DAVID MOYES admits he substituted John Heitinga at half-time to avoid the Dutchman receiving another red card from World Cup nemesis Howard Webb.

Heitinga was hauled off during the interval by Goodison manager Moyes having received a yellow card after 26 minutes of Everton’s 2-1 home defeat to Arsenal yesterday.

Referee Webb infamously sent off Heitinga when the midfielder was representing Holland in this summer’s World Cup final against Spain in South Africa.

And Moyes said: “I didn’t know if he was one more tackle away from a sending-off. I didn’t want us to go down to 10 men while we were 1-0 down.”

Webb infuriated the Goodison support with a number of debatable decisions, not least when adjudging Sebastien Squillaci was not the last man when hauling down Louis Saha shortly after the visitors’ second goal.

Squillaci was subsequently shown only a yellow card, and Moyes said: “I’ve not seen it again. It was one of those in the dugout where I thought the referee had a decision to make, and I wasn’t sure what decision he was going to make.

“Could it have been a sending off? Some referees would have but I haven’t seen it again so I can’t comment.

“There were things that maybe on another day might have gone in Everton’s favour. Possibly you get those.”