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Anthony Taylor has booked more Chelsea players than any other club in his career, with the referee coming under heavy criticism for his handling of the fiery Premier League clash at Stamford Bridge
Anthony Taylor has cautioned more Chelsea players than any other club throughout his refereeing career.
Taylor originally brandished a yellow card to the midfielder, but following a VAR intervention he altered his verdict to a direct red.
Taylor has been officiating Premier League matches since 2010, and throughout his 15 years at the highest level, Chelsea possess the most bookings-per-match ratio under his supervision.
Across the 57 fixtures he has presided over involving Chelsea, Taylor has brandished 129 yellow cards, two second-yellow ejections and two straight red cards.
Caicedo has now become just the second Chelsea player to be shown a direct red by Taylor.
Speaking in his role as a Sky Sports pundit, Daniel Sturridge felt the dismissal was justified, although he questioned the procedure.
He said: "When you see it slowed down, it looks nasty. Initially the referee makes a decision to give him a yellow card. And they've re-reffed it. They've gone with VAR. When you see it slowed down it's a red card. It's not so bad in full speed.
"When you look at the challenge slowed down, it makes the referee's mind up for him. When you go to the screen and see that slowed down, that's a red."
Chelsea supporters voiced their frustration on social media, with one fan declaring: "Arsenal had Anthony Taylor on their side today, played against 10 men for 60+ minutes and still couldn't beat Chelsea. London will always be blue."
Taylor distributed six cards during the opening 45 minutes alone - four yellows to Arsenal, one to Chelsea and Caicedo's dismissal. Myles Lewis-Skelly was the sole player cautioned following the interval.
Supporters at Stamford Bridge also believed Arsenal should have been down to ten men. Piero Hincapie seemed to strike Trevoh Chalobah with an errant elbow to the head.
One supporter posted: "Clear elbow to the face is fine but a badly mistimed tackle isn't. Another episode of the Anthony Taylor show," whilst another commented: "Anthony Taylor and yellow/red cards, a never ending story."
Another fan highlighted that Arsenal had accumulated the fewest yellow cards in the division prior to kick-off and questioned why Taylor deemed them so "ill-disciplined" during the opening period. Mikel Arteta's team now possess the third-lowest tally this campaign.
Chelsea, conversely, remain top of the league for dismissals with four. Three clubs share second place with two apiece. Enzo Maresca will undoubtedly be eager to remedy this issue if he wishes to sustain a title-winning challenge.
Following the 1-1 draw, Arsenal's Premier League advantage was reduced from six points to five, with Manchester City leapfrogging Chelsea into second position.
Both Arsenal and Chelsea are involved in mid-week action on Wednesday. The Gunners face Brentford at the Emirates Stadium whilst Chelsea travel north to face Leeds United.
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