The English Football Association has launched an
investigation after Chelsea accused referee Mark Clattenburg of using
“inappropriate language” towards two of their players in Sunday’s defeat by
Manchester United.
“The FA has begun an investigation relating to
allegations made following Sunday’s fixture at Stamford Bridge between Chelsea
and Manchester United,” it said on its website on Monday.
Leaders Chelsea made an official complaint
against Clattenburg, who sent off two home players — Branislav Ivanovic and
Fernando Torres — in the highly-charged 3-2 Stamford Bridge defeat.
The club did not name the players he is alleged
to have used inappropriate language towards or of what nature the remarks were,
but a spokesman refused to deny that Nigerian Mikel Obi had visited the
referee’s room and demanded for an apology after the game. It was learnt that
his refusal to apologise to Mikel and Chelsea that made the club to launch
official complaint to the FA.
Mikel was booked for dissent during the second
half.
It is also believed that the second player is
Juan Mata whom the referee allegedly called Spanish t***t.
The club spokesman told reporters, “We have
lodged a complaint to the Premier League match delegate with regards to
inappropriate language used by the referee and directed at two of our players
in two separate incidents.
“The match delegate will pass the complaint to
the Football Association. We will make no further comment at this time.”
A highly rated Nigerian referee Gabriel Adigwe
who reviewed the incident on SuperSport said specifically on the
Fernando Torres incident that Clattenburg error could have happened to many
other referees given the way it happened.
“He had a choice to issue a card for simulating
or award a free kick. He took the first option based on he perceived from his
position even though it turned out to be wrong because replays have proven that
there was actually contact,” he said.
The affair is likely to plunge English soccer,
which is only just recovering from one damaging scandal surrounding Chelsea
after captain John Terry’s ban for racism, straight back into a new crisis
involving the European champions.
It was also announced on Monday that FIFA referee
Clattenburg would not be officiating at any Premier League matches this
weekend.
“Mark Clattenburg is one of the elite referees in
world football and, in these circumstances, the intense level of scrutiny would
detract from the match and be unfair to the clubs and the supporters of both
sides,” said a statement from the Professional Game Match Officials Board,
which manages top English referees.
A number of Monday’s British newspapers simply
had the headline “Accused” on their back pages.
The Guardian had a banner headline “Ref
in Chelsea race row” while the Daily Mail proclaimed “Ref Race Row”
although those allegations have not been substantiated.
Chelsea are currently without skipper Terry, who
has served two games of a four-match domestic ban for racially abusing Queens
Park Rangers defender Anton Ferdinand last year.
That case has blighted English soccer for a
year after the former England player was also ordered to appear in court
accused of a racially aggravated public order offence, of which he was
acquitted.
The FA, however, using different standards of
proof to guide its charge, found him guilty and fined him 220,000 pounds
($354,200) as well as banning him. Terry decided not to appeal.
The Durham-born referee was put in charge of the
League Cup final in February and the Olympic final between Brazil and Mexico in
August. Clattenburg is one of the FIFA candidates to referee at the 2014 World
Cup in Brazil.
Former Premier League official Graham Poll has
suggested Chelsea’s complaint could hinge on evidence from Clattenburg’s
assistants and the fourth official.
Linesmen Michael McDonough and Simon Long and
fourth official Michael Jones may have heard conversations between Clattenburg
and the players because all four officials wear microphones and ear pieces that
allow them to hear what each other is saying during the game.
“A referee’s microphone is on open. Everything he
says is heard by (his or her) assistants,” Poll told BBC Radio 5
live.
“So if Mark said something, the assistants would
have heard it.”
Clattenburg, no stranger to controversy, was
criticised by Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo for “ruining” the match.
While Ivanovic could have few complaints after
accidentally impeding Ashley Young when the winger was through on goal, the
decision to show Torres a second yellow for diving sparked outrage on and off the
pitch as he appeared to be clipped.
“We must be disappointed that key decisions were
wrong,” Di Matteo told reporters.
“At 2-2, we looked like the team that was going
to win the game. It was a good game between good teams and the official ruined
it. Key decisions have to be right and you don’t want the referees to have such
a big influence.
“I think it’s obvious in the eyes of everybody
that the second yellow for Fernando was wrong. It was a foul for us and
probably he should have booked their player.
“Their winning goal was an offside goal. It’s a
shame a game like that had to be decided by officials in that manner. Surely
when he sees it, he will realise that he made big mistakes.”
Torres’ Spanish compatriot Juan Mata, who brought
Chelsea back into the game at 2-1 with a stunning free kick, said Torres’s
dismissal was “incomprehensible”.
“But I prefer to focus on the positives from the
game – we competed against a great opponent and responded well to falling
behind,” he added.
An investigation is also being carried by the
Metropolitan Police into how a Stamford Bridge steward was injured following
Hernandez’s winner. Objects were also seen to be thrown on to the pitch from
the stands during the fractious match.
Despite trailing 2-0 and clawing their way back
to 2-2, Sunday’s defeat was Chelsea’s first in the Premier League this season
but they remained top of the table on 22 points from their opening nine games –
one point clear of Manchester United and champions Manchester City.
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