Who is the man in the middle for Town

The Lancashire official was last in charge of the Blues in their 2-1 defeat to Wolves at Portman Road in the 2024/25 top-flight campaign.

Bankes, who has been a Premier League referee since 2019, booked Alex Palmer and Julio Enciso in that clash.

OVERALL TOWN RECORD

The man with the whistle has officiated nine Town games in total. The other eight are…

The experienced official has overseen 15 Arsenal fixtures previously, with the Gunners securing ten victories.

His last game in charge though was their Carabao Cup final defeat to Man City back in March.

Mikel Arteta's side were beaten 2-0 at Wembley Stadium after Nico O'Reilly scored twice in four second-half minutes to secure City's their ninth EFL Cup in their history.

Bankes has taken charge of just two games this term - both being Premier League fixtures, with his most recent being Newcastle United's 2-0 win at Tottenham Hotspur last month.

In total, he has handed out eight yellow cards and one red this season, awarding no penalties yet.

Constantine Hatzidakis and Alex James are due to be the assistant referees, with Josh Smith appointed the fourth official.