Anthony Taylor will not officiate a Premier League match this weekend after dishing out a record number of yellow cards in his last fixture. The veteran referee was certainly not afraid to dive into his pocket during Chelsea’s victory over AFC Bournemouth on Saturday evening.
Taylor brandished his yellow card on 16 occasions, setting a new record for the highest number of bookings in a Premier League game. It easily surpassed the previous record of 13, which was set last season when Tottenham faced Sheffield United at home.
Chelsea and Bournemouth have since been fined £25,000 each as a result of their poor discipline in Saturday’s encounter. While they will both return to action this weekend, Taylor has not been chosen to officiate any top-flight matches.
The 45-year-old will instead be serving as the fourth official when Southampton host Ipswich Town, with Sam Allison having been picked as the referee. Taylor will take up the same role the following day for Brighton’s home game against Nottingham Forest.
Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola was unhappy with Taylor’s card-happy approach at the Vitality Stadium last weekend, saying after the final whistle: “I will not talk about the referee. I have been talking and it is not working so I have decided now I will try the opposite.”
Enzo Maresca, meanwhile, suggested that Taylor was within his rights to dish out so many yellow cards given the hot-tempered nature of the match.
“I complained about a foul on Wesley Fofana, which for me was quite clear, but it can happen,” said the Chelsea boss. “Eight yellow cards probably because these sort of games are about duels and fight and this can happen.
“It is not a problem for me with this amount of yellow cards. It is what it is. Sometimes the game demands the way you have to behave.”
It has been reported by the Daily Mail that Taylor was subjected to widespread abuse on social media after the game between Bournemouth and Chelsea. He has since been offered support by the PGMOL, while the Premier League are said to have launched an investigation.
