The Magpies travel to Anfield targeting a first win against the Reds since December 2015 and this will be the fourth time Kavanagh has officiated a fixture involving Eddie Howe's side so far this term.

The 39-year-old official was the man in the middle for Newcastle's 2-1 away win at Wolverhampton Wanderers and handed out six yellow cards at Molineux, booking Dan Burn, Joelinton and Jacob Murphy.

The Manchester-born whistler was also in charge of United's Carabao Cup victory against Chelsea in October, booking Nick Pope, Fabian Schär, Sean Longstaff and Anthony Gordon during a 2-0 win against the Blues.

Kavanagh, who refereed last season's Carabao Cup final, also oversaw Newcastle's 2-1 defeat at home to Fulham, brandishing a total of eight yellow cards at St. James' Park earlier this month, booking Burn, Sandro Tonali, Joelinton and Gordon.

2024/25 stats

Games (all competitions): 25

Yellow cards issued: 143

Red cards issued: 5

Assistants

Assistant referees: Simon Bennett and Dan Robathan

Fourth official: Darren Bond

VAR: Matt Donohue

Assistant VAR: Wade Smith