MARK CLATTENBURG has quit his role as a refereeing consultant at Nottingham Forest.
The former Premier League referee, who only took up the position in February, was employed to help the club better understand VAR and refereeing decisions.
The Daily Mail have revealed that Clattenburg has called time on his association with the club in a statement online – just over a week after Gary Neville told the ex-ref that he MUST resign.
It read: “This is to announce that I will no longer be providing match analysis services to Nottingham Forest Football Club.
“Since February this year, I have been proud to have done so under a consultancy agreement between NFFC and Referee Consultant Ltd.
“I performed my services under the consultancy agreement in good faith, to the best of my abilities and in the hope of using my extensive experience as a match official to help NFFC understand how decisions in relation to key match incidents are made amid the workings of VAR.
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“However, it is now clear that the existence and performance of these consultancy services has caused unintended friction between NFFC and other participants, to the extent that it has become more of a hindrance than help to NFFC.
“It has also led to the unmerited targeting of me, personally, by certain participants and pundits.
“Such reactions and outcome was not expected and is regrettable, as it is my sincere belief that there is a place for and value in such a role in the modern game.
“I am grateful to NFFC and wish them all the best during the remainder of the season and in the future. It’s been an honour.”
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Clattenburg came under fire quickly after taking up the role with Forest when the club released a statement following a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Everton.
The club’s official X account fumed about three penalty decisions that went against Nuno Espirito Santo’s side during the game and flagged that the VAR for the fixture, Stuart Attwell, is a Luton fan.
Their post 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.”
Clattenburg was targeted by fans and pundits alike after the statement was released as a result of his ties to the club.
Gary Neville even spoke out on Sky Sports claiming that Clattenburg should resign after the “embarrassing” statement.
The Manchester United legend said: “Mark Clattenberg must resign tonight.
“If he saw those words go out in which question the integrity of a referee and claims someone is a cheat for supporting another club, then he’s supporting what is being said.
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“He would lose all credibility with referees in the game. He should stand down tonight and distance himself from that statement.
“The statement is like a petulant child. It’s embarrassing.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
