Nottingham Forest have called on the Professional Game Match Officials Ltd (PGMOL) to release the audio of conversations between the match officials during their defeat by Everton on Sunday, while the Premier League has said it is “extremely disappointed” by the club’s complaint that the video assistant referee (VAR) was a supporter of relegation rivals Luton.
Forest believe they should have been awarded three penalties during the match. Ashley Young was at the centre of three incidents which Forest felt merited a penalty. There were two alleged fouls and a handball that the on-field referee, Anthony Taylor, did not deem worthy of an offence and which the VAR, Stuart Attwell, did not intervene to overturn as Everton won 2-0 to leave Forest in 17th, one point and one place above Luton with four games remaining in the season.
“Nottingham Forest has today submitted a formal request to the PGMOL to release into the public domain the audio recordings between officials during yesterday’s match against Everton at Goodison Park,” the club said in a statement.
“The club has requested this be shared for three key match incidents – Ashley Young’s challenge on Giovanni Reyna (24th minute), Ashley Young’s handball (44th minute) and Ashley Young’s challenge on Callum Hudson-Odoi (56th minute). We firmly advocate for the broader football community and supporters to have access to the audio and transcript for full transparency, ensuring the integrity of our sport is upheld.”
The FA is investigating Forest’s claim about Attwell and on Monday afternoon asked for further observations from the manager, Nuno Espírito Santo, the full-back Neco Williams and the club’s referee consultant, Mark Clattenburg, who all made outspoken comments about the denial of the penalty claims after the defeat.
Nuno backed the original club statement made on Sunday saying: “I don’t understand the reason and the decision of [referee] Anthony Taylor and VAR Stuart Attwell”, while Williams said: “It is three clear, blatant penalties. Every single week, this happens now. We are getting decisions against us, and I don’t know why. Is it because we are a lower bottom-half team?”
Nottingham Forest has today submitted a formal request to the PGMOL to release into the public domain the audio recordings between officials during yesterday’s match against Everton at Goodison Park.
— Nottingham Forest (@NFFC) April 22, 2024
The club has requested this be shared for three key match incidents - Ashley…
The Premier League also announced its own investigationyesterdayon Monday, as well as expressing dismay at the club’s comments. An official statement read: “The Premier League was extremely disappointed to read the comments made by Nottingham Forest on social media yesterday, following its match against Everton. 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’s original post on X after the defeat on Sunday read: “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.”
Another Forest statement on Monday afternoon doubled down on their position. “This is not about individuals but rather how the integrity of the game is seen,” read the latest social media post from the club.
“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. 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.”
Officials have to declare their club allegiances and any others they have links to. This means they cannot officiate on the teams they support nor direct geographical or historical rivals to avoid a conflict of interest.
It is understood Forest did not request for Attwell to be stood down from being the VAR for their match. Clattenburg, who joined Forest in February, spoke to the PGMOL chief, Howard Webb, on Friday about Attwell being a Luton fan, suggesting it could be raised at Nuno’s pre-match press conference, rather than asking for the official to be removed from duty. Clattenburg then wrote a column in the Daily Mail on Monday criticising the decisions of Taylor and Attwell on the day, in addition to the PGMOL decision not to replace Attwell beforehand.
The former Premier League referee Clattenburg was hired by Forest after the club felt they had been on the receiving end of numerous incorrect decisions and felt Clattenburg’s advice and influence could be a useful asset.
It would not be the first time this season that PGMOL has released the audio from match officials. When Liverpool’s Luis Díaz had a goal incorrectly disallowed for offside against Tottenham after the VAR did not realise it had been ruled out on the pitch despite and therefore failed to overturn an incorrect decision the audio was released.
