Newcastle United’s Wembley date with Liverpool is almost upon us as the countdown to the 2025 Carabao Cup final is nearly complete. The two sides go head to head at Wembley on Sunday, March 16 to decide who will lift the first silverware of the year.
For Newcastle, it could be the end of 70 long years without a domestic trophy, while Liverpool are looking for their first success under Arne Slot after he took over from Jurgen Klopp last summer. Both sides are out of this season’s FA Cup, with Liverpool also exiting the Champions League this week.
Hopefully it will be a game of few controversial decisions, but it seems the match officials always come into the spotlight at some stage, and the final will no doubt be no exception. The EFL confirmed the would be referee the game last month, and it’s someone both sides know well.
John Brooks will referee the game at Wembley, the third time he has taken charge of Newcastle so far this season following two wins over Arsenal – the 1-0 Premier League win at St James’ Park and the 2-0 success in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final at the Emirates.
He has only officiated Liverpool once this season – a 2-1 win for Arne Slot’s side over Chelsea at Anfield – but the Reds will remember he was the man in the middle when the two sides met on Tyneside last season. It may have resulted in a 2-1 win for the visitors, but Brooks sent off Virgil van Dijk for a foul on Alexander Isak. Newcastle felt Trent Alexander-Arnold could also have seen red for two yellow cards on the day.
Slot wasn’t particularly happy with Brooks following the win over Chelsea in October, claiming that he wanted to prove the Anfield atmosphere didn’t effect him after turning down penalty claims for the home side.
“The fans were really important for us. I don’t know if this is something people say in England but they said at my former club, which was also an impressive stadium, that: ‘Yeah, the referees are a bit impressed by the crowd and that’s why you get the easy decisions in your favour’.” Slot said at the time.
“But today showed no matter how loud the fans were, the referee just wanted to show that he was able not to give the decisions he had to make. So it didn’t help us with the referee but it definitely helped our players because they had to work so hard.”
Melton Mowbray-born Brooks has been a referee for since 2004, joining the EFL in 2016 and then the Select Group 1 in June 2021, and the FIFA list of international referees in 2023. He has taken charge of 23 games this season, producing 117 yellow cards – but no reds.
The assistant referees will be Eddie Smart and Nick Greenhalgh, with Darren England acting as the fourth official, and Stuart Attwell on VAR, assisted by Sian Massey-Ellis.
View news Source: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/who-carabao-cup-final-referee-31187227
