Flying Kuyt: Liverpool striker Dirk Kuyt launches
himself at Phil Neville in the fiery Merseyside derby in October
that brought fierce criticism for referee Clattenburg
Mark Clattenburg, the referee who was put in charge of
lower-profile games after his controversial handling of October's
Merseyside derby, will officiate at Sunday's powderkeg Barclays
Premier League game between Chelsea and Arsenal.
The appointment marks a return to the fold for the 33-year-old,
who also got a private rebuke from referees' chief Keith Hackett
for his performance in Blackburn's 5-3 defeat at Wigan in
December.
It will raise eyebrows because Howard Webb, widely regarded as
the best official, will be at neither of the 'Grand Slam Sunday'
games.
Manchester United's equally explosive clash with Liverpool has
been given to Steve Bennett, while Webb will be at the
comparatively low-profile match between Aston Villa and Sunderland
on Saturday.
Insiders say that Hackett has decided to change the policy of
automatically selecting his top official for the biggest games
because he is wary of repeating the situation where Graham Poll
always got first pick. Clattenburg, the youngest English referee to
be appointed to the
FIFA list, will be in the spotlight for a fixture that has
become increasingly bitter in recent seasons.
In December, John Terry missed 14 games with an ankle injury
after a high tackle by Emmanuel Eboue, a few minutes after Terry
himself had caught Cesc Fabregas with a late foul during Arsenal's
1-0 win.
Players from both sides brawled during last year's Carling Cup
Final, in which Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Adebayor of Arsenal and
Chelsea's John Mikel Obi were sent off.
But Sunday's game is seen by Hackett as a chance for the
Gosforthbased official to put his problems earlier this season
behind him and prove he is back to his best form.
Clattenburg infuriated David Moyes with his handling of
Liverpool's 2-1 win at Goodison and Moyes got an FA charge for
suggesting the official had been influenced by staying with Rafa
Benitez's side during a pre-season tour.
He caused a storm with a series of blunders at Wigan and Hackett
made it clear that he would have been dropped from the list had he
not already booked a Christmas break.
But Hackett, himself the subject of withering criticism from Sir
Alex Ferguson two weeks ago over the way he chooses officials,
feels that Clattenburg is back on top of his game and has earned a
high-profile match under the policy of picking on form.
He has stuck by him through further controversy when he sent
Ferguson to the stands at Bolton, a decision which landed the
Manchester United boss with a touchline ban.
The referees' chief also wants a no-nonsense approach to the
high-profile games rather than what he sees as the lower-profile
style of Alan Wiley and Mark Halse, and that explains his choice of
Clattenburg and Bennett, who is one of the division's strictest
disciplinarians.
Kent official Bennett also has previous with Ferguson, who
accused him of failing to protect Cristiano Ronaldo after the
Portuguese winger was sent off two years ago in a Manchester derby
defeat. Bennett also sent off Ronaldo at Portsmouth in August.
While Bennett is criticised as a stickler for the rules, his
consistency makes him a regular choice for big games. He feels
players set the agenda and once said: "The laws are clear, I have
to apply them. Sometimes the players put you in a position where
you have to react."
