For the seventh time this season, Mike Dean will be involved with an Arsenal match, this time taking charge of our FA Cup tie at Portsmouth on Monday night.

While Mike Dean has not refereed seven Arsenal games this season prior to Monday night’s game, he has been involved as ref four times as well as in charge of VAR twice. Oddly, he has not been fourth official for us once this season.

Dean will be assisted by Simon Bennett and Edward Smart.

This will be the third time Bennett has run the line at an Arsenal game. It will also be Smart’s third Arsenal involvement of the season.

As the game is taking place at Fratton Park, there will be no VAR, not that that matters when Arsenal are involved or Mike Dean is around.

Of the four games reffed by Dean this season, Arsenal have won two, drawn one and lost one. That was the game against Sheffield United in October when Mike Dean robbed Arsenal of a clear penalty, a feat he repeated when the sides met again in January.

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The fourth official will be David Coote already played that role in our 2-2 draw against Chelsea while he has also been the VAR operator for two Arsenal games – our one-nil opening day win of the season against Newcastle and our recent 0-0 draw at Burnley.

For he record, no other officials have been involved more in Arsenal games this season than Constantine Hatzidakis and Chris Kavanagh who have both been used eight times, or, if you’d rather, in 25% of Arsenal’s domestic games each.