Yahoo News Nottingham Forest accused of opening a 'dangerous can of worms' amid Stuart Attwell claim
Nottingham Forest have been accused of opening a “dangerous can of worms” with their tweet after Sunday’s 2-0 defeat at Everton.
The Reds were furious at having three penalty appeals waved away at Goodison Park and released an angry statement on social media soon after the full-time whistle. They wrote: “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.”
Referee Anthony Taylor dismissed Forest’s spot-kick claims on Merseyside, and he was not instructed to review the incidents by VAR Stuart Attwell.
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Former referee Jeff Winter told OLBG: “Perhaps there should have been more thought into the (Attwell) appointment, as there was in my day, but that being said you cannot have a club questioning the integrity of a match official. In my day, geographically, you were never appointed to officiate a team in your area or indeed a team you had any previous connection with. Fans will always have this but for a club to come out and question the integrity of a match official is taking it to a new level and the authorities have got to be seen taking action over this.
“Stuart Attwell has been put in a very awkward position here. It does put a weight on Attwell’s shoulders because, if indeed that is true, and it is yet to be proven, then is he ever going to referee Luton Town? Has he in the past? Is he going to be able to referee at Nottingham Forest again?
“If you have a situation where managers and clubs are criticising referees, there are going to be problems in the future because of hand-picking referees. It’s a very unsavoury incident and I don’t think we have heard the last of it.”
Forest’s social media post has generated plenty of debate among fans and pundits. Winter believes the club should retract their statement.
“Having heard the accusations and feelings of Forest after the game, my initial reaction was one of shock,” he said. “We are opening a real can of worms here, fans will always see things the way of their teams and conspiracy theories will always be out there.
"However, to doubt the integrity of match officials is just adding fuel to the flames and Nottingham Forest hopefully will print a retraction on this or otherwise face the consequences. We have always had situations where referees have been criticised, but to say it’s been done because of their support of another club is taking it to a new level.”
Winter said the Reds “have reason to feel aggrieved” at the penalty claims going against them. It is far from the first time the club have been left furious over controversial refereeing and VAR calls in games this season.
“You can make a strong case for each one, and what has riled Forest is that in an important game there have been three,” Winter said of Sunday’s penalty shouts. “But two rights don’t make a wrong, if the referee/VAR have deemed to have made errors they will face action, one would hope, from the PGMOL. But coming out in the open and passing those comments is opening a dangerous can of worms.”
