Former Premier League referee Mark Clattenburg on his run-ins with ex-Liverpool and Man City star Craig Bellamy

Mark Clattenburg says Craig Bellamy was his most difficult player to referee.

The former Premier League referee officiated some of football’s biggest games, including the Euro 2016 final and the Champions League final in the same year.

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Bellamy was known for his short fuse during his playing days with Newcastle, West Ham, Blackburn, Liverpool and Man City.

And speaking to talkSPORT Breakfast on Monday, Clattenburg, who stopped officiating Premier League matches in 2017, recalled how he once asked Man City’s coaching staff how they coped with Bellamy on a daily basis.

The 45-year-old said: “Even if he [Bellamy] was wrong, he was right.

“I was tongue-in-cheek, that’s what I was like as a referee, I wouldn't be smart with players because I knew at certain times players would be upset.

“There were times when you could have banter and there were times when you couldn’t. It was the same for players with me.

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“I remember Craig Bellamy coming off at half-time, he was giving me dog’s abuse, and I gave him a caution for dissent.

"I just said to the coaching staff at Man City, ‘how do you put up with this guy week in, week out? Because I’m getting it on a one-off basis’.

“That got reported in the media which was sad because I think whatever’s said on the pitch should stay on the pitch.”

Clattenburg admitted to incorrectly sending Bellamy off for diving in Man City’s 3-3 draw with Bolton in December 2009.

The former Wales forward was already on a yellow card when he went down under a challenge by Paul Robinson.

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Clattenburg believes Bellamy never forgave him following the dismissal.

He added: “I sent him off incorrectly for a dive, it was a blatant penalty after I’d seen it back against Bolton. I cautioned him for diving and he got a second yellow card.

“He never forgave me! We’ve always had a negative relationship.

“It’s sad because as a referee, you’re not there to be mates, but you’ve got to have some sort of relationship where the player knows when you step over the white line, they know what they're going to get, and vice versa, when I’m refereeing players I want to know what I’m going to get.”