Chelsea must face charges should Clattenburg allegations prove false

Nov 13th, 2012 - Posted by Doocey in Football

I write about football, a lot. I'm also a graphic & web designer. Life-long NUFC fan, and fulltime admirer of Moussa Dembélé..

Did referee Mark Clattenburg racially abuse Juan Mata and John Obi Mikel following their recent loss to Manchester United? Today on the blog, Kevin Doocey says that if their claims are proven false, Chelsea must face serious repercussions.

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When the final whistle sounded round Stamford Bridge marking the end of yet another eventful Premier League match-up, you just got the feeling Chelsea were reeling. di Matteo seemed livid, while most of Chelsea's remaining nine men looked somewhat shocked. Mind you, they might well have had a shred of reason to be inquisitive of some of Mark Clattenburg's decisions. However, the sending off of Fernando Torres is not one of them. Let's be honest - Torres could have stayed on his feet after Evans' challenge if he really wanted to. It's a second yellow card, because it is a dive.

That drama though, was nothing though, on what was to come.

Shortly after the game, Chelsea submitted two separate complaints about the way in which Mark Clattenburg had dealt with a couple of their players on the pitch. Indeed, one of the complaints claimed that the referee had racially abused Chelsea's Nigerian international, John Obi Mikel during the course of the game. Things now became much more serious.

The other abusive language was apparently directed at Juan Mata, despite the fact that the Spaniard himself didn't actually hear it. One of his team-mates claimed that Clattenburg had called Mata a "Spanish t*t" at some stage during the ninety minutes.

All a bit dubious if you ask me.

Currently, an investigation is on-going to find out whether Mark Clattenburg did indeed behave in such a ridiculous manner. Of course, such an allegation is a very serious matter and you would hope for the sake of the game that there is no evidence to find. However, if there is - then Mark must be prosecuted and made example of, as there is no place in football for racism (despite the fact it sadly exists).

All the focus has been on Clattenburg who has in fact welcomed the investigation, but if he is cleared and found clean then surely Chelsea Football Club should face prosecution? I mean, if there is absolutely no foundation to these radical claims then it would be quite clear that John Obi Mikel and his team-mates are lying.

Throughout the week, di Matteo brought up the old age debate of Manchester United and referees. All of this in such quick succession begs the question whether it is a tactical ploy by Roberto and his team, such a ploy to get referees on their side.

All of it seems a little bit suspect to me at least.

I would be 99% sure that neither of these apparent 'verbal insults' by Mark Clattenburg actually occurred. Surely, a referee of his calibre couldn't be so foolish - after everything that has emerged in the last few months - to even bring race or ones nationality into question? Referees are meant to be reserved at all times, that is why they officiate games.

Just how likely is it that Clattenburg allowed the heat of the game to get to him, and in turn muttered such demeaning comments at both Juan Mata and John Obi-Mikel? Very unlikely you would have to think.

Chelsea FC have brought the game into disrepute following the behaviour of John Terry (found guilty of racially abusing Anton Ferdinand), and the easily visible 'monkey gesture' by at least one Chelsea fan during Manchester United's Cup visit to London in the last week. If their outrageous claims in the last couple of days are proven false then they must be punished. As well as that, there are strong reports that some Chelsea players stormed into Clattenburg's changing room at the end of the game, which if true, is outright disrespectful and disgraceful & indeed punishable alone.

These allegations - which I personally believe are a complete lie - have the potential to wreck Mark Clattenburgh's career, and that alone would be a shame considering he is a very good referee.

If Chelsea are bereft of hard, cold evidence when the inquiry finishes, surely they do not expect to just accept the decision and walk away?

Allegations of such sorts are a serious claim to make and you would hope that whatever the decision; the FA will punish either of the guilty parties.

One of them is lying and must be severely punished, and I have a good idea who that might be - what about you?

Kevin Doocey is a freelance football writer and the founder of the Newcastle United blog Tyne Time

Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KevinDoocey

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Well, it's about lies or anything. Chelsea over the years have been pointed out as a racist club and to eradicate these behaviours then it needs to stamped out. however, Chelsea is not approaching this correctly but more so in a way to comply with the reputation in reporting everything and passing the bucket over to the FA. Now both on and off the pitch Chelsea is fighting a battle that they can't win and like Torres, looking furlong in their approach.