Chelsea coach Thomas Tuchel has indirectly demanded that referee Anthony Taylor should no longer officiate the club’s games. The association is suing Tuchel, among other things, for his statements about the referee.
In the press conference after Chelsea FC’s game against Tottenham Hotspur (2-2), Tuchel listed several situations that, in his opinion, were not correctly decided by referee Taylor. When asked if he understood or even shared the reservations many Chelsea fans had about Taylor, he said: “Yes of course.” He doesn’t think so “some fans” be who think so. “I can assure you that the whole locker room thinks that. Every single person there.”
On Monday (08/15/2022) the English Football Association FA filed charges against Tuchel. But his comments have had consequences for a long time.
Tuchel scolds, 120,000 support online campaign
With his words, Tuchel has publicly reinforced a long-term dislike of many Chelsea fans towards Taylor. As of Monday, a Twitter keyword search for “Chelsea Taylor” returned several tweets per minute. Most relate to a petition calling for the referee to be banned from further Chelsea games, citing 12 different decisions taken by Taylor at Chelsea games.
It is not known whether Tuchel himself signed the petition. At least he made his decision publicly. Asked whether Taylor should never referee Chelsea games again, Tuchel said: “Maybe that would be better.” The petition launched shortly after the game, which has no binding effect but only the character of an online campaign, counted around 120,000 supporting clicks around 24 hours after the final whistle (as of Monday, August 15th, 2022, 6:30 p.m.).
Taylor one of England’s top referees
Alongside Michael Oliver, Anthony Taylor is one of the two top English referees. Taylor officiated matches at the EM 2021, including the German group game against Portugal (4: 2). UEFA entrusted him with the Super Cup 2020 and several top games in the Champions League, FIFA called him up for the World Cup in Qatar. He is a permanent fixture in the Premier League, playing 28 games in the 2021/22 season. But Chelsea have a longstanding problem with Taylor.
Referee Anthony Taylor during the Chelsea v Tottenham game.
Again and again he was accused of wrong decisions against Chelsea. On Sunday against Tottenham, for example, Tuchel criticized an offside decision, which, according to English referee expert Dale Johnson from ESPN, was justifiable – the Tottenham player in question was not active. More controversial was that Tottenham’s Cristian Romero pulled the hair of Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella in added time just before Tottenham’s 2-2 draw. But the video assistant did not intervene, which was perhaps the real problem here – as Tuchel also noticed.
The emotional game ended with a scuffle between the coaches Tuchel and Antonio Conte, Taylor showed both the red card. That’s why not only Tuchel, but also Conte is accused at the FA.
The dilemma: protect referees or set an example?
It was Tuchel who publicly said on Chelsea’s behalf what otherwise only fans on social media or in the pub claim: With this referee, Chelsea have to worry about whether the game is being conducted correctly. This creates a problem.
The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), which provides refereeing in the Premier League (comparable to DFB Schiri GmbH in the Bundesliga) and the FA are faced with the difficult question of whether and when Taylor will be allowed to referee Chelsea again. If he is assigned contrary to the demand, he is put under pressure. If you want to protect him, fans and Tuchel feel confirmed and their demands met. A contradiction that is difficult to resolve and that also existed in the Bundesliga.
Hoeneß against Krug, Bellingham against Zwayer
Bayern Munich’s manager at the time, Uli Hoeneß, said of referee Hellmut Krug in 1997: “Mr. Krug will never whistle at FC Bayern again.” In dispute was a dismissal against Samuel Kuffour. At the end of 2021, Borussia Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham publicly made a connection between Zwayer’s performance and his possible involvement in the Robert Hoyzer manipulation scandal with referee Felix Zwayer after BVB’s game against Bayern.
The consequences varied: while Krug was again in charge of FC Bayern games after almost a year and then several times thereafter, Zwayer has not yet been assigned to BVB games again. Zwayer reported death threats and only continued his career after a hiatus.
Tuchel: “Maybe I’ll be banned”
At the press conference, Tuchel already suspected that his words would have consequences. “Maybe I’ll be punished for my sentences”he said. “I think so too. They may not be allowed to go to Leeds,” said one journalist. Tuchel answers: “Well, I can’t coach, but the referee can continue to whistle.” Tuchel has until Thursday to submit a statement to the FA.