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Brian Owen Profile Image
Craig Pawson will referee Albion's game at Manchester City (Image: Nick Potts/PA Wire)
Craig Pawson will referee Albion's game at Manchester City (Image: Nick Potts/PA Wire)
Crag Pawson has refereed Albion 22 times in the Premier League.
But he is still probably best remembered by many fans for a stormy first ten minutes in the Championship almost 15 years ago.
The South Yorkshire official will have the whistle when the Seagulls face Manchester City at the Etihad.
He has done this fixture once before, in the very early days of the Roberto De Zerbi tenure as City won 3-1.
That game took De Zerbi’s winless opening as Albion head coach to a fifth game.
As he spoke behind the scenes following his press conference that day, he was reassured by regular Albion watchers that signs were good and the win was coming.
A week later, his side hammered Chelsea 4-1 at the Amex.
The atmosphere that day was even more hostile – but for different reasons – than a 1-0 home defeat by Burnley heading towards Christmas in 2011.
That was the day Ashley Barnes and Romain Vincelot were sent off by Pawson inside ten minutes before former Manchester City youngster Kieran Trippier scored a long-range winner for a Clarets side who had shown little idea of how to break down the nine-man hosts.
Pawson and Albion have both well and truly established themselves in the Premier League since then.
Albion last saw him when he refereed another big win over Chelsea – by a 3-0 margin last season.
In total, this will be his 36th game in charge of the Seagulls, a tally which includes the 2023 FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United.
Pawson has not been at the Etihad for more than 18 months, although he refereed Manchester City’s FA Cup semi-final win over Southampton at Wembley.
He was also the man in the middle being advised by VAR amid bizarre – but technically correct – scenes late in their 2-1 win at Liverpool last season as a Manchester City goal was ruled out for a foul by Erling Haaland while the home side had Dominik Szoboszlai sent off.
John Brooks will be on VAR duty for the game at the Etihad.
Albion fans will recall his error in that role which led to a Pervis Estupinan goal being wrongly disallowed for offside at Crystal Palace.
But he has been on video duties on plenty of occasions without mishap.
The full officiating team for Manchester City v Albion is as follows.
VAR: John Brooks.