Mark Clattenburg is an esteemed former referee, overseeing 297 Premier League matches as well as a Champions League and Euros final in his career.
And inevitably, Mark Clattenburg has a lot of memories of Manchester City, though not all fond memories.
Clattenburg was in his prime years as Man City were just starting to become the powerhouse they are now, making his Premier League debut in 2004 and later leaving in 2017 to take up a role in Saudi Arabia.
By that point, Man City had won two Premier League titles. Last season they lifted the league title for a fourth year in a row under Pep Guardiola, who’s facing the heat this season with City slumped in 4th place of the Premier League table.
On Wednesday night, Man City beat Leicester City 2-0 at the Etihad to make back-to-back wins following on from their 2-1 win over Bournemouth in the FA Cup on Sunday, with a semi-final tie booked against Nottingham Forest.
Photo credit should read PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images
Photo credit should read PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images
Mark Clattenburg recalls Craig Bellamy story at Man City
Speaking exclusively to Manchester City News, Clattenburg has been discussing his memories of Man City. We asked him to recall who he thought was the toughest Man City player to officiate and his answer may come as little surprise to many: the controversial former striker Craig Bellamy, who now manages the Welsh national team.
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Clattenburg recalled a 2009 incident involving himself and Bellamy. In what was a 3-3 draw between Man City and Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium, Clattenburg showed Bellamy a second yellow card which lead to a lot of debate, with Daily Mail even suggesting that Clattenburg had it in for the former Man City striker.
Speaking to Manchester City News, Clattenburg recalled: “Craig Bellamy was the most difficult player to deal with on the pitch. The relationship was not good and I remember a match away vs Bolton and I cautioned him for dissent, I sent him off in second half for a simulation and looking back at the incident after the game, I was too harsh to caution him as there was a small contact. He never forgive me.”
Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
Craig Bellamy’s record for Man City
Bellamy, now 45 years old, represented some huge clubs during his career including City, Liverpool, Newcastle United and West Ham among others, also making 79 appearances for Wales and scoring 19 goals.
Man City signed Bellamy in a £14million deal from West Ham in January 2009 with the striker reuniting with his former Blackburn Rovers boss Mark Hughes at the Etihad, with Bellamy going on to score 15 and assist 15 more in 51 games for City.
Hughes was sacked in December 2009 and replaced by Roberto Mancini. Under his guidance, Bellamy eventually fell out of favour and left on loan for Cardiff City in 2010, then joining Liverpool on a permanent deal in 2011.