Nottingham Forest were incensed when they were denied three penalties against Everton at Goodison Park and questioned the integrity of the Premier League’s decision to make Stuart Attwell the VAR for the fixture
Howard Webb will admit on Tuesday night that Nottingham Forest should have been awarded a penalty in their loss to Everton.
The Midlands side questioned the integrity of the Premier League after Stuart Attwell was selected as VAR for the match, and pointed out the official was a Luton Town supporter. Forest were furious that three separate penalty claims were turned down as they crashed to a 2-0 defeat.
However, it appears Webb, the PGMOL’s chief refereeing officer, will only admit fault for once of the incidents. Audio is set to feature on the programme “Match Officials Mic’d Up” of the discussions between referee Anthony Taylor and Attwell, with Webb having established his verdict during the Monday night recording for the show – which will be aired on Tuesday evening.
As first reported by ESPN, the Premier League’s Independent Key Match Incidents Panel believe VAR should only have intervened when Callum Hudson-Odoi was brought down in the area by Ashley Young, but not for the same player’s challenge on Giovanni Reyna or for the claim of handball.
Forest could yet face a number of punishments from the FA. The governing body is investigating the club in addition to comments from Nuno Espirito Santo and Neco Williams. Mark Clattenburg, who acts as a refereeing consultant for Forest, has been approached to explain his comments in a newspaper column following the match.
The Premier League side’s statement 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.”
Forest’s post, its tone, and the manner of its release, coming immediately after the final whistle at Goodison Park, was widely criticised.
Alan Shearer led the complaints against Forest’s behaviour, describing their post as an “absolute embarrassment” and asking: “what the f*** were they doing?”
Nevertheless, writing in the Daily Mail, Clattenburg reinforced the position of his employers and damned the decisions made. “One of these errors would have been bad enough,” he said. “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.
“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.”
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Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
