New man in the middle for Hammers clash
Andrew Kitchen is set to referee his first Manchester United game, when West Ham United provide the opposition on Thursday night.
The man in the middle will be a new face to most Reds supporters, as this is only his fifth Premier League assignment, after racking up lots of experience in the EFL, since 2021/22.
The Old Trafford encounter is his third top-flight outing this term, after overseeing Aston Villa's 2-1 win over Burnley and Chelsea's 3-0 victory at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Kitchen, who hails from Durham in the north-east, was the fourth official for the Hammers' 2-0 loss to Liverpool at the London Stadium on Sunday.
Dan Cook and Ian Hussin will be his assistants, running the lines, with Michael Salisbury on fourth-official duties.
The VAR is Peter Bankes, assisted by Eddie Smart.
The Reds are looking to follow up the weekend win at Crystal Palace with three points against another capital club and going some way to avenging the fact that the east Londoners did the double over us in 2024/25.