Manchester United host Newcastle United in the Premier League on Boxing Day at 8pm, with Anthony Taylor set to referee.
Taylor is one of the most-used referees in the Premier League this season, with this set to be his 14th game. No referee has officiated more matches. Taylor has already overseen two Man Utd games this season, but this will be his first outing for Newcastle.
This will be the fifth time he has taken charge of a game between Man Utd and Newcastle, with three of the previous four outings happening at Old Trafford. All four matches have been won by Man Utd — but it’s been over four years since he lasts refereed in this fixture.
Man Utd go into the game winless in their past two, form which has seen them slip slightly to seventh. Newcastle are also winless in two, and sit three points behind Man Utd, down in 11th.
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Anthony Taylor’s Man Utd record
This will be Taylor’s 56th Man Utd game as referee, only officiating three teams more. Taylor has awarded Man Utd 12 penalties across his time officiating their matches, the second-most he has given to any side. But he has also shown three straight red cards to Man Utd players.
| Category | Total |
|---|---|
| Matches | 55 |
| Wins | 31 |
| Draws | 7 |
| Defeats | 17 |
| League points | 85 |
| Penalties per game | 0.22 |
| Yellow cards per game | 1.98 |
| Red cards per game | 0.05 |
What happened when Anthony Taylor last refereed Man Utd?
Taylor was the man in the middle for Man Utd’s breathless 4-2 win over Brighton and Hove Albion in October. And it wasn’t just a game which brought goals. Man Utd wanted an early penalty at Old Trafford after Amad Diallo went down in the box following a challenge from Maxim De Cuyper. Taylor did not give anything and his decision was upheld by VAR. But our followers voted this to be an error.
Anthony Taylor’s Newcastle record
Taylor is closing in on 40 Newcastle games as referee, with this being number 39. The Magpies have lost more games than they have won with Taylor in the middle, and their fans aren’t generally happy to see him. Taylor has shown four straight red cards to Newcastle players across their 38 games, the joint-most of any side.
| Category | Total |
|---|---|
| Matches | 38 |
| Wins | 16 |
| Draws | 4 |
| Defeats | 18 |
| League points | 49 |
| Penalties per game | 0.13 |
| Yellow cards per game | 1.66 |
| Red cards per game | 0.11 |
What happened when Anthony Taylor last refereed Newcastle?
Taylor’s last Newcastle game also saw them take on Brighton. This time it was in the FA Cup, with Newcastle knocked out following a 2-1 defeat at St James’ Park. Taylor had a busy afternoon, showing six yellow cards, two of which were for Brighton’s Tariq Lamptey. There was also a straight red card shown to Newcastle’s Anthony Gordon for pushing Jan Paul van Hecke in the back of the head.
What should we expect from Anthony Taylor?
With Taylor as referee in a game betwen these two, cards are on the menu. His five Chelsea vs Arsenal games so far have seen Taylor show 19 yellow cards, and two reds. He has also awarded two penalties, one for each side.