Anthony Taylor's controversial Liverpool decision, Cody Gakpo anger, Arne Slot statement
Anthony Taylor will be the referee for Liverpool's pivotal Premier League visit to Manchester City on Sunday, with sections of Reds supporters unhappy with the decision to appoint him
by Kasra Moradi, Mark Whiley · The MirrorAnthony Taylor has been selected to officiate Liverpool's crucial Premier League clash with Manchester City – a decision that has not gone down well with some Reds fans.
Liverpool will face the reigning champions on Sunday in what is set to be a pivotal fixture in the title race. After a disappointing 2-2 draw at Aston Villa in midweek, Arne Slot's men will look to keep their healthy lead over Arsenal, who play West Ham on Saturday (3pm). Meanwhile, City are desperate to clinch a top-four finish, especially after their Champions League exit at the hands of Real Madrid.
The Premier League has confirmed that referee Taylor, from Greater Manchester, will oversee the game – a decision that has drawn criticism from some Liverpool supporters. Taylor has been involved in contentious incidents involving Liverpool in the past year alone, as we take a look back at some…
Gakpo left fuming
With their 2023/24 title hopes fading, Liverpool desperately needed a win at West Ham last April. In the final moments of a 2-2 draw in east London, Cody Gakpo and Alphonse Areola collided, leaving the Hammers goalkeeper seemingly injured.
After Taylor gestured for Areola to get up, the player threw the ball, ready to kick downfield. But with play still active, a quick-thinking Gakpo gained possession and looked set to roll the ball into the net, only for Taylor to blow the whistle, despite there having not been a foul.
The call left the Reds faithful fuming and pundits bemused. The official explanation was that Taylor had spotted a foul but gave an advantage. But that advantage was cancelled when Areola signalled he needed attention.
This reasoning didn't sit well with many, including ex-West Ham player and coach Stuart Pearce, who claimed Taylor had "made his own rules up here to cover his mistake". Alan Shearer labelled the incident "messy" and said Taylor had made an error by not blowing his whistle after the initial collision.
'50/50 decision'
During October's match against title rivals Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, Liverpool benefited from a decision by Taylor. After Mohamed Salah's late equaliser made it 2-2, the Gunners pushed for a winner and thought they had one through Gabriel Jesus.
However, Mikel Arteta's joy was short-lived as Taylor had already blown for a foul by Jakub Kiwior on Dominik Szoboszlai in the build-up. Former referee Mike Dean felt the decision could have gone either way.
He said: "It's more of a soft foul if anything, to be fair he's just penalised the Arsenal player. It's probably a 50:50 call, for me. He's had a good game, the referee, so I can't criticise him for that to be honest with you."
Yellow card mix-up
During the same fixture, Taylor showed Slot a yellow card, but the Reds head coach insisted it had stemmed from a misunderstanding after he told Ibrahima Konate that the Gunners players were going to ground too often.
Slot said: "Last time [against Chelsea], I said I completely deserve the yellow card and this time I don't think I did. After so many times they were on the floor, which can happen in football, and I don't blame them for that, but they always fell down after they had ball possession and it took the energy out of the game in my opinion."
He went on to add: "I said to Ibou [Konate], 'this is a f****** joke' and the fourth official thought I said to him, 'you are a f****** joke'. So that is definitely not what I said. But I got a yellow and now I am on two, so I have to be careful."
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