Tuesday 26th DecemberNewcastle United vs Nottingham ForestSt. James' ParkKick-off 12:30pm GMT

The 38-year-old official has already taken charge of two matches involving the Magpies so far this season - the 1-0 Carabao Cup victory over Manchester City at St. James' Park, in which he booked four player including United's Sandro Tonali and Bruno Guimarães, and last month's 2-0 defeat at Bournemouth, when Jamaal Lascelles was one of three players to be cautioned.

The Ashton-under-Lyme whistler, who was added to FIFA's list of international referees in 2019 and an official for two decades and a top flight referee for the last six years, also oversaw Newcastle's 4-1 away defeat against Tottenham Hotspur earlier this month, booking four players including Kieran Trippier, Jamaal Lascelles and Joelinton.

Kavanagh only oversaw two United matches last term - the 2-1 win at Brentford in April and the 2-0 home defeat to Arsenal in May. Having kicked off the current campaign with fixtures in League Two and the Championship, his last ten appointments have all come in the Premier League, and he issued his first red card of the season to Sheffield United's Oli McBurnie in the Blades' 5-0 defeat to Burnley last weekend.

2023/24 stats

Games (all competitions): 14Yellow cards issued: 57Red cards issued: 1

Assistants

Assistant referees: Simon Bennett and Dan RobathanFourth official: Darren BondVAR: Jarred GillettAssistant VAR: Darren Cann