It's a part of the game people don't like but in our dressing room, if our forward [does that] we are there to win leagues, win games. It is Conte-lite, you may as well have left Antonio Conte in there if everything is going to be exactly the same. It is normal when the fans are unhappy, but in my opinion it was a clear red card [for Doucouré]. You have to realise the situation. If the [Everton] fans are unhappy with the decision taken, I say it was a good decision. Italy, whistled off at half-time in their first international in Naples for a decade, improved as England became sloppy. DERMOT SAYS: "The VAR looked at it [Xhaka's challenge] to see whether it was a red card and decided it wasn't. I don't think it is a red card, I think it's a yellow, but the problem there is VAR can't recommend a yellow card. He can recommend a red card or nothing. There's no intermediary.

The game had been an uninspiring encounter up until the flashpoint on 57 minutes, when Toffees midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure was given a deserved straight red card after pushing Kane in the face off the ball.

I suppose the only debate that we’re having is whether Harry Kane should go down. To me, I’m gonna do a little bit of a demonstration with James Carragher, he said it was a hand in the face and that, Harry Kane should never go down. Listen, the debate is not about the red card, Harry Kane should not go down for that,” Carragher said. “He should not be going down. It can still be a red card for putting your hand in somebody’s face, Doucoure is wrong and I’m sure Sean Dyche will tell him that. I wouldn’t go down there, as a player. And when you talk about the mistakes of Daniel Levy... the biggest mistake is what's happened with Paratici [now he's suspended].

In fact, and in opposition to those theorists who believe in a deep-rooted pro-Kane conspiracy, there are days when his status as England’s most recognisable footballer works against him in the court of public opinion. One of those days came on Monday, when Tottenham Hotspur travelled to Everton and Kane found himself at the centre of the incident which led to Abdoulaye Doucouré’s red card. Cristian Stellini, the Spurs acting head coach, also stated what everyone on the pitch knew to be true. “Doucouré’s hand was clearly in the face. I was very close to the situation and it was a clear red card.” Carragher says Tottenham are a mess with their managerial situation and Fabio Paratici's suspension This was an important game for Everton after seeing fellow strugglers West Ham and Bournemouth win at the weekend and Nottingham Forest claim a point.

Harry Kane FIFA 19 card ratings

I think it’s a sending off but I think somebody like Harry Kane… say if he stood up, we’d all have said it was brilliant, that he could have gone down and that’s what it’s all about. Was it an exaggerated reaction? Absolutely. Was it embarrassing for a player of Kane’s stature and physical power to be tumbling to the turf? Of course it was. But is there one Premier League player who would have reacted any differently to such an incident? Almost certainly not. And if a player did fail to take advantage of such a swipe, you can be sure their manager would have been furious about it.