UEFA make official decision ahead of Man Utd vs Rangers for Europa League's ‘Battle of Britain’

UEFA have confirmed the appointment of Erik Lambrechts as the referee for the league phase contest between Manchester United and Rangers at Old Trafford.

Erik Lambrechts is a 40-year-old Belgian referee with vast experience of officiating matches in Jupiler Pro League, he has also taken charge of a number of international matches including the European Championship qualifiers, World Cup qualifiers and UEFA Nations League games including England’s 5-0 victory over Republic of Ireland last November.

Lambrechts has overseen four Europa League games in his career in that time he has produced 20 yellow cards, giving him an average of five yellows per match, as per WhoScored.com.

He has never previously refereed a United or Rangers match in his career. He will be assisted by Jo de Weirdt and Mathias Hillaert who are running the line at Old Trafford. The fourth official will be Nathan Verboomen. On VAR duties for the Europa League tie is Bram Van Driessche with German official Benjamin Brand his assistant in the booth.

Manchester United’s upcoming opponents

Two of the most under-pressure managers in British football will collide in a crucial Europa League showdown which is likely to have a profound impact on which team progresses automatically into the last 16 of the competition.

2022 finalist Rangers are managed by Belgian Philippe Clement, who after a strong impact towards the end of last season, finds himself under increasing pressure after his side slipped to a seemingly insurmountable 13 points behind rivals Celtic in the Scottish Premiership title race, while also losing the Scottish League Cup final at Hampden.

Clement’s side have been the best performing home team in the Scottish Premiership, but their form on the road has been disastrous, with the Light Blues picking up just three victories from 11 league matches.

Rangers have saved most of their best performances on the road for Europe and have picked up 11 points from the six matches they have played, with the most notable victory being a 4-1 triumph away to Ligue 1 side Nice in November.

Meanwhile, United, who new boss Ruben Amorim recently described as the worst ever Red Devils team, have won just five of their 12 league home games while falling to defeat on six occasions.

In Europe United have been more consistent and are yet to taste defeat with 12 points from six matches. Their most disappointing result was a 1-1 draw at home to FC Twente in September with former Gers forward Sam Lammers scoring the decisive equaliser.