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Manchester-born official Anthony Taylor will referee Man United vs. Liverpool on Sunday, which will be his fifth time refereeing the fixture since 2016.
It is with tongue in cheek that Taylor’s roots in Manchester, as a native of nearby Wythenshawe, are brought up when he is appointed for Liverpool games.
After all, the 45-year-old has refereed Liverpool more times than any other club (60), with Chelsea (51), Arsenal (50), Everton and Man United (both 47) making up his top five.
That will hit 61 on Sunday with Taylor appointed referee for Man United vs. Liverpool, which will be his fifth time in charge of the fixture.
Taylor was also referee for the 2-2 draw at Old Trafford last season, along with the Reds’ 4-2 and 5-0 wins at the same stadium in 2020/21 and 2021/22 respectively.
His first time refereeing the two teams was in 2016, and a 0-0 draw at Anfield.
Any claim of bias from Taylor towards Man United should be taken with caution, as the response from supporters of both clubs suggests that he is viewed the same in both Liverpool and Manchester.
However, only Arsenal (60%) have a higher win rate than Man United (59.6%) in games he has refereed, with Man City (56.8%), Tottenham (54.3%) and Liverpool (53.3%) also winning more than half.
Gary Beswick and Andy Nunn will be assistant referees on Sunday with Sam Barrott acting as fourth official, while John Brooks is on VAR and assisted by Harry Lennard.
Earlier this month, referees’ chief Howard Webb had claimed that which club each official supports would be made public, though he quickly backtracked.
Taylor is said to support non-league side Altrincham, with president Grahame Rowley telling The Athletic last year that “even now, he gets a season ticket every year, despite the fact he can’t go to all the matches.”
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