ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE:CHELSEA HAVE presented the English Football Association with the full documentation from their internal investigation into the allegation that the midfielder Mikel John Obi was racially abused by the referee Mark Clattenburg during the Premier League defeat against Manchester United on Sunday as they formally called upon the game's governing body to act.
The west London club are convinced that Clattenburg has a case to answer – although it is understood the official strenuously denies the allegations – after contracting in external legal specialists to pore over the evidence. Several players, including Mikel and his midfield colleague Ramires, have signed witness statements that have now been passed to the FA.
It remains unclear whether Mikel claims to have heard Clattenburg allegedly calling him a “monkey” during a heated and controversial match. But Chelsea, while refusing to specify who, are adamant that someone on their team heard the offensive term being directed at Mikel and, as such, they were bound to take the matter further, particularly as the Nigeria international has been so incensed by it.
The club have, however, dropped the other part of their original complaint against Clattenburg – that he also allegedly directed “inappropriate language” towards another of their players, believed to be the midfielder Juan Mata. It has been reported that Clattenburg called him a “Spanish twat”.
Mata was made aware of the allegation although, according to his team-mate Oriol Romeu, he did not hear the supposed remarks. After the internal review, Chelsea decided that there was insufficient evidence to push ahead with a formal complaint on Mata’s behalf.
There had been chaotic scenes in the Chelsea dressing room after Sunday’s game, with passions running high and some of the club’s senior players asked Mikel whether he was absolutely certain that he wanted to proceed with the allegation against Clattenburg.
The possibility that Mikel might have misheard Clattenburg, possibly by dint of the referee’s north-east accent, was discussed. Everyone at the club is acutely aware of the sensitivity of the allegation, in the wake of the year-long John Terry racist slur saga: the club captain is currently serving a four-match domestic ban for his abuse of Queens Park Rangers’ Anton Ferdinand.
Mikel, though, was furious, and wholeheartedly set upon pursuing Clattenburg. Nothing changed in that regard in the ensuing days. Mikel had stormed into Clattenburg’s dressing-room to confront him, and so did the manager, Roberto Di Matteo.
Chelsea kept their players behind for two hours after the game, as they conducted their preliminary inquiries, and they lodged a complaint at 8pm on Sunday with the Premier League match delegate, which they said would be passed to the FA.
The governing body said on Monday that they had begun an investigation but, in reality, they needed hard evidence from a direct complainant detailing how they had been wronged before they would press ahead in earnest. They now have that.
The FA made no comment last night, other than to state that they would “continue with our inquiries”, which will take in interviews with Mikel and Clattenburg, among others.
The Metropolitan Police have started their own investigation, following a complaint from the Society of Black Lawyers and Chelsea are happy to allow the force to continue their work. It was unclear whether the club intended to also make a formal complaint to the police.
Guardian Service
