I fell to the ground and couldn t get up before I could blow it? Taylor: De Rigt could sit up, it didn t look serious

May 6 Premier League referee Anthony Taylor talked about the controversial penalty involving De Rigt in his second goal from Brentford vs. Manchester United.

Taylor explained that he would only pause the game in case of severe injuries, usually the player's head injury, and at that moment he concluded that the Dutchman's situation was not serious enough to require a pause.

Taylor: "In this case, the main consideration is that, basically, according to the rules, my responsibility is to decide whether De Rigt was seriously injured. If the injury is serious, then I have the responsibility to stop the game at that time. Generally speaking, you would think that the serious injury is mainly a head injury. In this case, because he sat up and asked for treatment, I don't think it was serious. So that's why we let the game go on and then the ball went in."

Carragher made a point where he saw more and more players trying to "use the head injury rule" in the Premier League and asked if De Rigt couldn't get up with his head in his arms, would Taylor stop the game?

Taylor: "It's very likely, yes, it's a dilemma for football referees. It can be a tricky situation, we are not qualified medical professionals, so if a player says they have a head injury, it's our responsibility to listen to him and allow him to do the treatment." There is a major flaw in the rulebook, which is difficult for any referee to deal with, who are not professionals in terms of head injuries, it's difficult to tell if the player's condition is serious, or just a tactic to ask for a pause.