Mark Clattenburg says John Obi Mikel tried to Punch him amid 2012 racism controversy

 Former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg has alleged that ex-Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel attempted to punch him in the aftermath of a controversial match between Chelsea and Manchester United in October 2012.

Clattenburg, now 50, recounted the incident during an interview on the Under The Cosh podcast. He described how Mikel burst into the officials' dressing room at Stamford Bridge and "started swinging punches" following accusations that Clattenburg had used a racial slur during the game.

Chelsea had claimed Clattenburg called Mikel a "monkey" during the heated match, but the FA later cleared the referee of any wrongdoing. Mikel, on the other hand, was handed a three-match ban and fined £60,000 for threatening Clattenburg.

Recounting the moment, Clattenburg said:

“There was a bit of commotion outside the dressing room door. I opened it and John Obi Mikel came bursting through, swinging punches. I ducked. He tried to pin me against the wall, shouting expletives.”

He added that the situation turned surreal just moments later:

“About 30 seconds after the incident, someone knocked on the door again. I thought, ‘Not again!’ But it was a security guard saying, ‘Obi Mikel left his flip-flop in the dressing room, can he have it back?’ I thought, ‘Are you taking the p***?’”

Clattenburg also spoke about the emotional toll the incident took on him, calling it one of the darkest moments of his career:

 

“I didn’t want to come back. I was mentally gone. For the first few days, I couldn’t eat or drink. I started questioning myself, wondering if I had actually said something. It was an absolute disgrace what happened.”

He went on to suggest that Chelsea’s actions may have been motivated by a desire for "payback" following the FA's punishment of John Terry for racially abusing QPR’s Anton Ferdinand in 2011. While Terry was fined and banned by the FA, he had been cleared in court.

 

Clattenburg said the focus from match officials was not on the racism allegation initially, but rather on what had transpired in the dressing room:

“All the match observer was concerned about was what I was going to report about the dressing room. Then an hour later, I was accused of being a racist.”

He questioned how Mikel was able to reach the officials’ dressing room and speculated on the player's mental state at the time:

 

“He shouldn’t have even been able to get that close with security in place. I thought he was just upset about the result and I happened to be in the way.”

Despite the ordeal, Clattenburg eventually continued his refereeing career, though he admits the incident left a lasting mark.