That's the nub. I find it incredible that people would rather give the benefit of the doubt to clubs/players for whining about decisions in matches where they've been beaten.
Let's face it - none of us knows what he said, and until we find out (if we ever do) it's a pretty pointless argument.
If you want a few examples, here you go... 2005: Clattenburg was the referee who failed to spot the so-called ghost goal scored by Pedro Mendes for Tottenham against Manchester United. Practically everyone else at Old Trafford could see that Mendes' shot had clearly crossed the line before being fumbled back over by an embarrassed Roy Carroll. October 2007: In the Merseyside derby at Goodison Park, Clattenburg looked ready to book Everton’s Tony Hibbert but, after apparently consulting Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard, sent the defender off. He failed to show Dirk Kuyt a red card for a waist-high lunge and denied the hosts what looked a penalty in the final minutes. He did not referee an Everton match for five years. January 2009: After the winding-up of one of his businesses in the High Court, Clattenburg was suspended from refereeing and finally sacked by the referees’ governing body, the PGMO, for breaching his contract. He was accused of having business debts of nearly £200,000 and told he would never referee again, but he was reinstated that February after clearing his name. December 2009: In a match between Bolton and Manchester City, Clattenburg sent off Craig Bellamy for two bookable offences — dissent and diving. At half-time, he allegedly said to members of the City staff: ‘How do you work with Craig Bellamy all week?’ October 2010: The referee had already caused problems between Tottenham and Manchester United when he failed to award Spurs a goal in 2005 after Pedro Mendes’ lob clearly crossed the line. Five years later, he controversially allowed a goal to stand when Nani tapped the ball in after goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes thought he had a free-kick. October 2012: Clattenburg was accused of aiming a racist insult towards Chelsea midfielder John Mikel Obi during their 3-2 home defeat by Manchester United. The FA and the Metropolitan Police launched inquiries into the incident, but a month later, dropped the investigation and Clattenburg was cleared. Mikel was later fined £60,000 and banned for three matches for threatening Clattenburg in the aftermath of the game. There are more.
But how can you use the reputation of a completely different person on another? Here, I'll do it: Everyone who fought for Germany in WW2 was exactly the same as Hitler. It's just not true, is it?
I read that list earlier today - on the Daily Mail website, I think - and was bemused by the above entry, which hardly seems worth mentioning to me (compared to the other, more serious matters). Why is a comment like this a big deal?
Poor show. This is just a copied and pasted list of refereeing mistakes and a some problems with a business. How the **** does it equate to "attention-seeking"?
Well done, you've done a play on words with my name there. Very nice. It's also very hypocritical, don't you think? Either way, i'm bored. I think I might go and talk about our club for a while...
Serious question. how many of them are on the same level as abusing a player. some of them a freak goals and incidents regarding his personal life which surely can not be held up as an argument for whether he has abused a Soton player.
Lallana kept getting in flattenburgs face, dishing out abuse, foul language etc. The bottom line is, why does Lallana feel its perfectly ok for him to be a foul mouthed twat but totally wrong for the ref to give him a bit back? Really petty by Southampton and I hope they suffer the embarrasment they deserve from all this.
It doesnt matter how much of a prick a certain ref is or isnt, this is ridiculous action from both the player and Southampton. Have their players never shouted at the ref or vociferously debated a decision whilst shouting profanities? If I was a ref in charge of one of their games, every time one of them shouted or swore at me I'd now demand an apology through the press. And lets face it, it's not the wisest move by the club. The last thing you want to do is piss off a ref in this manner and the next time there's a 50/50 that doesnt look dodgy if he gets it wrong....
