Sheffield United: Frustrated manager wants top level talks following latest refereeing controversy

Speaking after watching Morgan Gibbs-White denied an obvious penalty during last weekend’s goalless draw with AFC Bournemouth, Heckingbottom told The Star he will approach leading officials for talks in order to get to the bottom of the issue.

If that request is granted, Heckingbottom could also invite them to visit United’s training complex before the end of the season in order to speak with members of his coaching staff and first team squad.

Confirming he had sought an explanation from Dean Whitestone, who oversaw the meeting with Scott Parker’s side, as to why Nathaniel Phillips’ foul on Gibbs-White had gone unpunished, Heckingbottom said: “I want to speak to someone. I do want to have a chat with someone and then have them come in.

“All you can do is try and work out what is happening. Clearly I’m frustrated and not happy about it.

“But I also want to try and be constructive. We can’t do anything about it now and, in one sense, we have to move on. But I also want to try and get to the bottom of it, to see if there’s anything we should be doing or aren’t doing.”

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Parker also admitted Phillips had “probably got away with one” when following his poor challenge on the United midfielder escaped censure. Although Whitestone’s view of the incident might have been impeded, Gibbs-White appeared incredulous that neither of his assistants seemed to spot it either.

Heckingbottom, who also argued United had seen two goals wrongly disallowed during their recent stalemate with Blackpool, continued: “I went in (to see Whitestone), yes. But what can we do about it? Go on, tell me?

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“I don’t mean the reports, because you just tend to get some fluff back. That’s why I want to speak to someone.”

With five matches of their regular season remaining, United are sixth in the Championship table ahead of Friday’s game against Reading. They then travel to Bristol City on Easter Monday, before hosting Cardiff City at Bramall Lane. Captain Billy Sharp is expected to be available for selection when Steve Morison’s men travel to South Yorkshire, after making progress in his battle to recover from a hamstring injury.

Heckingbottom explained Sharp had undergone another scan ahead of the clash with second-placed Bournemouth, as United sought a “third opinion” from medics.

“That came back exactly as we thought,” he said, describing the results as a positive development. “It basically confirmed what we believed was going on.”

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United were the dominant force for long periods of their contest against a Bournemouth squad Heckingbottom later predicted is destined to win automatic promotion. Their goalkeeper Mark Travers made two superb saves to deny Gibbs-White, while Filip Uremovic, producing another commanding defensive display, missed a chance to snatch victory in added time.

“The penalty, I’ve seen it back and it is worse than what I first thought,” Heckingbottom said. “I thought we did our job well and you just want others to do their job as well. I’m not talking about fouls, because they can be debatable. I’m talking about black and white, blatant ones.”

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