Every word Joe Hart said about ‘frustrating’ Everton moment vs Aston Villa on MOTD

Everton got back to winning ways with a 1-0 victory over Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon.

Thierno Barry scored the only goal of the game, capitalising on an Emi Martinez mistake to secure all three points for David Moyes’ side at Villa Park.

The Toffees have moved up to 10th in the Premier League as a result of their first win in four games, and are just four points adrift of Liverpool in fourth.

However, the scoreline could have been even better for the Merseyside outfit if the linesman, and then VAR, hadn’t ruled out Jake O’Brien’s first-half header.

Joe Hart explains offside decision that will leave Everton ‘disappointed’

With the scores at 0-0 just past the half-hour mark, O’Brien thought he had opened the scoring for Everton, heading past Martinez in the Villa goal.

The Irishman rose highest to flick James Garner’s cross into the far corner, but saw the flag go up as he wheeled away to celebrate.

Harrison Armstrong was standing in an offside position as the ball came into the box, and despite not getting a touch, it was determined that he had interfered with play.

VAR upheld the decision, and Everton had to wait until the second half to eventually take the lead at Villa Park.

Speaking on BBC Match of the Day, former Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart explained why the officials made the right call, even if Everton fans will be disappointed.

Hart: “We’re going to look at the offside goal here. O’Brien scores the goal, and it feels like a good goal. I understand why people will be disappointed.

“But at the end of the day, Armstrong is in an offside position as the ball is crossed, and he makes a deliberate attempt at the ball, which affects the defending.

“It was given on-field, and upheld by VAR because that’s the right decision.”

Presenter Kelly Cates added: “So while it may be frustrating for Everton, it was correct by the letter of the law.”

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What did David Moyes say about the disallowed goal?

Former PGMOL chief Keith Hackett had tipped Moyes to be annoyed with the decision to rule out O’Brien’s goal, and he was proved right.

The Everton boss highlighted the fact that the Toffees feel like they have been on the wrong end of several officiating calls this season.

However, he did acknowledge that offsides are usually one part of the game which VAR gets right.

Speaking to Sky Sports: “I could give you a full list of where we think we haven’t been getting good decisions going for us, so I wasn’t surprised when it was ruled out.

“I think the one thing about offsides is that they can normally do that right, because they’ve got the lines. You believe that most of them are correct.

“They’re saying that he (Armstrong) was interfering with play, so we have to accept that.”

Next up, Everton welcome Leeds to the Hill Dickinson Stadium, and they will look to build on an impressive win against Champions League-chasing Aston Villa.

The Toffees should have Idrissa Gueye and Iliman Ndiaye back, after they won the Africa Cup of Nations with Senegal, which would be a huge boost.

Stay up to date this winter with our Everton transfer tracker. Click to see every done deal at Hill Dickinson, plus expert reaction from our team of writers.

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