Leon Osman and Tim Cahill have backed Mikel Arteta's complaints over Arsenal's disallowed goal against Leicester City.
The Gunners went down to a 1-0 defeat but things could have been so different had Alexandre Lacazette's first-half goal not been ruled out for an offside.
Granit Xhaka was adjudged to be interfering with play from an offside position, meaning Lacazette's flick past Kasper Schmeichel was not allowed.
It was a decision that prompted bemusement from Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Arteta said: "I’m really disappointed, we had it in our hands in the first half and I don’t know how the hell the goal was disallowed.
"They caught us with space at the back and in that moment we lost the game. It is difficult to create spaces with 10 men behind the ball, but we should have finished the game better. When it comes to those moments you can’t give away chances at the back.
"We still had some moments after the goal but gave away too many free kicks. The effort that the boys put in, and the pressure the Leicester team put you under, it’s not an easy thing to do but we have to improve."
And former Everton midfielders Osman and Cahill backed their old teammate's complaints on Match of the Day, arguing that Xhaka was not interfering with play.
"I completely agree with Arteta," Osman said. "People are around the goalkeeper.
"Lacazette gets the header and you think Xhaka might interfere with the goalkeeper and that’s what it is. But Xhaka doesn’t interfere with the goalkeeper until Lacazette has got the foot on.
" You look at the position he is in and once Lacazette gets that touch, he is not hindering his (Schmeichel's) vision, he is not stopping him from diving, he is nowhere in between.
"He just can’t save it. If the VAE would have looked like that and realised he wasn’t close..."
Cahill added: "VAR is accountable. You look at the Pickford incident and it’s subjective decisions.
"They said it was a one, two, three step process. The referee could have asked and got this right. It looks like it’s a goal."
