08 August 2023 , 15:07
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Referee Anthony Taylor will take charge of Chelsea's Premier League opener against Liverpool on Sunday.
Both clubs had run-ins with Taylor last season, with the 44-year-old sending off Jurgen Klopp during Liverpool's 1-0 win over Manchester City back in October. He was also the subject of a petition calling for him to be banned from refereeing Chelsea games in the wake of their 2-2 draw against Tottenham last August.
The petition racked up more than 160,000 signatures from Chelsea fans claiming that Taylor "has an agenda against Chelsea and should not be allowed to referee a game involving the club again".
Fans were furious that Taylor allowed both of Tottenham's goals to stand, with Richarlison in an offside position when Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg scored and Cristian Romero clearly tugging at the hair of Marc Cucurella shortly before Harry Kane headed home their equaliser.
Then Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel also hit out at Taylor after the game, saying: "I can assure you that it's not just the fans, the whole dressing room thinks that. I cannot understand how the first goal is not a foul or how a player can be pulled by the hair during a corner. I am curious what the explanation is. Both goals should not stand."
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Interestingly he only managed Chelsea once more last season - the 0-0 draw with this weekend's opponents at Stamford Bridge in April.
Thousands of Chelsea fans signed a petition calling for Anthony Taylor to be banned from refereeing their games last season (Change.org)Liverpool boss Klopp also has history with Taylor, with the referee showing him a red card after he was left furious at a decision not to give a foul on Mohamed Salah late on in the Reds' 1-0 win over Manchester City.
Klopp later admitted he "went over the top" with his reaction to the decision, saying: "The red card was my fault. I went over the top in the moment but I don't think I was disrespectful to anyone.
Taylor also had a run-in with Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp last season, sending him off against Manchester City (Sky Sports)Mirror Football is now on Threads!
"When you look at the pictures back I know myself at 55 years old the way I look in these moments is already worth a red card. I lost it in that moment and that is not OK but a little bit of an excuse. I would like to mention how can you not whistle that foul? How on earth is that possible?"
Klopp previously questioned Taylor's competence after he refereed Liverpool's 5-0 win over rivals Manchester United in 2021. The Athletic claim that Klopp felt Taylor 'took pity on United', with a source close to Klopp quoted as saying: "There could have been five red cards for United in total.
"[Antoine] Griezmann got a red card for doing the same thing on Bobby [Firmino] in the previous game. Where’s the consistency?"