Arsenal return to Premier League action for a clash against Nottingham Forest this Saturday back and will be back at Emirates Stadium for the first time in nearly four weeks. The Gunners’ last four fixtures have come away from north London with only one those resulting in a victory for Mikel Arteta’s side.
Defeats to Inter Milan and Newcastle along with a draw against Chelsea all arrived before the November international break. A rather favourable fixture run is now on the horizon for Arsenal however, starting with a visit from Forest.
Despite the fact the hosts will be clear favourites, Nuno Espirito Santo’s side have made an excellent start to the season and are currently level on points with the Gunners. Given the importance of the clash may have been elevated by that, the Premier League have made two well-known senior officials in charge of the important calls.
Simon Hooper will referee the clash and be supported on the pitch by linesmen Adrian Holmes and Simon Long alongside fourth official Dean Whitestone. Darren England will be the VAR for the game and be assisted by Marc Perry at Stockley Park.
However, Hooper has endured a mixed few weeks which included a top-flight snub. Before the November international break, he took charge of the Championship fixture between Derby County and Plymouth Argyle and was thus not involved in any Premier League games.
In the previous weekend, he officiated Chelsea’s 2-1 win against Newcastle and was enjoying a quiet afternoon until the late stages. Moments after Dan Burn left a flailing arm on Christopher Nkunku, Hooper awarded a penalty but VAR swiftly intervened and recommended a review.
With just a few glances at the monitor, Hooper quickly realised his error with the contact very soft and thus the penalty decision overturned. The error clearly did not lead to a goal but it will certainly be a concern that Hooper judged the incident to be a foul.
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