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Footballers with personality add flair to the sport because football is more than just the element of gameplay. There are those players who have been notorious for taking the fact that football is a contact sport too far. Yes, emotions are bound to run wild in a highly charged match but resulting in unorthodox ways is surely crossing the line. Some of these players never really learnt their lesson overtime despite serving bans and suspensions.
Like any other sport, football has its own set of rules. However, the supporters have time again seen players that disregarded the rule book and handled situations the only way saw fit. The on the field antics have made these crop of players stand out from the rest.
#5 El-Hadji Diouf
This Senegalese wild card burst onto the scene in 2002 after inspiring Senegal to victory over France on route to a historic quarter-final berth. Despite his impeccable dribbling ability and has made a name for perfecting the nutmeg, Diouf also had a dark side. In 2003, he was charged with assault and two weeks wages for spitting at a Celtic fan after a match.
In 2004, he was charged with spitting at a Middlesbrough fan. In the same year, his club Bolton charged him with spitting at Portsmouth captain Arjan De Zeew in a league match. He took his bad boy habits even to the match officials. In February 2004, Diouf received a four-match ban after aggravated dissent towards referee Ali Bujsaim during Senegal’s 2004 Africa Cup of Nations match against Tunisia.
#4 Luis Suarez
He is undoubtedly one of the best strikers in football today who plays for Spanish champions Barcelona. Apart from his goals, the Uruguayan is also known for a unique way of expressing discontent on the field of play.
Suarez is not your typical player as he has been sanctioned several times in the course of his career for biting. In November 2010 while playing for Ajax Amsterdam, he was suspended for seven matches for biting Otman Bakkal on the shoulder and subsequently fined by the club.
He went on to make headlines while a Liverpool player after being found guilty by the Football Association for racially abusing Manchester United’s Patrice Evra on October 15, 2011. This was during a league match at Anfield that finished as a 1-1 draw. He was suspended for eight matches and slapped with a 40,000 Euros fine.
Suarez was in trouble again on April 21, 2013 after the second biting incident in his career which involved Branislav Ivanovic. Video replays showed that he did sink his teeth into the Chelsea defender. The incident was not spotted by the referee so the striker played on until the end. Ironically, it was Suarez who ended up scoring a last minute equaliser in the 2-2 draw. The FA suspended him for 10 matches as a result of his actions.
Two big previous suspensions did not stop Suarez from pulling another one out of the chamber. On June 24, 2014, Uruguay faced Italy in a World Cup group match to determine which team would advance to the knockout round.
It was revealed through video footage that indeed Suarez bit Giorgio Chiellini but it was spotted by the officials. He ended up playing the full length of the match. Given his history of such offences, Suarez was handed a hefty ban of four months by FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee and could not take part in nine international matches.
#3 Sergio Ramos
He has enjoyed a stellar career for club and country. With Real Madrid, Ramos has won four La Liga titles and three Champions League cups. On the international stage, Ramos was a present figure in Spain’s Euro 2008 and 2012 triumphs on to of a fine World Cup win in 2010.
The Madrid captain has made a habit of picking up yellow cards and getting sent off over the years. As a central defender, Ramos is known for not thinking twice when it comes to going in to make a challenge. This has resulted in him breaking various records for the wrong reasons.
Since the 2003-2004 season, Ramos has been booked a whopping 155 times in the league. 13 of those bookings have resulted in red cards. He has received a straight red card six times in La Liga. In the domestic cup competitions, he has 16 yellow cards to his name to add to 41 yellow cards in international cup competitions. In the current Spain roster, he has the highest number of bookings at 21.
Many of the bookings he has received are a result of foul play or overly aggressive tackles. For instance, on November 30, 2010, Ramos was sent off for a wild kick at Lionel Messi during a heated El-Classico match. Despite being sent off, he pushed international teammate Carlos Puyol to the floor and put his hands on Xavi in what was a fierce tussle.
#2 Felipe Melo
Melo sent off against the Netherlands
One of Melo’s two red card moments with the national team occurred during the 2010 FIFA World Cup when Brazil played the Netherlands in the quarter-final. In the 73rd minute, Melo brought down Arjen Robben before drilling his studs on Robben’s left thigh for a straight red card. Brazil went on to lose the match 2-1.
In the last decade, he has been the ultimate bad boy of Brazilian football. For a country known to produce technically gifted players, Melo’s style of play has circled on the use of brute force when commanding the defensive midfield position. It comes as no surprise that Melo has received over 160 yellow cards in his career and sent off more than 10 times.
His most famous red card was against Lazio in December 2015 when he almost tore off Lucas Biglia’s face. In the 90th minute, Melo made a dangerous clearance and landed his right boot squarely on Biglia in near a martial arts kick. Earlier in that match, Melo should have been sent off for a raised knee challenge that also caught Sergej Milinkovic-Savic on the face. Inter Milan lost the match 2-1.
#1 Joey Barton
Barton has shown on many occasions that he is as dirty as they come. He has been in trouble on and off the pitch for virtually any offence that one can think off. On May 9, 2009, Barton was sent off due to a wild challenge on Liverpool’s Xabi Alonso. The following season, he survived being sold in the transfer window and but got into more trouble.
In November 2010, Barton blatantly punched Morten Gamst-Pedersen on the chest when the referee was not looking. The match had been stopped so that a player could receive medical attention but Barton had other ideas. He just turned and made an unprovoked attack on the Blackburn Rovers player. Newcastle United went on to lose the match 2-1.
Manchester City’s last minute title win over Queen Park Rangers in 2012 was in the aftermath of another vicious Barton episode. In the 55th minute, Barton was sent off for elbowing Carlos Tevez. Did he leave the field quietly? No, he did not as he kicked Sergio Aguero and had a physical confrontation with City captain Vincent Kompany.
