Thomas Frank will be delighted at Premier League announcement ahead of Tottenham vs Manchester United
The Premier League have confirmed that Sam Barrott will officiate Tottenham’s clash with Manchester United on Saturday, with John Brooks on VAR duties.
Tottenham are the favourites to beat Manchester United at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, as they look to get back to winning ways in the Premier League.
Last week saw Thomas Frank‘s side lose 1-0 to Chelsea, in what was a woeful display that saw the home side produce just one shot on target.
But on Tuesday, Tottenham beat FC Copenhagen 4-0 in the Champions League, with Brennan Johnson, Wilson Odobert, Micky van de Ven, and Joao Palhinha all finding the net.
Johnson was sent off against Copenhagen after his late challenge on Marcos Lopez was deemed worthy of an on-field review.
Premier League confirm match officials vs Manchester United
Tottenham have not beaten Manchester United three consecutive times in the Premier League since 1960, but have a chance to do exactly that on 8 November.
The Red Devils have recovered from a terrible start to the season to win three of their last four league matches, however, and will present a difficult challenge for Frank’s side.
| Tottenham when refereed by Sam Barrott | Season |
| Tottenham 3-6 Liverpool | 2024-25 |
| Tottenham 2-1 Brighton | 2023-24 |
| Tottenham 1-0 Burnley | 2023-24 |
The Premier League have now confirmed the match officials for the clash, with Barrott set to oversee proceedings at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
The Englishman has refereed just three Tottenham games, with the last being the 6-3 loss to Liverpool last season.
Frank will be more focused on the man on video assistant referee duties; however, with the Dane sharing some history with Brooks.
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Thomas Frank defended John Brooks after clanger
Frank’s Brentford travelled to take on Tottenham at the start of last season, and got off to a brilliant start when Bryan Mbeumo opened the scoring within the first minute.
Goals from Dominic Solanke, Johnson and James Maddison would see Tottenham win, but much of the discussion surrounded a moment for Vicario.
The goalkeeper came out to claim a cross but dropped it before clearly handling the ball outside of the penalty box.
Brooks was unmoved, however, and the video assistant referee did not get involved. Speaking after the game, Frank said: “It was a mistake. It could have been a free-kick to us. It could have helped us. But, hey, you never know.
“I think the probability of scoring from a direct free-kick is like 0.0543, so probably not the biggest probability for scoring anyway.
“And I think John Brooks overall had a very good game. The way he handled soft fouls both ways was really good.”
It is rare for a manager to defend a referee, and part of Frank will be hoping that Brooks remembers that when he reviews the incidents that arise from Saturday’s clash.
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