FOREST’S CLATTENBURG DOUBLES DOWN WITH ‘HAT-TRICK OF HOWLERS’ SLAM DESPITE NEVILLE’S ‘RESIGN’ DEMAND

Nottingham Forest’s referee analyst – ex-Premier League official Mark Clattenburg – claims there was a ‘hat-trick of howlers’ in the 2-0 loss to Everton.

Forest‘s survival hopes were dealt a blow on Sunday afternoon as they were beaten 2-0 at Goodison Park by relegation rivals Everton.

Everton are now five points clear of the bottom three with a game in hand, while Forest are a single point ahead of 18th-placed Luton Town and three clear of 19th-placed Burnley after Vincent Kompany’s side beat Sheffield United 4-1 on Saturday.

Nottm Forest feels that they have been hard done to by officials this season and they made the controversial decision to appoint Clattenburg as their in-house referee analyst in February.

Goals from Idrissa Gueye and Dwight McNeil settled Sunday’s game in Everton’s favour but Forest were furious with match officials as they felt they should have been awarded three penalties.

Forest posted an extraordinary post-match tweet as they took issue with the VAR being a ‘Luton fan’. They said: ‘Three extremely poor decisions – three penalties not given – which we simply cannot accept. We warned the PGMOL that the VAR is a Luton fan before the game but they didn’t change him. Our patience has been tested multiple times. NFFC will now consider its options.’

“Clattenburg must resign tonight…”

After this tweet surfaced, Manchester United legend Gary Neville insisted that Clattenburg “must resign”. Speaking on Sky Sports, he said: “Mark Clattenburg must resign tonight. He must resign from his job at Nottingham Forest.

“If he sees those words go out that question the integrity, that effectively call a VAR official a cheat because he supports a certain club, then he’s supporting what’s being said. And he will lose all credibility with referees within the game.

“He should stand down tonight and distance himself from that statement, in my opinion.”

Instead of resigning, Clattenburg has doubled down as Forest “were left feeling victimised” after three “joke” decisions.

‘One of these errors would have been bad enough. 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,’ Clattenburg wrote for The Daily Mail.

‘In a season where they have had to endure some egregious refereeing, this trip to Everton was as grim a game as they have encountered since returning to the Premier League.’

After breaking down the three incidents, Clattenburg claimed the officials made a ‘hat-trick of howlers’ and he also commented on the ‘Luton fan’ statement.

‘These situations were precisely why video technology was brought into the Premier League and yet, Attwell did not send Taylor to his monitor. Not once. It was a hat-trick of howlers from the refereeing team and, unfortunately for Forest, a continuation of an unjust trend that has hampered their survival fight,’ Clattenburg added.

‘This was mind-boggling to watch…’

‘You will have seen the statement released by the club — how the PGMOL were contacted to warn that it was not appropriate for a Luton fan such as Attwell to play such a pivotal role in a massive match that would impact the relegation race.

‘Certainly, I would not have risked this situation if I were the head of the referees and all of this could have been avoided had the PGMOL simply made smarter appointments.

‘Referees do not make mistakes deliberately but this was mind-boggling to watch. Why Attwell did not send Taylor to his screen, only he will know.

‘The PGMOL can acknowledge the errors if they want. The Key Match Incident panel can say Forest should have been awarded three penalties if they wish. Howard Webb can offer up an explanation on his Match Officials Mic’d Up television show with Michael Owen if he is so inclined.

‘All of that is bound to happen, but none of it will help Nottingham Forest now.’

2024-04-22T07:59:05Z dg43tfdfdgfd