Experienced referee and Bristol City supporter Kevin Friend will retire from officiating to take up a new role in the Championship.
Friend, 50, is the fourth Premier League referee to hang up the boots this summer after Mike Dean, Jon Moss and Martin Atkinson. He will step into a management role, a newly-created post leading the "Select Group 2" referees - meaning officials who take charge of Championship matches.
His departure has led to concerns over the lack of experienced referees in the Premier League with the quartet boasting 63 years of collective officiating between them. Tom Bramall, who officiated three City matches last season, will make the step up to the top flight while Bobby Madley will return to the Championship.
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The referee association PGMOL came under heavy fire last season for their standards of officiating across all the leagues, especially in the Championship without the use of VAR. Manager Nigel Pearson has been critical of the standard of refereeing in the past, suggesting they should be held publically accountable for their decisions.
In February, The Times reported how a 'low cost alternative' to VAR could be introduced into the Championship next season to help prevent the number of referee errors. While it is used in the Premier League and European competitions, it is deemed too expensive to implement in the second tier.
Friend was born in Bristol but would move to Leicestershire where he began officiating at the age of 14. His most notable matches include the 2013 League Cup final between Bradford and Swansea and the 2019 FA Cup final as Manchester City beat Watford 6-0.
As a supporter of the Robins, he has never been able to officiate a City game unless it's behind closed doors in a friendly. He explained to talkSPORT: "I can't referee Leicester because I live in Leicestershire and I can't do Bristol City as I'm a fan.
"We have to declare an interest before the start of the season, whether we've been a season ticket holder or a supporter of a club. Even our immediate family, if they're the supporter of a team we have to declare that as an interest so we can't do them.
"The only time I'd do Bristol City is pre-season behind closed doors."
Friend also spoke about the difficulties of watching City, in which he spends most of his time critiquing the performances of the official in charge. He added: "It's difficult to just sit and watch a game because a lot of the time you're watching what the referee does.
"I don't always agree with the decision they make, sometimes they'll give a decision and I'll think differently. That's normal, they're subjective calls, the referee on the field gives it and I might have a different opinion.
"The good thing is when we meet up at training the following week we tend to rib each other about these things. If I'm watching my games on TV, I'm having to do so behind the sofa."
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