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It appears Liverpool will have to deal with more than just Everton, with more spotlight on the refereeing appointment, just after Richard Keys raised controversy after Michael Oliver's decision against Burnley.
The Reds are set to take on the Blues at Anfield, with the former looking to keep its pristine start to the season just that. Meanwhile, Everton looks to play spoiler and get back to winning ways, and the clash could be where the club rights the ship.
As the two sides inch closer to their clash, the referees assigned to the match have been revealed, which could lead fans to be less than thrilled with Liverpool's chances. This comes as Florian Wirtz continues to acclimate himself with Arne Slot's club, with John Aldridge suggesting the coach should tweak "one or two things" to aid the transition.
The main official for Liverpool's fixture with Everton is Darren England, who has had quite an interesting history with both clubs. With England in charge, Everton have only lost one of the 11 matches the referee has overseen, according to Tony Scott on his X account.
Meanwhile, England has been the main official for five of Liverpool's matches, with the Reds being the victors only once, which was a 2-0 win over Bournemouth in February. Of note, England was at the center of controversy when Luis Diaz had a goal disallowed after review.
Assistants Lee Betts, Scott Ledger, and Bobby Madley will join England. John Brooks will work VAR, with Akil Howson as Brooks' assistant for the matchup.
With England as the main official, Liverpool has won one match, had three draws, and one loss in five Premier League games, according to Empire of the Kop.
The announcement of the crew refereeing Liverpool's upcoming match with Everton comes after Keys questioned why Lesley Ugochukwu was not given a straight red card after a rough challenge on Alexis Mac Allister.
In his blog, the former Sky Sports host took aim at a number of officials, including referee Michael Oliver and PGMOL chief Howard Webb.
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“Ugochukwu has got to go for that lunge on Mac Allister. That was really nasty,” Keys' post began. “Why didn’t he? Because Michael Oliver was ref and as we know nobody questions Michael. But Oliver got another one wrong.
“I’m keeping count of these errors for Howard Webb because our chief ref struggles with his adding up. Three VAR errors last season? That’s really funny.”
For now, it remains to be seen how the current crew will officiate the Reds' upcoming matchup with the Blues. As it stands, Liverpool is in great shape, though it will look to get Wirtz more acclimated to be a formidable matchup for any opponent.
Regardless of any referee controversy, Aldrige wrote: "He just needs to be himself, play his natural game and it will become clear to everyone why he came with such a reputation and a price tag soon enough.
“He has no control over the fee that has been paid for him and he will only get better and better. With the two games against Atletico Madrid and Everton at Anfield this week, it feels like the perfect time for him to properly come to the party.”
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