United take on Steven Gerrard's side at St. James' Park hoping to make it three wins in a row for the first time this term, following Tuesday night's 3-1 triumph over Everton and last month's 1-0 victory at Leeds.

And 42-year-old Pawson has been confirmed as the lead match official for the contest, which will be his second visit to Tyneside this season.

The Sheffield-born whistler, who has been a Premier League referee since 2013, was the man in the middle of the Magpies' 1-1 draw at home to Manchester United in December, a game which saw goals from Allan Saint-Maximin and Edinson Cavani ensure the spoils were shared.

On that occasion, Pawson issued three yellow cards to each team, with Emil Krafth, Javier Manquillo and Joelinton going in the book for the hosts.

Pawson was promoted to FIFA’s list of international referees in 2015, and took charge of a World Cup qualifier involving Italy and Lithuania – which the hosts won 5-0 in Rome – earlier this campaign.

He has also overseen fixtures in the Europa Conference League as well as, domestically, the Premier League, FA Cup and Carabao Cup, showing a total of 90 yellow cards and five reds across his 22 outings so far.

Lee Betts and Ian Hussin will assist Pawson on Sunday, with Mike Dean named as the fourth official.

Paul Tierney will be the VAR, and will be assisted by James Mainwaring.