The second half of Tottenham‘s crucial encounter with Everton was held up due to technical difficulties, leaving Gary Neville incensed. The north Londoners went into the fixture knowing that relegation was a real possibility should they suffer defeat, with West Ham able to send them down in such an instance by beating Leeds United.
Tottenham simply needed to win to secure their Premier League status for another season and they took the lead just before the half-time whistle. Joao Palhinha scored in the 42nd minute to break the deadlock, taking a second bite of the cherry after seeing his initial header parried away. After the interval, both teams returned to the pitch but play was unable to resume straight away.
The game was delayed for several minutes because of a technical problem, which angered Neville in the Sky Sports commentary studio.
He said: “Honestly… what blows my mind is that they have had nearly 20 minutes to check it. The fans are booing and rightly so. This is not good enough.”
The two players were battling for the ball when a free-kick was given to the Toffees for an apparent foul by the Spurs defender.
Replays showed that the Dutchman had been caught by the studs of his opposite number, but the decision wasn’t overturned and Rohl went unpunished.
It sparked a furious reaction from Roberto De Zerbi on the touchline, with the Spurs manager in disbelief that a red card wasn’t brandished.
Ahead of the game, the Belgian issued a rallying cry to his players as they went into the final weekend looking to avoid an unthinkable relegation to the Championship.
“We have to play and to play with blood, with character and with spirit because it’s a final,” said De Zerbi. “They played a great final last season and they won a trophy.
“Maybe there was a bonus, no? After tomorrow, there is not a trophy, there is not a bonus, there is something more important than a trophy and a bonus, there is the future of the club.
“There is the history of the club, there is the pride of the players, there is the pride of the family of the players, there is the dignity of every one of us, and for that, I can’t lose energy thinking about the next season.”