Clattenburg names worst players to referee from 'soft s***e' to ex-Liverpool man
Mark Clattenburg was one of the most respected referees of his era but certainly came across his fair share of difficult players.
The Durham-born official took charge of Premier League games for 13 years before pursuing pastures new in 2017. He's also taken centre stage at some major European events, including the Champions League final between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid in 2016.
He oversaw the Euro 2016 final just months later at the Stade de France as Portugal overcame France. Clattenburg dealt with a host of different individuals during his career and has opened up to The Sun about the players he struggled to deal with most.
Roy Keane is a man who had his fair share of trouble with officials, holding the record for the most red cards received in English football after 13 dismissals. The Irishman was known for his attritional style of play with Clattenburg admitting it was the unknown that made the Manchester United difficult.
He said: "Roy was physical, hard and you couldn't trust him. Look at the tackle on Alf-Inge Haaland for example. You never knew what he was going to do next." It was another of Keane's teammates, Rio Ferdinand, who also presented challenges for the former official.
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The centre-half was part of a United side that had a reputation for dominating referees and getting favourable decisions. Clattenburg felt that Ferdinand played on that on the pitch as he claimed: "I found him difficult to referee during that Fergie era because he was always trying to play mind games.
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Mark Clattenburg was a Premier League ref for over a decade (Getty Images)"He tried to get under your skin, probably to get that next decision. Rio was such a difficult player to referee as he was always in your face. When I got older and a bit more wiser, he probably left us alone more."
Craig Bellamy was another Premier League stalwart, playing for the likes of Newcastle, Liverpool and Manchester City, who presented major challenges for officials. Clattenburg has described the ex-forward as "the worst" player there was to referee.
"He was just the most irritating player on the pitch - and he was irritating off it," said the former official. "He was downright rude and it didn't matter what you said to him. I made mistakes against him but what he used to say to you, it was not acceptable. People say you should have sent him off and I did - incorrectly for diving. I cautioned him at Bolton for diving and it was a blatant penalty. He was a guy I just didn't really get on well with."
Arsenal's Invincible goalkeeper Jens Lehmann was another challenge, once picking up an incredible eight yellow cards in a single Premier League season as he often tussled with opposition strikers. "He was always difficult because he'd always whinge about people stepping on his toes in the penalty area," said Clattenburg.
"Centre-forwards would always try and wind him up. A corner would come in and they would give him a little nudge and he'd go ballistic and push players and have arguments with referees. He was always a difficult one."
An overseas player who Clattenburg came into contact with whilst refereeing international and Champions League matches was Pepe, formerly of Real Madrid, who he referred to as a "soft s***e".
"I had a run-in with Pepe in the Champions League final," he said. "He was a guy who was always difficult because he'd try to frame stuff and wind attackers up to get them sent off, which is not always a great thing when you're trying to referee a football match."
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