Michael Oliver interview resurfaces, where he reveals he can’t referee Newcastle games because he’s a fan – after Nottingham Forest questioned Stuart Attwell’s integrity amid claims he is a Luton supporter

An old Mail Sport interview with Premier League referee Michael Oliver has resurfaced after Nottingham Forest‘s VAR controversy on Sunday.

Forest wrote an incendiary post on social media shortly after full-time of their 2-0 defeat to relegation rivals Everton.

They claimed that VAR Stuart Attwell showed bias against them because he was ‘a Luton fan’, while they also condemned ‘three extremely poor decisions’ and promised to ‘consider its options’ going forwards.

It came after three potential penalty calls involving Toffees defender Ashley Young – including a handball and two challenges – went in the favour of Sean Dyche‘s side despite being checked by Attwell. 

Forest’s official post caused shock in the footballing world and was widely condemned, yet an interview Oliver did with Mail Sport in 2021 gained traction on social media.

Forest released a furious tweet after the game claiming they were denied three clear penalties

One of the controversial incidents happened when Callum Hudson-Odoi saw his cross stopped by the outstretched arm of Ashley Young, who had earlier clipped Gio Reyna in the box

Later, Hudson-Odoi burst into the area but Young wiped him out with a challenge from behind 

In a post shared by a Forest fan, a screenshot took an extract from Oliver’s interview when he discussed club allegiances.

The Newcastle fan and referee had told Mail Sport’s Oliver Holt: ‘I never referee Newcastle games. We have to declare if we have an allegiance to any club or if a family member works at a club. 

‘You can’t do any match involving that team and I can’t do Sunderland, either, for obvious reasons.

‘Because Newcastle are invariably involved in a relegation battle, when you get to March or April, it means I can’t referee anyone around them towards the bottom three. 

‘If Newcastle needed a point to survive and the team they were fighting to get above was say Villa, I couldn’t referee Villa’s game either. I wouldn’t want to. It’s not worth the hassle.’

Forest’s furious statement in full had said: ‘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.’

The extract from Oliver’s interview suggests that if Attwell is indeed a Luton fan as Forest claim, then he shouldn’t have been put in charge of VAR for the clash at Goodison Park given the Hatters are battling the East Midlands outfit for survival.

Former top flight referee Mark Clattenburg, who was appointed as a refereeing analyst by Forest in February, amid their perceived criticism of the decisions they have been subjected to this season, backed up the club’s view when speaking to Mail Sport on Sunday.

He also hit out at the refereeing performance of Anthony Taylor, along with Attwell’s display as VAR, while he slammed the PGMOL for failing to avoid a controversial situation.

In the 2021 interview, Oliver – who is a Newcastle fan – had revealed referees can’t officiate games involving, or linked to, the team they support

Forest insinuated VAR Stuart Attwell was biased against them because he is a Luton supporter

Forest’s refereeing analyst Mark Clattenburg slammed Attwell, Taylor and the PGMOL

‘You will have seen the statement released by the club,’ he said. ‘How the PGMOL were contacted to warn that it was not appropriate for a Luton fan such as Attwell to play such a pivotal role in a massive match that would impact the relegation race.

‘Certainly, I would not have risked this situation if I were the head of the referees and all of this could have been avoided had the PGMOL simply made smarter appointments.’

When contacted by Mail Sport, a PGMOL spokesperson said: ‘Officials are impartial. Every official must declare allegiances, and will not be assigned that team’s matches or certain other fixtures such as those involving direct (location) rivals of that club.

‘Other factors that determine appointments include which teams their immediate family members support and, of course, performance.’