It was roughly five minutes after the full-time whistle in Everton’s 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest on Sunday afternoon that the send and nuclear buttons were pressed together.
A 45-word statement, laden with anger, was uploaded to Forest’s X account, bemoaning “three extremely poor decisions” that were said to be testing the patience of Nuno Espirito Santo and his side.
More strikingly, though, Forest also questioned the integrity of Stuart Attwell, who had seen fit to let all go unpunished as the game’s VAR. They had “warned” the referees’ body, PGMOL, the post said, that Attwell was a fan of relegation rivals Luton Town.
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.
— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) April 21, 2024
In the first 24 hours, the statement was viewed 42 million times without a hint of contrition. Only when Forest followed it up with a “formal request” for the audio recordings of the officials’ communications to be published did it lose its place at the top of the club’s official feed.
The contents of Sunday’s audio — assuming it is released — will be eagerly awaited by Forest, who have left the threat of further action hanging in the air. The initial incendiary statement said the club would “now consider its options”; that was an oblique reference to exploring the possibility of legal action if they were to be relegated next month.
It all underlines that Forest are in no mood to back down. If anything, they are doubling down. The indignation felt by owner Evangelos Marinakis had not subsided a day after the perceived injustice and there were no regrets in making an ugly spat public over social media. If anything, Marinakis wanted to go further with the language used in the X posts, only to be persuaded to tone it down by members of his inner circle.
Evangelos Marinakis wanted to issue an even more strongly-worded statement (MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Forest believe they were left with no choice but to go public, feeling that every other platform for complaint had been exhausted in a season of grievances with PGMOL.
The fallout and repercussions have been left to rumble on in the aftermath of a damaging defeat at Goodison Park. No sooner had the Football Association confirmed it had opened an investigation into comments made by Forest staff, including Nuno and the club’s referee consultant Mark Clattenburg, the Premier League weighed in with its own statement to make its disappointment clear.
“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,” it read.
PGMOL chose not to say a word and declined to comment when contacted by The Athletic, but Forest found more of their own to fill any void on Monday evening. A more conventional statement was published on the club’s website, rather than through X. No apologies, but an attempt to bring justification.
“NFFC stands by its request for greater transparency around PGMOL appointments to further protect the game’s reputation,” it said.
The genesis for this storm came on Friday morning. Clattenburg had noted Attwell’s inclusion as VAR for Nottingham Forest’s crucial meeting at Everton and chose to pick up the phone to Howard Webb, head of PGMOL.
Clattenburg, a former Premier League and Champions League official, has become the conduit between Forest and PGMOL and regularly speaks with Webb, a one-time colleague.
Attwell’s allegiances are known to have been raised during a short conversation, but PGMOL has privately dismissed the suggestion Clattenburg or Forest put forward a request to change the VAR appointment. Forest’s most recent statement made clear the issue had been raised “because of the fear of the sideshow that would ensue if anything went wrong with officiating in the game”, but at no point have they said that involved a plea to stand Attwell down.
Forest, who began Sunday just a point behind Everton, maintain that Attwell’s allegiances to Luton, the club who pose the biggest threat to their Premier League survival, ought to have ensured he had no involvement.
All PGMOL officials are obliged to declare their historic allegiances to clubs they or family members have traditionally supported and, as a result, do not take charge of games involving those clubs or their nearest neighbours. The level of caution does not typically extend to blocking appointments of games involving promotion or relegation rivals with a month of the season still to play.
Luton are known to have been bemused by the reaction of Forest. Those within the club had earmarked a draw as their preferred result, ensuring neither Everton nor Forest were able to pull clear of the relegation zone. Two of Attwell’s three key decisions, turning down Forest penalty claims late in the first half and early in the second, both denied the chance for Everton to be pegged back by their visitors.
Nottingham Forest were angered by the decisions of VAR Stuart Attwell (Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
There has so far been no evidence Attwell attends Luton fixtures and others in the Premier League have shared their bewilderment at Forest’s confrontational approach. One club likened their behaviour — and that of other clubs who have called for explanations or apologies from PGMOL after refereeing errors — to small children throwing a tantrum.
There have also been private claims of hypocrisy. One senior figure at a top-flight club highlighted that in the 2022 Championship play-off final, a day that delivered a long-awaited promotion back to the Premier League, Forest benefitted from the assistance of VAR. Steve Cook, the defender now at Queens Park Rangers, was filmed declaring his love for VAR during the celebrations of that famous win over Huddersfield Town at Wembley.
Another Premier League club, who spoke to The Athletic on condition of anonymity to protect relations, had sympathy with Forest’s case at the weekend and acknowledged there was frustration at the general standard of officiating in the league this season. But they also highlighted a belief that Forest had escaped a stronger sanction than the four points they were docked last month for breaching profit and sustainability rules (PSR). The temperament of Forest’s owners, namely Marinakis, was also cited as a lightning rod for friction.
Crystal Palace’s post-match social media post captured the mood of others well enough. In a parody of Forest’s post, they wrote: “Five extremely good goals — two goals conceded — which we simply have to accept. #CPFC will now enjoy their Sunday.”
Meanwhile, Alan Shearer, the former England striker and The Athletic columnist, spoke for many when he offered his view on the row on the The Rest Is Football podcast. “What the f*** are Forest doing putting that statement out?” he said. “It’s an absolute embarrassment.”
Set against that mirth, though, Forest have attempted to depict themselves as crusaders in a competition they believe lacks consistency and transparency among officials. Clattenburg was meant to be a diplomatic appointment to the club’s payroll in February, but the social media posts, approved by Marinakis, have thrown oil on the fire.
“It is clear PGMOL must amend its rule on allegiances to account for contextual rivalries in the league table, not just local rivalries,” said Forest in their later statement. “This is currently not within the criteria but should be. Mere reliance on match officials to recuse themselves if contextual rivalries exist invites conjecture, as some have recused themselves where others have not.”
Clattenburg has been the focal point of much of the fallout. In his Daily Mail column, he called it a “joke” that three decisions had gone against Forest, but by that point, Gary Neville had already called for Clattenburg to resign from his position. “If words go out which question the integrity of a referee and claims someone is a cheat for supporting another club, then he’s supporting what is being said,” Neville said on Sky Sports. Neville’s wider comments about how the club had conducted themselves infuriated Forest to such an extent that they are reportedly considering taking legal action against Sky.
Clattenburg has a contract with Forest which runs until the end of the season and his position as a consultant is not currently considered to be in doubt. The club still see him as serving a useful role as a conduit between them and Webb: if he were not employed, Marinakis is likely to want to hold those conversations himself and that would be unlikely to end well.
Forest remain determined to invite scrutiny upon PGMOL and, in this instance, Attwell.
For all his difficulties as a young referee, famously giving a goal to Reading when the ball had gone out in their Championship game at Watford (Luton’s rivals) in 2008, Attwell is considered to be one of the Premier League’s best VARs.
The 41-year-old, originally from Nuneaton, has regularly worked in support of Anthony Taylor in high-profile UEFA games and, as recently as April 10, Attwell was the VAR in the Champions League quarter-final first leg between Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona.
On Wednesday he will take charge of Wolverhampton Wanderers at home to Bournemouth in the Premier League, an appointment that predates the storm surrounding his VAR performance at Goodison Park. Wolves’ next opponents after this fixture? Luton Town.
It is highly unlikely Attwell will officiate Forest again this season, but Forest are still searching for answers over how Ashley Young, the Everton defender, escaped punishment for apparent fouls on Gio Reyna and Callum Hudson-Odoi, either side of the ball striking his arm in the penalty box.
In a saga playing out across social media, Young posted on Monday morning that he was listening to “Old Skool Tunes”. His not-so-subtle choice? Cry Me A River by Justin Timberlake.
Forest do not expect to escape punishment for their more damning statements but are awaiting word from PGMOL over their request to hear back the recordings of dialogue between Taylor and Attwell. The last of the three incidents was the most compelling, yet showed Taylor indicating his belief that Young had played the ball rather than tripping Hudson-Odoi inside the penalty area.
PGMOL have used their monthly Mic’d Up programme, filmed with Webb and former England striker Michael Owen, as the stage to own some of their most high-profile mistakes this season, but have previously broken with convention when releasing the audio of a Luis Diaz disallowed goal in Liverpool’s loss at Tottenham in October. That embarrassing lapse stemmed from human error, with the VAR, Darren England, mistakenly backing an incorrect offside decision.
Forest will await the audio footage of Sunday’s events with interest. In the meantime, their anger is unlikely to subside.
(Top photos: Getty Images; design: Eamonn Dalton)
