EPL: ‘Awoniyi decision was penalty’ – Lampard blasts three VAR calls after Everton defeat

Coventry City boss, Frank Lampard was left to bemoan a trio of contentious VAR calls as his side were beaten 3-1 by Everton at the Hill Dickinson Stadium on Friday night.

Yann Gboho gave Coventry the lead, but Thierno Barry’s quickfire double and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s strike gave the Toffees the win against Lampard’s side.

However, Lampard was left frustrated by three separate incidents that he felt should have gone his side’s way.

The first came in the first half when James Tarkowski appeared to tug the hair of Caleb Yirenkyi in the penalty area, but referee Stuart Attwell waved away the appeals.

“They are saying it’s not enough of a pull and I think it’s a hard area to be,” Lampard said at his post-match interview.

The second flashpoint arrived early in the second half when Taiwo Awoniyi went down under a challenge from Mykolenko.

“Taiwo, for me, on the line of the box is a penalty. You’ve got to give the foul in real time anyway; the ref did let it go, and I felt it was a penalty,” Lampard insisted.

The third, and perhaps most contentious, was Barry’s second goal, which was checked for handball but allowed to stand.

“The Barry one is a handball, I have heard they are saying it didn’t touch his hand, but I have seen an angle where he has flicked it in with the final touch. VAR is there for that,” Lampard added.