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Mark Clattenburg explains what it’s like to referee Lionel Messi

Referee Mark Clattenburg has been talking about what it’s like to referee Lionel Messi and said he was left “shell-shocked” the first time he took charge of a match involving the Barcelona star.

Clattenburg has refereed some of the biggest stars in the world game, taking charge of matches in the Premier League, Champions League and the European Championships.

He first came across Messi in the Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain and explained how the forward made him change the way he approached the game.

“When I first refereed Messi, I was shell-shocked, genuinely,” he said.