Chelsea finally admitted they got it wrong over their handling of the Mark Clattenburg affair on Tuesday night — but stopped short of apologising to the referee.
In a joint statement from Chelsea, the Premier League and the Professional Game Match Officials Limited — issued in the wake of talks that were revealed by Sportsmail to have taken place on Monday — the European champions conceded that their actions caused Clattenburg and his family huge distress.
They also admitted it had been a mistake to rush out a press release on the night of their defeat by Manchester United when the accusation that Clattenburg had called John Mikel Obi a ‘monkey’ was so serious.
‘The club regrets not having given more consideration before issuing a statement on Sunday October 28,’ said yesterday’s communique. ‘The club also regrets the subsequent impact the intense media scrutiny had on Mark Clattenburg and his family.’
After Monday’s meeting at St George’s Park between Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck, the Premier League and all 16 elite referees — including Clattenburg — it amounted to quite an admission. But it was a statement that took all day to prepare, demanded the approval of all three parties as well as teams of lawyers, and stopped short of declaring what really needed to be said.
Chelsea officials will argue that they declined to say sorry with good reason. Firstly, they did not wish to undermine Ramires when it is widely accepted that he was sincere in his belief that Clattenburg had called Mikel a monkey during the explosive encounter at Stamford Bridge. They also did not want to prejudice the FA’s ongoing disciplinary case against Mikel.
The talks on Monday have nevertheless gone some way to repairing the damage, with all parties not ruling out a return to Stamford Bridge for Clattenburg. It is understood Buck and the official shook hands at the summit.
‘The referees accept that, given Chelsea FC had received a good faith claim from one of their employees, the club had an obligation under FA rules to report the allegation,’ continued the statement. ‘There was recognition by all parties that the impartiality and integrity of refereeing in this country remains paramount. Chelsea FC made it clear they would welcome Mark Clattenburg back to Stamford Bridge in the future and PGMOL would have no issue in appointing him to a Chelsea FC match.’
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Referees’ union Prospect, who had led calls for Chelsea to apologise to Clattenburg and pay compensation, last night dropped the latter demand.
National secretary Alan Leighton said the use of the word ‘regrets’ in the joint statement was tantamount to and accepted by Clattenburg and the elite group of referees as an apology.
‘This was an important move in confirming Chelsea’s recognition of Mark’s integrity and impartiality,’ he said.
Leighton added that the referees ‘welcomed the opportunity to express their concerns about the way that Mark had been treated’. He added: ‘In a thoroughly professional manner, they explained what the impact had been in real terms and that there could be no repetition.’
