Nottingham Forest has formally requested that the audio recordings between officials during their match against Everton at Goodison Park be made public. The club expressed their frustration after three penalty claims were denied in the 2-0 defeat, which has left them just one point above the Premier League relegation zone.
In response, the Football Association has asked Forest, manager Nuno Espirito Santo, defender Neco Williams, and analyst Mark Clattenburg for their observations regarding their post-match comments.
Despite raising concerns with the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) last week, the club did not request for Stuart Attwell to be removed from his duties as the video assistant referee for their match.
The club also claimed that they had warned the PGMOL about the VAR being a Luton fan, but no action was taken. Nottingham Forest’s statement, released on Monday, emphasized their formal request for the audio recordings to be released to the public.
The team expressed their disappointment over three penalty appeals, each one implicating Everton defender Ashley Young.
They believed he made contact with the back of Gio Reyna’s boot while trying to execute a tackle when the match was still tied at 0-0, and later in the first half, a cross from Callum Hudson-Odoi hit Young’s arm.
The third situation occurred in the second half when Young went in for a challenge on Hudson-Odoi from behind, but the referees determined that he had cleanly won the ball.