Nottingham Forest demands VAR audio released after Everton incidents

Nottingham Forest demanded that the audio of three VAR decisions they believe went against them in defeat to Everton be disclosed to the public.

Three possible penalty incidents, all involving Everton Ashley Youngwere checked and cleared by the video assistant referee during the game at Goodison Park.

Goals from Idrissa Gueye and Dwight McNeil secured the hosts a crucial victory in the relegation battle, putting them four points clear of their opponents.

And having claimed that they requested the withdrawal of VAR Stuart Attwell of their duties before the game due to the officer being “a Luton fan”, Forest have now asked Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) to release the audio of controversial moments.

“Nottingham Forest have today made a formal request to PGMOL to release into the public domain audio recordings between officials during yesterday’s match against Everton at Goodison Park,” the statement said. club said.

“The club requested that this be shared for three key incidents from the match – Ashley Young’s challenge on Giovanni Reyna (24th minute), Ashley Young’s handball (44th minute) and Ashley Young’s challenge on Callum Hudson-Odoi (56th minute). minutes).

“We strongly advocate that the wider football community and fans have access to the audio and transcript for full transparency, ensuring the integrity of our sport is maintained.”

Old Premier League judge Marcos Clattenburgwho joined Forest as a refereeing analyst in February, doubled down on the club’s claims in a column for the daily mail, describing the decisions as a “joke” and the arbitration as “flagrant”.

Sky Sports analyst Gary Neville called for Clattenburg’s resignation from his role on Sunday, while the Football Association (FA) confirmed it will investigate Forest’s social media post.

In October, PGMOL released audio of referees after a Luis Diaz goal was unfairly disallowed during Liverpool’s game against Tottenham, and discussions were also made public over an incident in Arsenal’s defeat to Newcastle in November.

Nottingham Forest are one point above Luton, who are in the last relegation place, two points ahead of Burnley.

The club is appealing the points deduction for breaching the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules, with a hearing scheduled for Wednesday.