The Premier League has announced the referee team, including the main referee and VAR officials, for the upcoming North London Derby as Arsenal takes on Spurs at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Tottenham will host Arsenal on Sunday, April 28, in a crucial clash for both teams’ seasons.

Arsenal needs a victory against Spurs to solidify their top position in the league standings.

Arsenal will need a positive result by all means, especially as their title-contending rival, Man City, will play midweek. Currently, the Gunners are temporarily leading the Premier League table, ahead of Liverpool and Manchester City by 3 and 4 points respectively.

Tottenham also aims for victory as Ange Postecoglou’s team is securing a top-four position. Spurs trail Aston Villa by 6 points, and they can’t afford to slip up in this crucial phase of the season, especially with few matches left to play.

In relation to the North London Derby, the Premier League has announced that Michael Oliver will be the main referee. Prior to this, Oliver has officiated four matches for Arsenal and three matches for Spurs this season.

Most notably, Oliver was the referee for Spurs’ 1-4 loss to Chelsea in November, during which Tottenham was reduced to nine men. From an Arsenal perspective, Oliver faced criticism from Gunners fans for not issuing a second yellow card to Manchester City midfielder Mateo Kovacic during their match in October.

Oliver will be assisted by Stuart Burn, Dan Cook, and Andy Madley as the fourth official. The VAR room will be overseen by Jarred Gillett. The Australian referee performed VAR duties for Arsenal’s recent clash with Man City and served as an assistant VAR referee during Spurs’ match against Brighton in February. Gillett will be supported by another assistant, Darren Cann.

Referee Michael Oliver will officiate the North London Derby.

The latest round of referee appointments swiftly followed Nottingham Forest’s controversial statement questioning the integrity of Premier League referees. Nottingham Forest had three penalty appeals rejected in their 0-2 loss to Everton the previous weekend on April 21.

This led the club to post a statement on X: “Three appalling decisions – three penalties not given – something we simply cannot accept. Our patience has been tested on numerous occasions. They will have to reconsider their choices.”