MARK CLATTENBURG made the decision to quit refereeing after deciding he ‘wasn’t bothered’ with criticism from Jose Mourinho.
Having picked up the whistle in non-League football in 1994, the County Durham-born official worked his way up the pyramid to reach the Premier League in 2004 and Fifa’s elite list two years later.
But Clattenburg fell out of love with the game after losing his patience for complaining managers and disagreeing with his fellow refs.
In the 46-year-old’s autobiography, which has been serialised in The Times, he revealed the moment he decided to quit English football.
Following a match between Manchester United and Stoke City, Mourinho voiced his frustrations with the official and earned an earful in reply.
Clattenburg has admitted to throwing a boot at a wall and shouting at the manager to get out.
Overwhelmed by the stresses of the game, he felt that he ‘could not be bothered with idiots like that any more’.
After leaving the Prem for a job overseeing referees in Saudi Arabia, he moved to the Chinese Super League and now works with Uefa in Greece.
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One bone of contention Clattenburg maintains with his time in England is the response to his un-referee-like penchant for tattoos and fresh haircuts.
As the referee for both the 2016 Champions League and Euros final, his decision to mark the occasions with tattoos drew criticism.
But he wrote: “It was the best thing I ever did.
“Many people get it done but in refereeing people frown at anyone doing anything different.
Why shouldn’t a referee have a nose piercing? You are in the public eye and people assume they can criticise you.
Mark Clattenburg
“Your tie has to be the right length, your shoes have to be right… an old-school mentality.
“[Pierluigi] Collina, the best referee in the world, had tattoos. But there seems to be an English thing dictating how you should be. I was called vain, a disgrace.
“Why shouldn’t a referee have a nose piercing if they want? You are in the public eye and people assume they can criticise you.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
