Premier League coaches accused of encouraging players to abuse referees after C-bomb claim

Former Premier League official Peter Walton has stated that the actions of Premier League bosses and coaches drive the rise in abuse of league officials by their players.

The 64-year-old's comments surfaced following Nottingham Forest's £75,000 fine and the suspension of coach Steven Reid for calling Paul Tierney a «c***» three times. The expletive-laced outburst occurred during the closing stages of Nottingham Forest's narrow defeat against Liverpool. Walton believes figures like Reid's conduct significantly impact how the players on the pitch interact with officials.

The ex-official suggests such behaviour by coaching staff is even more damaging than when instigated by players. In his column for The Times, he wrote: «For a player to have called Paul Tierney the c-word three times would have been bad enough; for a coach such as Steven Reid to have done it is far worse.

»Reid and the other Forest coaches are leaders — they set the tone for the way their players behave. The message he was sending to Forest's players was: this is how you treat officials when they make decisions you don't agree with."

Walton also suggested that VAR has intensified the problem, with abuse growing more commonplace in the division. However, he maintains that the influence of clubs' coaching staff remains dominant, considering that the potential introduction of a blue card might have offered some form of mitigation.

He added: «I am not refereeing in the Premier League any more but from afar, it seems to me that players are becoming more abusive towards officials. I suspect this is partly because of VAR.

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