Mark Clattenburg has been forced to flee Egypt after shocking abuse as club boss claims the ex-Prem referee is in a gay relationship

Former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg has been forced to flee Egypt, where he was in charge of the country’s whistlers.

The Englishman was severely criticized and personally attacked by Zamalek Sporting Club president Mortada Mansour.

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Mansour has criticized Clattenburg’s role in Egyptian football, falsely claiming the ex-referee left his wife to enter a gay relationship.

Clattenburg, 47, has decided to leave Egypt as he feared for his safety following threats from Zamalek supporters.

Clattenburg, once considered one of Europe’s finest officials, had also changed his referee appointments from the league.

It is also understood that Clattenburg felt he was being misled while he was concerned about the number of dodgy decisions being made by some officers.

Major games in Egypt see referees flown in from abroad, but Clattenburg have had trouble convincing top officials to go to the country.

Even Clattenburg, who arrived in August, had not been paid for two months.

He’s been making around £32,000 a month.

Clattenburg left the English top flight in February 2017 to take charge of refereeing in Saudi Arabia and has also had stints in China and Greece.

LEVY LEGACY

TOTTENHAM fans may have gotten the hang of Daniel Levy, but the club chairman still has big plans for the area surrounding the stadium.

So Spurs supporters can forget any hopes they have of selling Levy and owner Joe Lewis.

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Levy is driving the complete redesign of the club’s domain.

It started with the stadium, along with housing, a sixth form academy, a sports campus and a general upgrading of the area.

Just a few weeks ago, Spurs’ plans for the Goods Yard, The Depot and Printworks projects were approved by the local council.

They will provide 646 new homes, green spaces, shops and jobs on sites north of Tottenham.

Work has already begun on a 180-room hotel and 579 apartments are planned at the south end of the stadium.

So if you think the area around White Hart Lane has improved, it will be different in a few years – and Levy deserves credit for that.

LIONS ON TOUR

ENGLAND fans continue to support the national football team.

The Euro 2024 qualifier against Ukraine on March 26th at Wembley is expected to sell out soon.

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Fans are also keen to join the England Supporters Travel Club, which offers them the best chance of securing tickets for the Euro finals in Germany if the Three Lions qualify as expected.

The traveling club had more than 21,000 members prior to the World Cup in Qatar, but will continue to grow in the next 18 months.

Tickets for the qualifier against Italy in Naples on March 23 are not yet on sale.

It is expected that there will be some security issues for away fans.