Exclusive: Anthony Taylor ‘wrong’ to deny Crystal Palace’s Mateta vs Aston Villa
Anthony Taylor has been criticised by Keith Hackett for a key decision he made as Crystal Palace faced Aston Villa in the semi finals of the FA Cup.
The former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA official exclusively told Football Insider that the referee should not have ruled out Jean-Philippe Mateta‘s goal for a foul on Ezri Konsa.
It was a memorable day for at Wembley on Saturday (26 April) for those connected with the Selhurst Park club.
That saw Crystal Palace thrash Aston Villa 3-0 to secure their place in the FA Cup final next month, as they continue their quest to win a first ever major trophy.
Even so, that scoreline could have been even more emphatic had it not been for the intervention of Taylor early on.
Jean-Philippe Mateta denied Wembley goal
Early in the first half with the score locked at 0-0, Mateta thought he had put his side in front with a ruthless move.
After Aston Villa centre-back Ezri Konsa had taken control of a long ball forward, the Crystal Palace striker had robbed him of possession to get in one-on-one with Emiliano Martinez.
| Crystal Palace last five games | Result |
| Man City (A) | Lost 5-2 |
| Newcastle (A) | Lost 5-0 |
| Bournemouth (H) | Drew 0-0 |
| Arsenal (A) | Drew 2-2 |
| Aston Villa (N) | Won 3-0 |
The Frenchman then put the ball in the back of the net, but with Konsa having gone to ground, Taylor elected to rule the goal out for a foul, a decision which was confirmed by VAR.
There were though plenty of questions about whether the contact made on Konsa by Mateta was enough to warrant a foul and the goal being ruled out.
Now, Hackett has confirmed that feels that goal for Crystal Palace should have been allowed to stand to open the scoring.
Crystal Palace should have had another semi final goal to celebrate
After being asked by Football Insider whether Mateta’s challenge on Konsa was right to be deemed a foul, Hackett said:
“I thought what was interesting here was you’ve got an assistant referee looking straight across at it, not giving it.
“So for me I didn’t see the foul in there. I think Anthony Taylor got it wrong, I think the goal should have stood.
“There’s not enough in it, it’s a contact sport and I think on this occasion interestingly it’s the defender who’s actually almost simulating the action, I don’t think it’s a foul.
“Anthony Taylor I think has had a really good end of the season. I think he looks more relaxed, less cards, refereeing quite well, but I think he got that one wrong. I would have expected Taylor to be closer to play to make his judgement.”
Crystal Palace would take the lead shortly after through a stunning Eberechi Eze strike, before Mateta again missed out on his goal after hitting the outside of the post with a second half penalty.
Despite that, a brace from Ismaila Sarr would then comfortably seal a place in the final for Oliver Glasner’s side, where they are set to face Man City at Wembley next month.