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Aston Villa fans won’t be happy with Premier League decision ahead of Newcastle United clash
Joe Buck
3 – 4 minutes
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The Premier League have revealed who will referee Newcastle United’s trip to face Aston Villa on Saturday – and the decision may not go down well in the Midlands.
Newcastle United and Aston Villa square-off at Villa Park on Saturday (5:30pm kick-off) in a match that could prove pivotal in each side’s hopes of qualifying for next season’s Champions League. The Magpies will begin the game five points clear of their hosts, knowing that a win would not only see that increase to eight points, but also see them close the gap to second-placed Arsenal to just one point.
Jason Tindall’s side will head to the Midlands full of confidence after six wins in a row and on the back of home wins against Manchester United and Crystal Palace that saw them score nine goals. Villa, meanwhile, will have to pick themselves up from the disappointment of a Champions League exit to PSG on Tuesday night, although their performance that night will certainly give Newcastle something to worry about on Saturday if they can replicate that.
Matches between Villa and Newcastle have been very exciting in recent seasons with 20 goals having been scored in their last five meetings. The Magpies have won four of those games, with their most recent triumph coming in the reverse fixture at St James’ Park on Boxing Day.
Premier League reveal Aston Villa v Newcastle United referee
Ahead of Saturday’s game, one that will mark each side’s 33rd league game of the season, the Premier League have confirmed that Jarred Gillett will be the man in the middle. Gillett made history back in 2021 when he became the first man born outside of the British Isles to referee a Premier League game when he took charge of Newcastle’s draw with Watford at Vicarage Road.
The Australian-born official has refereed the Magpies twice this season, with both of those coming at St James’ Park. He was in charge of their 1-1 draw with Manchester City in September and also their 4-3 win over Nottingham Forest in February – awarding Newcastle a penalty in both matches.
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Gillett has also refereed Villa on two occasions, overseeing their wins over Leicester City and Brentford in January and March respectively. However, the latter of those games saw major controversy with VAR intervening three times in that match.
Gillett was also responsible for showing John McGinn a yellow card in that game after a tussle between the Scottish midfielder and Yoan Wissa. However, replays in the aftermath of that incident showed there was no contact from the Villa man on his opponent.
In the same game, however, Gillett waved away Brentford penalty appeals on two occasions with Thomas Frank describing the first, a foul by Axel Disasi on Kevin Schade as “a big, big penalty.”
This weekend, Gillett will be assisted by Lee Betts and Sian Massey-Ellis at Villa Park with Farai Hallam as fourth official. Semi automated offside technology will again be used as will VAR with Michael Salisbury on duty at Stockley Park alongside Derek Eaton.
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