An error after a few minutes, an oversight saved by VAR. The first leg of the Champions League quarterfinal between PSG and Barcelona did not go the best way for the referee. The match official is a familiar face to the fans of Roma: Anthony Taylor. The English referee became famous for his performance during the Europa League final in Budapest between the Giallorossi and Sevilla. The defeat for the Giallorossi came only in the penalty shootout, but what has remained imprinted in the hearts and minds of the Romanisti was not so much the match as the poor officiating by the Englishman. Taylor is not having the best season of his career, with this year being marked by errors that did not fail to appear even in PSG-Barcelona.
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Taylor's Mistakes
The first mistake is a clear one, a tackle from behind that deserved at least a yellow card, but was not sanctioned by the referee. At the 13th minute, in fact, Beraldo takes down Raphinha with a slide tackle from behind, who falls to the ground and loses possession of the ball. No punishment, nor a booking for the Paris Saint-Germain player who gets up helping Raphinha, in pain, to his feet. At the 29th minute, instead, Cancelo takes down Mbappé in the box after an offensive action. Taylor lets the game go on only to be saved by the linesman who raises his flag and signals the offside of the French former Monaco player.
In the second half, instead, there's a dubious contact between Lee Kang-In and Cancelo in the Barcelona area. At the 60th minute, in fact, the attacking winger quickly aims for the penalty spot from the flank and tries to get past the Portuguese with a double step. Right after moving the ball to the left, the former Inter full-back hits the Korean on the left ankle who falls in the area. Taylor, however, lets it go and does not even consider the action for VAR review.
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