Dybala may have been the player of the match, but today’s truly standout performance came from a surprising source.
Being the referee is a thankless task at the best of times, but tonight was certainly one of the toughest.
Taylor was subject to being crowded after every decision on the pitch as players attempted to intimidate him into changing his opinion or doubting his next decision. He was also forced to deal with members of both benches (but especially Roma’s) being far too overzealous in appealing decisions to fourth official Michael Oliver.
Through all of that, he performed as admirably as anyone could have.
Taylor also had to deal with two penalty decisions, a handball against Fernando which he rightly didn’t give, and a ‘was there enough contact?’ foul on Ocampos, which your view on likely depends on who you wanted to win.
In short, I felt he made no mistakes, let the game flow where possible and didn’t allow unsportsmanlike behaviour to alter his decision making.
(All photos by Getty Images)
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