On the back of successive away wins at Bournemouth and Bristol City, Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City return to action in the Premier League on Saturday, 4 March at 12:30 (GMT), when they take on Eddie Howe’s Newcastle United at the Etihad Stadium. The Premier League has elected Simon Hooper as referee for the match.
Simon Hooper
Wiltshire native Hooper has taken charge of 17 Premier League matches so far in the 2022/23 season. In that time, the 40-year-old has dished out 52 yellow cards but no red cards, while awarding one penalty.
Hooper averages 3.12 yellow cards and 19.65 fouls per game in the Premier League this term. Those figures certainly stand to reason when looking at the Manchester City matches he has overseen during this campaign.
Back in September, he handed out two yellow cards in the Blues’ 1-1 draw at Aston Villa, where both bookings went to the hosts. He then distributed four yellow cards in City’s Carabao Cup win over Chelsea in November, with two going each way.
But his most recent match involving the Premier League champions was their enthralling 4-2 home win over Tottenham in January, when Riyad Mahrez was shown a yellow before two Spurs players joined him in the book, despite multiple rash challenges on young Rico Lewis.
Meanwhile the last time he took charge of a Newcastle match came on New Years’ Eve, when bookings for Kieran Trippier, Bruno Guimaraes and Callum Wilson were three of eight bookings shown by Hooper, as the Magpies drew 0-0 at home to Leeds United.
Full Appointments
Referee: Simon Hooper
Assistants: Adrian Holmes & Simon Long
Fourth Official: Anthony Taylor
VAR: Michael Salisbury
Assistant VAR: Dan Robathan
Written by: @AdamHowarthSJ
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