PGMOL has been forced to confirm David Coote – who will be the man in the middle for the Carabao Cup final – is not a Manchester United fan.
The Red Devils are set to square off with Newcastle United at Wembley later this month – and alarm bells were raised at the Magpies due to the fake image. The image showed a Facebook profile, that belonged to Coote, with Old Trafford as its banner.
FA rules state that a referee can’t be in charge of a game involving a side they support. And PGMOL have since confirmed that Coote isn’t a United fan.
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Coote was born in Nottinghamshire – and he earned his qualifications with his local FA, working as a referee development officer with the Notts FA between 2004 and 2012.
PGMOL have confirmed to the Newcastle Chronicle that he is a fan of his local team Notts County. As a result, Coote has never been in charge of a Notts County game, nor has he refereed a Nottingham Forest match – their local rivals.
While Coote has officiated two United games this season – both times the Red Devils won.
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United punched their ticket to Wembley after they thumped Nottingham Forest in the semi-final.
While Newcastle played out a much-tighter encounter as they snuck past Southampton.
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