Nottingham Forest attack on official attracts heavy backlash
Nottingham Forest face unprecedented action from the Premier League for questioning the integrity of the VAR Stuart Attwell as the controversy over the club’s position intensified.
Forest have refused to back down in the face of twin disciplinary investigations by the league and FA, and instead called for the top flight to change its rules on match officials’ club allegiances.
However, the view among football’s authorities is that Forest’s statement, issued on social media after the loss away to Everton, crossed the line of what is acceptable in that the club directly questioned the integrity of a match official.
Forest’s explosive post after the 2-0 defeat on Monday stated that they had “warned’’ the Professional Game Match Officials Board (PGMOL), the body that runs elite refereeing, that “the VAR is a Luton fan but they didn’t change him’’.
The implication was that, because Luton Town are a relegation rival of Forest, Attwell should not have been involved in the game.
Latest developments include:
❚ The Premier League expressed “extreme disappointment”and stated it will investigate the matter in relation to the League’s rules. Rule B15 states clubs and officials “shall behave towards other clubs, officials, director and the League with the utmost good faith’’. If charged and found guilty, a range of sanctions, starting with a fine, can be applied. Rule B16 adds that clubs, players and officials must not act “in an abusive, derogatory, insulting, intimidating or offensive manner towards any (other) club or the league or any of its registered players, officials, directors, employees or agents’’.
❚ The FA asked Forest and three members of staff – their head coach, Nuno Espirito Santo, their referee analyst, Mark Clattenburg and fullback Neco Williams – to explain comments they made about the refereeing at Goodison Park.
❚ Forest said in a new statement that “it is clear PGMOL must amend its rule on allegiances to account for contextual rivalries in the league table, not just local rivalries’’.
❚ The club are said to be considering their own legal action against PGMOL.
❚ It emerged that Clattenburg, a former Premier League referee who works for Evangelos Marinakis, the Forest co-owner, had called the refereeing chief, Howard Webb, on Friday and raised the issue of Attwell.
❚ Forest have made a formal request to PGMOL to release the audio recordings of conversations between officials.
The row comes on top of Forest being deducted four points for breaking Premier League financial rules. They are appealing against the sanction.
The Premier League said in a statement it was “extremely disappointed’’ by Forest’s outburst, adding: “We note the FA has confirmed it will be investigating the club’s statement. It is never appropriate to improperly question the integrity of match officials, and the nature of these comments means the Premier League will also be investigating the matter in relation to the League’s rules.’’
Forest, who sit just above the relegation zone, refused to apologise and tried to turn the tables on PGMOL, which already requires officials to declare their club allegiances.
“This is not about individuals but rather how the integrity of the game is seen,’’ the club said.
“We know match officials do not allow outside factors to influence their decision-making and that all referees are required to declare their ‘allegiances’ to PGMOL to avoid any perceived conflict or harm to the game’s reputation for integrity.
“However, it is clear PGMOL must amend its rule on allegiances to account for contextual rivalries in the league table, not just local rivalries.
“Mere reliance on match officials to recuse themselves if contextual rivalries exist invites conjecture, as some have recused themselves where others have not.’’
The club have requested the publication of the full transcript and audio of conversations between the officials to “ensure the integrity of our sport is upheld’’, relating to three penalty claims – all of which involved the fullback Ashley Young – that were dismissed.
PGMOL released audio in October after a similar request from Liverpool when Luis Diaz incorrectly had a goal ruled out against Tottenham Hotspur.
Marinakis, who also owns Olympiacos, was not present at Goodison Park for the defeat because he was attending the Greek club’s match against PAOK.
Sokratis Kominakis, Forest’s other owner, was at the ground and the decision to send out the tweet criticising the officials is understood to have come from the very top. An original version is understood to have been even more explosive. Sources close to Clattenburg, who works for Forest and Olympiacos, claim that he raised the issue of Attwell’s club allegiance with Webb on Friday, and that Webb said he was unaware of the alleged connection – and he did not view it as a conflict of interest anyway.
PGMOL insiders insist that was not the case and that Clattenburg merely raised the possibility that the Forest head coach would be asked about the VAR in his press conference.
Mike Dean, a former Premier League referee, said Forest were being badly advised by Clattenburg.
Clattenburg has emphatically defended the club’s stance. “One of these errors would have been bad enough,’’ he wrote on MailOnline. “Three was a joke, and that is why Nottingham Forest were left feeling victimised after another defeat in which zero big decisions went their way.’’