Premier League confirm local referee selected for Leeds United’s crucial clash with Everton

Leeds United are preparing for a huge relegation six-pointer with Everton this weekend.

The Whites currently sit one point clear of the drop zone, while Everton, who are hoping to climb to safety under Sean Dyche’s stewardship, are the team directly below them. That means the Toffees can leapfrog Leeds with a win at Goodison Park this weekend, while managerless Leeds can put distance between themselves and the drop with an away win.

Ahead of the clash, the Premier League have confirmed the officials for this weekend’s game, as Huddersfield-born Andy Madley - brother of Bobby Madley - is the man in the middle. Much like his brother who was a Premier League referee between 2013 and 2018, Andy Madley typically officiates Premier League fixtures, after earning his stripes in the Football League.

Madley has refereed five Leeds games in the past, however none of those were in the Premier League. The last came in 2019 when Leeds won 2-0 away from home against Wigan Athletic. He also officiated a memorable 3-2 away win against Aston Villa in 2018 and a not-so-memorable 2-1 defeat away to Sheffield United during the same season.

Going further back, Madley refereed a 2-0 win at Barnsley for Leeds in 2017 and a 3-0 away defeat to Sheffield Wednesday the same year. That’s three wins to two with Madley in charge for Leeds, and both defeats were in the city of Sheffield. Much more recently, Madley was the fourth official for Leeds’ defeat to Manchester United over the weekend.

The VAR official for this weekend’s clash is Michael Oliver, who has refereed 15 Whites games previously. That includes a 2-1 away defeat to Aston Villa in January of this season and a 2-1 away win over Liverpoolin October. It’s worth noting that Oliver was the VAR official for a controversial clash between Leeds and Arsenal last season, when the Whites believed Granit Xhaka should have been sent off for a challenge on Raphinha. Though, he has been in charge of VAR for fewer controversial Leeds games since then.

Notably, Oliver has not shown a single red card while refereeing Leeds games, not that he will be the man in the middle this weekend. Elsewhere, Harry Lennard and Wade Smith are the line officials, while Dean Whitestone is the fourth official, and Constantine Hatzidakis is the VAR assistant.