'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
#3 Roy Keane
Now renowned as one of the Premier League's most polarizing pundits – as we saw during his spat with Jurgen Klopp this week – Roy Keane initially rose to fame as one of the Premier League's greatest-ever midfielders.
As part of the all-conquering Manchester United side of the 1990's and early 2000's, Keane won 12 major trophies during his time at Old Trafford, including seven Premier League titles. However, the Irishman was also no stranger to controversy, largely due to his combative nature both on and off the pitch.
Over his career, Keane received 13 red cards, seven of which came in the Premier League – a joint record for English football. Many of those red cards came due to violent conduct, including ones against Crystal Palace and Newcastle United. But it wasn't just his explosive tendencies on the pitch that made Keane controversial.
The Irishman famously hit out verbally at multiple people during his career, including part of United's less vocal fanbase, who became known as the "prawn sandwich brigade" after the rant. This extended to a number of his teammates, including Rio Ferdinand and Darren Fletcher, in an incident that led to the eventual end of his Premier League career.
The most notorious incident, though, came in the 2000-01 Premier League season. Keane was sent off in the Manchester derby after a horrible tackle on City's Alf-Inge Haaland. But when the Irishman's autobiography was released a little more than a year later, more details came to light.
An infamous anecdote appeared to suggest that Keane had deliberately fouled Haaland in an attempt to injure him, as the Norwegian had seemingly taunted the Irishman when he'd injured his knee years prior.
Despite the fact that the FA charged him with bringing the game into disrepute – banning him for five matches and fining him £150k – Keane remained remorseless. He even stated that he'd probably do the same thing again if given a chance.
#4 Alan Pardew
The Premier League has seen a number of great managers over the years, but while it has also had plenty of controversial bosses, there are few that can top Alan Pardew in that regard. Pardew is currently unattached after a period in the Netherlands with ADO Den Haag. But with plenty of experience under his belt, he's likely to return to the Premier League at some point.
If he does, then we can probably expect more controversy from the former Crystal Palace midfielder. Since he became a Premier League boss with West Ham United in the 2003-04 campaign, few managers have been involved in more notorious incidents.
Plenty of Premier League managers get into spats with the bosses of their rival clubs, but Pardew has often taken things to another level. In 2006, for instance, he clashed with then-Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, first hitting out at him for fielding a side without a single English player in a Champions League match.
Later, when Pardew's West Ham side defeated Wenger's Gunners in Premier League action, he celebrated so heavily that the usually mild-mannered Frenchman lunged at him and had to be restrained by the fourth official. And while managing Newcastle in 2014, Pardew found himself under fire again when he labelled then-Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini a "f****** old c***".
Equally questionable was Pardew's behaviour as a Premier League television pundit. In a notorious incident that's since gone viral on YouTube, Pardew made an appearance on Match of the Day 2 in 2009, and compared a tackle from Chelsea's Michael Essien on Manchester City's Ched Evans to a rape.
Pardew's most controversial moment, though, came in March 2014. While managing Crystal Palace in a game against Hull City, the then-53-year-old launched a headbutt against Tigers player David Meyler, and was subsequently banished to the stands. The FA then banned him for a further seven games, and slapped him with a £60k fine.
#5 Luis Suarez
Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez – who has recently made a move from Barcelona to Atletico Madrid – undoubtedly stands as one of the most talented players in Premier League history. He didn't win any trophies during his time in England, but his record of 69 goals in 110 Premier League games for Liverpool is almost unmatched.
However, Suarez was also a magnet for controversy during his time in England, with a number of unsavoury incidents threatening to undermine the great work he did on the pitch. In fact, to non-Liverpool fans, the Uruguayan is largely seen as a pantomime villain.
Early on in his career at Anfield, Suarez was able to keep his nose clean. However, early in the 2011-12 campaign – his first full one with Liverpool – he soon courted controversy during the Reds' 1-1 draw with Manchester United.
Suarez was accused of racially abusing United defender Patrice Evra, making a number of references to the colour of his skin while insulting him during the game. The Uruguayan denied the charge – and was backed to the hilt by Liverpool – but was still found guilty after an investigation, and was slapped with an eight-match ban and a £40k fine by the FA.
To make matters even worse, in the next meeting between the two clubs, Suarez refused to shake Evra's hand in the pre-match period. This further cemented his reputation for villainy – even after he was forced by Liverpool's owners to issue an apology.
Unfortunately, that wasn't the final controversy Suarez was involved with. In April 2013, during a game between Liverpool and Chelsea, the striker was caught on camera biting opposing defender Branislav Ivanovic – echoing a previous biting incident that took place while he was at Ajax.
Suarez was handed a 10-game ban for the incident, and then attempted to force a move away from Liverpool. That didn't happen, and the 2013-14 season saw the Uruguayan named as the PFA Player's Player of the Year for his performances.
However, following another biting incident in the 2014 World Cup, Suarez was banned from football for four months – and cemented his move to Barcelona during the ban. Not only had the Premier League lost a tremendous talent, but they'd also lost one of their most controversial figures, too.
