Wolverhampton Wanderers boss Nuno Espirito Santo has responded to the Football Association’s request for an explanation of his comments on referee Lee Mason in the aftermath of Monday night’s 2-1 defeat to Burnley. Nuno lambasted Mason for his performance in the Premier League game, Wolves’ third defeat in four matches. Ashley Barnes and Chris Wood scored either side of half-time to put Sean Dyche’s side firmly in control after a bright start from Wolves with Fabio Silva scoring his first goal for the club one minute from time after winning a penalty. In a rare public comment on refereeing performances, Nuno said that Mason did not have the quality to take charge of an English top flight game and accused him of giving decisions based on the reactions of players.
Nuno Espirito Santo said “They were not in the best moment to come across because it could be a bad interpretation. I won’t apologise for my words and thoughts. I never ever judge or question the integrity of a referee. I never did it and I will never do it in my life. What I said was about the ability of the referee, what I felt and what I saw in the previous matches. The Premier League is the best competition in the world – the only thing missing is the fans – and we expect high levels of performance and high standards. As managers and players what we expect is from the referees to be confident, maintain their authority on the pitch, to control the players and to handle the game. The Premier League has the best system in referees, and when we go to a match we expect a referee not to be a protagonist of the situation, We want the referee to let the game flow and especially to control the players. We have to make players understand it is a tough job, but at the same time they have to be co-operative and help the referees, as long as the referees have the dialogue like they always do.”
