Thiago Silva aims dig at ref Anthony Taylor for not awarding former side Chelsea a penalty in their 2-0 defeat by Man City… but fans point out why Mateo Kovacic’s handball wasn’t given

Former Chelsea captain Thiago Silva launched a vicious attack on referee Anthony Taylor after he decided not to award a penalty for a handball on Mateo Kovacic.

Taylor was the man in the middle for Chelsea’s Premier League opener as they welcomed Manchester City to Stamford Bridge.

However, the Blues started the season with a defeat, thanks to goals from Kovacic and Erling Haaland, as the visitors won 2-0.

But Kovacic could have given Chelsea a chance to get back into the game when the ball struck his arm in the City penalty area just minutes before his goal.

Luckily for him, Taylor chose not to point to the spot, leaving many Chelsea fans wondering why a penalty was not awarded.

Silva, who played at Stamford Bridge for four years, also questioned why Chelsea were not awarded a penalty.

Former Chelsea captain Thiago Silva shared his thoughts on Kovacic’s handball on social media

Taylor chose not to point to the spot for Kovacic’s handball due to the recently changed rules

Silva responded to an Instagram post about Kovacic’s handball: ‘Anthonyyyyyyyyyyyyy’.

Although Silva and other Blues fans were frustrated, Taylor acted in accordance with the Premier League’s new stance on the handball rule.

Ahead of the 2024-25 season, the Premier League announced that they would relax their stance on handball regulations, with players no longer required to keep their arms at their sides or behind their backs.

If a ball hit their hand, it was judged based on the movement of their body.

“We feel like we’re giving too many hands when in fact it’s perfectly normal and justifiable,” said Premier League refereeing chief Howard Webb.

‘The guidelines for officials this season are: less is more. You will see fewer hard handball penalties.’