Real Madrid and Al Hilal will duke out the Club World Cup final on Saturday evening as the reigning champions of Europe and Asia contest the global crown.
There has been a European representative in the match to decide the best club side in the world every year since 2005. However, Al Hilal became the first Saudi Arabian team to reach the competition’s showpiece after a controversial semi-final victory over Brazilian giants Flamengo.
After watching his side get reduced to ten men and concede two penalties, Vitor Pereira, Flamengo’s incandescent manager, raged: “We were ready to play Al Hilal but were not ready for a refereeing that was not up to the standards of the competition.”
Istvan Kovacs will be nowhere near the final, with the Premier League official Anthony Taylor taking charge. Here’s everything you need to know about the 44-year-old from Wythenshawe.
Taylor has previously taken charge of only two Real Madrid matches, both in the Champions League group stage.
In 2019, Taylor was in the middle for Real Madrid‘s 3-0 defeat away to Paris Saint-Germain. Angel Di Maria had already scored twice against his former employers before Gareth Bale offered flickers of a fightback with a lob before the break. However, Taylor was instructed by the Video Assistant Referee to chalk off the strike for handball.
The following year, Taylor’s decisions were far more favourable for Real Madrid. Within the opening ten minutes of Madrid’s trip to Inter‘s San Siro, Taylor pointed to the spot. Eden Hazard slammed in the opening goal but the hosts soon demanded a penalty of their own.
Arturo Vidal flopped to the floor in Madrid’s box, falling over himself as he tried to get back to his feet and appeal. By the time Vidal had joined the crowd of Inter players surrounding the referee, his protestations were so fierce Taylor showed him a yellow card. In the six subsequent seconds, Vidal stepped nose-to-nose with Taylor, brushing the official’s arm with his chest which earned him another yellow card.
Achraf Hakimi scored an own goal for the hosts after the interval to seal a breezy 2-0 victory for Madrid.
Across a career which began in the Northern Premier League two decades ago, Taylor has taken charge of seven major finals.
Taylor’s first showpiece listing was the 2015 League Cup final which saw Chelsea defeat Tottenham 2-0. That summer, Taylor had the whistle for the under-19 European Championship final. Real Madrid’s Jesus Vallejo, Dani Ceballos and Marco Asensio all started…
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