Saturday 6th January Sunderland vs Newcastle UnitedStadium of LightKick-off 12:45pm GMT

Eddie Howe's side make the short trip to Wearside for their first Tyne-Wear derby since 2016 and this will be the second time Pawson has officiated a fixture involving the Magpies this term.

The Sheffield-born official was the man in the middle for United's 1-0 home win against Brentford in September, awarding a penalty to the hosts which was converted by Callum Wilson, as well as handing out eight yellow cards that evening, booking Bruno Guimarães, Anthony Gordon and Wilson.

The 44-year-old whistler, a FIFA listed referee since 2015, has taken charge of 16 games so far this season across the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, Europa League, Carabao Cup and Euro 2024 qualifying, showing a total of 78 yellow cards and three red cards.

There will be no VAR technology in place for Saturday's third round tie at the Stadium of Light.

2023/24 stats

Games (all competitions): 16Yellow cards issued: 78Red cards issued: 3

Assistants

Assistant referees: Marc Perry and Steven MeredithFourth official: Andrew Madley