Controversial Referee Appointed To Officiate North London Derby

One of England’s most controversial referees, Martin Atkinson has been named for Saturday’s Premier League North London derby between Arsenal and Tottenham at the Emirates Stadium.

Both teams will be aiming to bounce back to winning ways after Arsenal lost 3-1 to Liverpool while Tottenham was beaten by Newcastle United at the weekend.

Having taken charge of four previous north London derbies that have produced a combined 19 goals, Atkinson will be at the spotlight again on Saturday.

His last derby in 2016 ended in a 1-1 draw but it was the games before then that turned out to be relentless – including the memorable 4-4 draw in 2008 and the 3-3 draw three years later.

The other game he has officiated between the two teams saw Spurs battled to a 2-1 win in February 2015, so Arsenal will certainly be keen to secure their first north London triumph with Atkinson in charge.

Atkinson has already taken charge of an Arsenal game this season when he refereed the Gunners’ opening day victory against Newcastle United at St James’ Park.

The full appointments of match officials for the game is as follows:

Referee: Martin Atkinson. Assistants: Lee Betts, Constantine Hatzidakis. Fourth official: Andre Marriner. VAR: Paul Tierney. Assistant VAR: Stephen Child.