[drewks]

http://m.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/38993655

[talkSAFT]

I think he's a damned good ref.
But I don't understand why he'd want to go and live over there (Saudi). I worked there for 18 months, and we (Brits) used to say it's the arsehole of the World. No doubt the money's great, but there's more to life than money......for Allah's sake!

[4evaabaggie]

Bet he went for the professional challenge and the chance to create something good ........ or the tax free mega bucks they are going to pay him ...... but give up alcohol whilst he is there ..... big price to pay.

[Dingle-Dingle]

Bet he went for the professional challenge and the chance to create something good ........ or the tax free mega bucks they are going to pay him ...... but give up alcohol whilst he is there ..... big price to pay.

Lol. Depends which hotel you drink in. DD

[BaggieMan]

Aries, what do you reckon to Clatt in Saudi then ?

[4evaabaggie]

He will be sadly missed in the premier league .......... by man utd

With such great displays like last Saturday he can teach them all he knows .... won't take long, he should be back in time for the FA cup final then

[BaggieSteve]

I think he was a pretty ok referee. None of them must find it easy with the level of micro scrutiny of each decision they make from a whole raft of cameras, a decision they have to make in the blink of an eye and knowing they'll probably piss off a substantial part of the crowd. Hindsight is a wonderful thing and they don't have that so they will make mistakes. I also don't believe they are biased to a particular club, I think they are, genuinely, too professional for that but I do think they are sometimes swayed by the occasion and may find it difficult to award a decision against a home team at their ground, particularly one of the "bigger" teams. However, good luck to Clattenburg, I'm sure he's gone for the money but how many of us can say we would not move jobs if someone offered a huge salary increase?

[aries22]

Aries, what do you reckon to Clatt in Saudi then ?

He is replacing Howard Webb. A slightly strange move professionally, one which I hope doesn't harm Clattenburg's chances of refereeing the 2018 World Cup final, but it will if he is no longer an active referee.

As for Saudi Arabia, he won't be living here, he will most likely be spending 4 days a week here in a swish hotel like the Four Seasons and coming home for the other three days, and Bahrain, where you can do and get anything, is a short flight away from Riyadh. On top of it all, he will be getting a huge tax-free salary, which, if he resides outside the UK for the duration of his Saudi contract, say Monte Carlo or some other tax haven, in a rented apartment paid for by the Saudi FA, will remain tax free, and will set him up financially for life.

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I think he was a pretty ok referee. None of them must find it easy with the level of micro scrutiny of each decision they make from a whole raft of cameras, a decision they have to make in the blink of an eye and knowing they'll probably piss off a substantial part of the crowd. Hindsight is a wonderful thing and they don't have that so they will make mistakes. I also don't believe they are biased to a particular club, I think they are, genuinely, too professional for that but I do think they are sometimes swayed by the occasion and may find it difficult to award a decision against a home team at their ground, particularly one of the "bigger" teams. However, good luck to Clattenburg, I'm sure he's gone for the money but how many of us can say we would not move jobs if someone offered a huge salary increase?

I was just reading this morning of the disgraceful action brought by Chelsea against Clattenburg and which ended up by John Obi Mikel getting done for the very charge Chelsea brought against Clattenburg.

Chelsea complaint about inappropriate language - Wikipedia
On 28 October 2012, Chelsea made a formal complaint to the Football Association against Clattenburg about his alleged use of "inappropriate language" towards John Obi Mikel during that day's match against Manchester United.[24] The Professional Game Match Officials Board stated that Clattenburg would fully co-operate with the FA's investigation into the complaint.[25][26] The PGMOB also announced that it would not appoint Clattenburg to referee a match the following weekend, stating that the "scrutiny [of Clattenburg] would detract from the match and be unfair to the clubs and the supporters of both sides."[27]
The Metropolitan Police Service launched its own investigation into the allegations after it received a complaint from the Society of Black Lawyers,[28] but later dropped it after no victims came forward.[29][30][31] The FA cleared Clattenburg of wrongdoing nine days later and charged Mikel with using "threatening and/or abusive and/or insulting words and/or behaviour" towards Clattenberg after the match.[32] Mikel was found guilty and received a three match ban and a £60,000 fine.[33]
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Who would you believe, Chelsea and John Obi Mikel, or Mark Clattenburg?

[Baggievicar]

And now he's reffing us against Bournemouth. It'll seem just like Saudi, I'm sure. (Anybody seen the forecast?)