It’s fair to say Liverpool supporters weren’t massively enthused when discovering Anthony Taylor will referee Thursday’s big Premier League clash at Manchester City.
That the referee hails from Greater Manchester has not gone unnoticed.
But the real gripe among Reds fans are what they believe are a succession of poor performances from Taylor in games involving their club.
Certainly it didn’t help when, in Taylor’s last game officiating the Reds, he accidentally tackled Gini Wijnaldum to almost create an opportunity for West Ham United on the opening day of the season.
And there have been occasions in the past – most notably at Sunderland in January 2017 – when Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has had a run-in with the whistleblower.
Since taking charge of the infamous 6-1 defeat at Stoke City in May 2015, he has been referee in 14 games involving Liverpool in which only one, the 1-0 reverse at Chelsea in May, has been lost.
And in the 32 games in which Taylor has officiated the Reds – including a 2-2 draw at the Etihad in 2013 – they have only lost five.
But the truth is Taylor has proven something of a lucky charm for the Reds in recent times.
