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Veteran Premier League referee Mike Dean says he "always found it tough" being in charge of Arsenal matches during Arsene Wenger's period as manager, but adds that three of Wenger's best players were his favourite to officiate.

Wirral official Dean will call time on a 22-year on-pitch Premier League career at the end of the current season, although he has been linked with taking up a job as a full-time VAR referee.

Dean has often been seen as a larger than life figure during his time in the top-flight, having several brushes with both players and managers.

But when asked by BBC Sport if Manchester United icon Sir Alex Ferguson was the most combustible manager to come up against, he said that it was actually Wenger who proved more difficult.

"He [Ferguson] used to get a lot of stick saying he'd come in and bang the door down," said Dean.

"He would come in now and then to express his views if something had gone really badly, but he wasn't as bad as people made him out to be."

When identifying Wenger as a more difficult manager to deal with, he added: "I always found it tough, not refereeing Arsenal in general but refereeing Arsenal when he was the