HOW DARE Everton get a penalty kick? Nothing about us going top or anything, all about this penalty.

EVERTON TOP OF THE LEAGUE!

That’s the one mate.

Onwards and upwards!

 

[LEONARD]

31 points from safety, and it's still 3 months until Xmas.

 

[Darth Toffeeman]

I know it’s a not a happy hunting ground. The next hoodoo is to get a win on the south coast.

Like at Southampton last November?

 

[ToffeeTim]

It is an impossible rule to right down in the first place. You can't put a paragraph that describes every possible scenario for the ball hitting someone's arms so the judgment is always going to be hard. Nor can you just say it always is or is not a foul. My solution is to lower the stakes by making it an indirect free kick basically aside from clearly intentional ones that would result in a booking/sending and preventing these nothing incidents from becoming match changing moments.

The current interpretation is very difficult to have consistency with either. For me there are either 3 given today or none.

Roy is pragmatic enough to know they benefitted last week but he's completely right to say the rule is wrong. Dont get me wrong im very happy to take it today, but we will inevitably get stung under this law.

Palace probably deserved a draw, but we found a way to grind it out.