Who does Michael Oliver support? Many have been asking as the 38-year-old is chosen to referee Manchester United vs Everton.
The Englishman will be officiating today’s clash at Old Trafford as Erik ten Hag attempts to keep Manchester United in the Champions League qualification spots.
Everton could also do with the three points as they find themselves outside of the relegation zone on nothing but goal difference.
So, who does Oliver support? Let’s take a look…
Who does Michael Oliver support?
Well, this has become a talking point as Manchester United fight against Newcastle for a place in next season’s Champions League.
The Red Devils sit fourth with 53 points to their name going into the weekend, behind a Newcastle side who also have 53 points but find themselves third on goal difference.
Oliver is actually a Newcastle fan, so a number of Manchester United supporters are concerned that he will look favourably on Everton at Old Trafford today in order to do his beloved Magpies a favour.
There are even photos of the Ashington-born official wearing a Newcastle shirt.
While we can understand those who may be worried, Premier League referees have to act objectively.
Therefore, Oliver’s love for Newcastle really shouldn’t affect proceedings in today’s clash.
Of course, if there are any dodgy decisions, the Manchester United fans will be furious and undoubtedly accuse Oliver of being biased towards the Magpies.
In truth, the Premier League probably shouldn’t have appointed Oliver for this game.
Oliver has even admitted to the Daily Mail that he has not previously been allowed to officiate games of sides who are close to Newcastle in the final months of the Premier League campaign, which is very interesting given his involvement in Manchester United’s game today.
He said: “I never referee Newcastle games. We have to declare if we have an allegiance to any club or if a family member works at a club. You can’t do any match involving that team and I can’t do Sunderland, either, for obvious reasons.
“If Newcastle needed a point to survive and the team they were fighting to get above was say Villa, I couldn’t referee Villa’s game either. I wouldn’t want to. It’s not worth the hassle.”
As we all know, referees make poor decisions in the Premier League regardless of who they support – even with the help of VAR nowadays – but any potential mistakes will be firmly under the microscope given his support of Newcastle.
Hopefully – despite that – we see a fair game play out between Manchester United and Everton at Old Trafford.
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