MARK CLATTENBURG HAS resigned from his role as a referee analyst at Nottingham Forest, with the former Premier League official admitting Friday he had become “more of a hindrance than a help”.

Clattenburg has been involved in two major flashpoints since joining relegation-threatened Forest in February, speaking out over a drop-ball incident in a match against Liverpool and then publicly criticising the officiating in Forest’s game against Everton on April 21.

He issued a statement via the club’s website, saying he had caused “unintended friction” with other clubs and had become “more of a hindrance than a help” to Forest.

Last month, England’s Football Association asked Clattenburg, also a columnist for Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper, for his observations on the comments he made about the officials in the 2-0 defeat by Everton.

Forest were furious not to be awarded three penalties in the match, describing the decisions as “extremely poor”.

They added that VAR official Stuart Atwell was a fan of Luton, who are also battling to avoid the drop.

Clattenburg followed up on that Forest statement in a Daily Mail column, labelling the penalty decisions in the Everton match a “hat-trick of howlers”.

The former referee said in Friday’s statement: “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.

“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 hinderance than help to NFFC.

“It has also led to the unmerited targeting of me, personally, by certain participants and pundits.”

Clattenburg said it was his “sincere belief” there is a place for such an analyst’s role in the modern game.

– © AFP 2024