Liverpool travel to Old Trafford this Sunday to face North West rivals Manchester United for a massive clash with Champions League implications on the line.
Manchester United versus Liverpool is still one of the most hotly-contested fixtures in the Premier League.
The Premier League have now confirmed the match officials for Liverpool’s high-stakes trip to Manchester United this Sunday, with Darren England appointed as the man in the middle.
The Reds head to Old Trafford for the 15:30 BST kick-off in what remains the most anticipated fixture in the English football calendar. With both sides battling for European spots in the closing weeks of the 2025/26 campaign, the pressure will be on the officiating team to keep a lid on the inevitable fireworks.
Across their entire history, the Reds have picked up a colossal 106 red cards when facing their bitter foes from Manchester.
In 2015, former Liverpool captain and icon Steven Gerrard – who always embodied a great passion when donning Liverpool red – rather infamously collected a red card against the Red Devils, having only been on the pitch a matter of moments.
Having clattered into Ander Herrera aggressively, the referee had no choice but to dismiss the Anfield great.
Arne Slot will be hoping his team keeps their heads more when travelling to Old Trafford, with another win in their back pocket virtually securing Champions League football, as only two more points would need to be clinched across their final three league outings, to make their European dreams a reality.
The match officials have now been appointed for this full-blooded clash, with Slot also hopeful he won’t have to have choice words with the man in the middle, come the full-time whistle on Sunday, having just been on the receiving end of a controversial Crystal Palace goal.
Who is the referee for Liverpool vs Man Utd?
The man in the middle who has been chosen for the revised 3:30 pm kick-off is the aforementioned England, as per the official Premier League website.
The 40-year-old referee, who has also just been handed the honour of overseeing the FA Cup final next month, is no stranger to such heated occasions, having overseen 98 Premier League games in total during his extensive career as an official.
He has taken charge of three Liverpool games this season, too, with the Reds often picking up a positive result when England is present.
Darren England’s record against Liverpool
The Doncaster-born referee isn’t a regular when it comes to overseeing matches with the Reds, despite his weighty 98 career games as a referee.
Indeed, he has only surprisingly taken charge of Liverpool nine times in total, as a well-known referee, with the Merseyside giants winning four of those contests, drawing three, and losing two.
This season, though, he is firmly in the Slot good books, as Liverpool have won two out of the three matches England has been the man in the middle for, which included a Merseyside Derby win at Anfield back in September.
However, the travelling Reds will hope they fare better on the road at Old Trafford than their last meeting with England, as he was the referee for Liverpool’s disappointing 2-1 loss at Brighton and Hove Albion.
Darren England’s record against Man Utd
Darren England has taken charge of even fewer Manchester United games, while being a referee at the very top, with only seven matches next to his name.
From those seven games, the Red Devils have only lost once, which was a 3-2 defeat at home to Nottingham Forest last season, when Ruben Amorim was still depressingly at the Old Trafford helm.
Away from this loss, United have won five of the other six games the 40-year-old has overseen, with England also awarding Carrick’s men two penalties over the years.
Liverpool fans may remember England’s recent outings with a mix of caution. While he is generally seen as a steady hand, he has overseen several United victories at Old Trafford this term, including their narrow win over Everton in February as well.
For Arne Slot’s men, the focus remains purely on the pitch. Following a rollercoaster run of results in April, the Reds know that anything less than three points against their fiercest rivals could leave their top-five hopes hanging by a thread.
United, meanwhile, sit slightly higher in the table and will be looking to use home advantage to pull further away from the chasing pack. With Darren England confirmed as the referee, both sets of supporters will be hoping for a contest defined by the football rather than the whistle.
Who are the assistant referees and VAR?
Alongside England taking up most of the pre-match conversation, the assistant referees chosen for this feisty encounter on Sunday are Tim Wood and Akil Howson.
In more news, the fourth official will be Anthony Taylor, while the VAR appointments for the clash at the weekend are Stuart Atwell as the main VAR head, alongside Constantine Hatzidakis as his VAR assistant.
With the stage set and the officials confirmed, the eyes of the footballing world turn to Old Trafford for what promises to be a defining chapter in the 2025/26 season.
For Slot, the objective is simple: maintain discipline and secure the three points that would bring Liverpool to the precipice of Champions League qualification.
For United, it is an opportunity to defend their home turf and tighten their grip on a top-four finish.
While the history books are filled with the drama of red cards and controversial whistles, both managers will be desperate for the post-match headlines to focus on tactical brilliance rather than officiating decisions.
England holds a massive responsibility on his shoulders; in a fixture where the atmosphere is traditionally a pressure cooker, his ability to manage the inevitable fireworks will be put to the ultimate test.
As the rivalry prepares for its latest instalment, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Whether it’s a moment of individual magic or a calculated team performance, Sunday’s result will resonate far beyond the final whistle, potentially shaping the European landscape for both of these storied clubs for years to come.
