By Daily Sports on December 6, 2017
Mark Clattenburg says he knew he wanted to quit refereeing in the Premier League after a tirade by Jose Mourinho.
Clattenburg confirmed in February that he was leaving his role as a Premier League referee to become head of refereeing for the Saudi Arabian Football Federation.
The 42-year-old made his Premier League debut in 2004, and says a January 2017 match between Manchester United and Stoke City was the game that convinced him to depart.
The game, in which Wayne Rooney broke Sir Bobby Charlton’s all-time scoring record for Manchester United, ended in a 1-1 draw, and Mourinho felt his team deserved more.
"I was refereeing the game when Wayne Rooney broke Bobby Charlton's record and Mourinho came into my dressing room and he was unhappy about a handball penalty that I didn't give," Clattenburg told the Men in Blazers podcast.
"I'd walked off that pitch at Stoke, which was always the coldest stadium, it was always wet and miserable, and refereeing Man United was never an easy match.
"To come off that match it felt immense that I'd actually had a good performance, and for him to come into my dressing room and criticise my performance for a handball that I'd seen, that had clearly come off his chest, I knew that I was right but he'd put a seed of doubt into my mind.
"I drove home 250 miles thinking I'd made a big error, my wife knew my attitude had changed, and I thought to myself, 'Do I really want to be a part of this anymore? Do I really want to referee?'
"And I went soul-searching, I wasn't enjoying it as much as I used to and I had to get out," he said. (GOAL)
•Photo shows Jose Mourinho.
Source Daily Sports
Posted December 6, 2017
You may also like...
Bukayo Saka best player apart from Messi –...
Nigerian Basketball Star Wins NBA’s Most Valuable Player...
Lakers Miss Playoffs for 6th Year In A...
Oshoba gets opponent change for Nov 25
FIFA lawyers expose monumental fraud under Blatter
Cristiano Ronaldo Expected To Stay With Juventus

Africa’s first Wheelchair Fencing Academy opens in Lagos
Nigerian duo Yohanna, Okike make EPL list of youngsters to watch
Nigeria vs Egypt: All you need to know ahead of decisive WAFCON 2026 clash
Falcons ready to die on pitch – Ajibade
Commonwealth Games: Tinubu lauds Team Nigeria’s 24-medal feat, pledges more investment in sports
Falcons learnt from Malawi defeat, says Alozie
We will make Nigerians proud – Nnadozie
Celebrating Kanu Nwankwo: A True Nigerian Football Legend
Okowa hails Amusan, Enekwechi after Glasgow medals
Portable loses celebrity boxing rematch to Okocha after ring walkout
Commonwealth Games: Australia widens lead as Nigeria stays fifth on medal table
Commonwealth Games: Nigeria ranks ninth on all-time medals table
Rangers International going, going . . . (64,006 views)
Amaju Pinnick: A cat with nine lives (55,357 views)
Second Term: Amaju Pinnick, Other NFF Heavyweights Home to Roost •How Pinnick Broke the Jinx (53,253 views)
Current issues in Nigerian sports: Matters arising (52,855 views)
Sports Development: Zenith Bank on the zenith (52,735 views)
Missing $150,000 IAAF Grant: Solomon Dalung’s Hide and Seek game (52,605 views)
Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje’s solid footprints, commitment to sports development in Kano State (52,499 views)
NFF Presidency: Pinnick, Maigari, Ogunjobi, Okoye in Battle for Supremacy (52,011 views)
Olopade, BET9A wave of revolution in NNL (51,228 views)
Commonwealth Games 2018: Shame of Muhammadu Buhari, Solomon Dalung (49,699 views)
Ibrahimovic’s Man U exit: Whose decision is it? And in whose interest? (48,180 views)
John Mikel Obi: Segun Odegbami’s Outrageous Call! (47,563 views)