STUART ATTWELL AT CENTRE OF MORE VAR CONTROVERSY AS WOLVES GOAL RULED OUT

Stuart Attwell found himself the focus of more VAR controversy, disallowing a Wolves goal days after the furore surrounding Nottingham Forest.

The official was the man at Stockley Park as Forest were beaten by Everton at Goodison Park, with the away side furious after being denied what they felt were three clear penalties. The Premier League side subsequently released a statement, revealing they had previous concerns about Attwell due to the fact he supports relegation rivals Luton.

He was back in action on Wednesday night, this time as the on-field official for Wolves against Bournemouth at Molineux. A number of his first-half decisions had angered home supporters, who watched their side deservedly fall behind to an Antoine Semenyo strike.

But Gary O'Neil's side thought they had found a route back into the game in the 65th minute when Nelson Semedo crossed for Hwange Hee-chan to power home a header. However, after a lengthy check, Attwell was advised to check the pitchside monitor for a flailing arm from Matheus Cunha to Justin Kluivert.

Attwell decided there wasn't sufficient force to rule out the goal, sparking another outburst of rage from a Molineux crowd which has seen numerous decisions go against them this season. In their home outing against West Ham earlier this month, an injury-time equaliser was disallowed, with O'Neil ripping into officials in such a manner he was subsequently charged by the Football Association.

It was then the turn of the Cherries to be annoyed at Attwell after he gave Milos Kerkez a straight red for a high tackle on Matt Doherty. Again, there was a long check from VAR Darren England and assistant VAR Dan Robathan, although on this occasion it was decided the original decision would stand.

The FA have already opened an investigation into Forest's comments regarding Attwell after their social media statement made minutes after the final whistle. "Three extremely poor decisions - three penalties not given - which we simply cannot accept. We warned the PGMOL that the VAR is a Luton fan before the game but they didn’t change him. Our patience has been tested multiple times. NFFC will now consider its options."

In response the Premier League said: "The Premier League was extremely disappointed to read the comments made by Nottingham Forest on social media yesterday, following its match against Everton.

"We note The FA has confirmed it will be investigating the club’s statement.

"It is never appropriate to improperly question the integrity of match officials, and the nature of these comments means the Premier League will also be investigating the matter in relation to the League’s Rules."

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2024-04-24T20:35:56Z dg43tfdfdgfd