Simon Hooper will referee only the fourth Premier League game of his career when he takes charge of Watford’s trip to Southampton on Saturday.

His previous outings have been spread out across the past three years, with his maiden top flight game coming on the opening day of the 2015/16 season.

The Wiltshire based official has been the man in the middle for one Premier League game this season and didn’t show any cards in Newcastle United’s 2-0 loss to Leicester City in September.

In 10 games so far this term, Hooper has shown 27 yellow cards and his sole red card led to Derrick Williams being dismissed for Blackburn in a Carabao Cup tie at Bournemouth.

You have to go back to April 2015 to find the last time Hooper was in charge of a Watford game – a clash with Millwall which the Hornets won 2-0 en route to Championship promotion.

Watford will target a similar result as they look to bounce back from a 1-0 loss to Newcastle United on Saturday, while Southampton arrive at the game on the back of a 6-1 drubbing by Manchester City.