By MARK IRWIN
Blues made their move by handing witness statements to the FA from their players.
But the Champions League holders dropped allegations Clattenburg also insulted Juan Mata after an internal investigation failed to provide sufficient evidence to proceed.
The complaint has left Clattenburg feeling ‘angry and confused’ according to former ref Graham Poll.
Chelsea’s formal complaint regarding Clattenburg’s inappropriate language during Sunday’s 3-2 home defeat by Manchester United was lodged with the FA’s governance division last night.
A club statement said: “We today lodged a formal complaint with the FA regarding inappropriate language directed at John Obi Mikel by Mark Clattenburg.
“This is a result of a thorough investigation. It was not a decision the club took lightly.
“There was not sufficient evidence to support a second claim to the FA with regard to the alleged verbal abuse of another first-team player.”
Although there was no mention of racist language in Chelsea’s statement, it is understood that the witness statements allege that the word ‘monkey’ was used to Mikel.
Poll said: “Mark is feeling angry and confused because he doesn’t feel he’s done anything wrong.”
