Footballers earn reputation and fame through their performances on the field. The popularity that they earn has its pros and cons, though. Like the French philosopher Voltaire quoted, “With great power comes great responsibility.” The stardom that these footballers enjoy calls for them to act responsibly.
A wrong answer to the media can haunt them for days to follow. Anything they say or do will be used against them if there is anything controversial involved in their acts. The footballers are aware of this and they try to tread with caution. However, it doesn’t help every time. There are cameras ready to flash at them, the moment they make a mistake – it doesn’t matter who is at fault.
This is exactly what happened to the footballers we are going to talk about next. Some of them didn’t do it intentionally, but luck didn’t play a major role in scripting the outcome in all the stories. Many of them deserved the harsh treatment they received for the stupidity involved in their acts. They knew that their acts would turn into nightmares if it flashes on TV screens, but they couldn’t help it, because they were either too ignorant to notice, or too unlucky to go unnoticed.
But what is the dumbest thing done by a footballer on the pitch? How many footballers have made fools out of themselves? It is time to find out.
#11 Charles N’Zogbia’s driving test
French footballer Charles N’Zogbia is good at driving the ball with power, but when it comes to driving on the road, he might have some trouble reading the signs.
The then Wigan Athletic player had to attend his driving test, but he was not prepared for the theory part of it. The player found a way out to skip this part, as he paid someone else to sit the theory part of his driving test.
N’Zogbia was lucky to find a person to replace him, but he was not lucky enough to escape the law. The winger was arrested by the Police when he turned up to do the practical part of his examination at the Sale Driving Test centre in April 2010. For any candidate, the maximum sentence for making someone else attend a driving test is five years in prison. But the Police decided to go easy on him, giving the French Footballer just a caution.
#10 Nile Ranger’s hilarious tattoos
Sporting fancy tattoos is not a new trend in football. Players like David Beckham, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Lionel Messi have lots of tattoos on their bodies.
A majority of the footballers prefer different designs, or inscriptions that are unique in the world of body art. However, standing as a rarity is English footballer Nile Ranger. He wanted to try something out of the box, and his attempt resulted in the former Newcastle United player looking like a laughing stock.
In 2013, Nile Ranger chose to tattoo his own name on his forehead. Instead of compliments, the footballer was trolled for his lack of taste and creativity. It became a big joke in social networking sites, but for the football fans, this didn’t come as a big surprise. Ranger had already showcased his intelligence long back, when he got a smiley face tattooed on the inside of his lip.
#9 Sergio Aurier rips into his own team
An impressive right-back in Ligue 1 for PSG, Sergio Aurier invited trouble when he was at the peak of his career in 2016. Aurier was regular under Laurent Blanc, but he jeopardised his career and rapport with the teammates, with his reckless behaviour.
During a live Periscope session, the Ligue 1 player launched a scathing attack on his Manager Laurent Blanc and players like Angel di Maria and former PSG star Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The player tried to defend himself, saying that the video footage was a month old, but later acknowledged his mistake, having no other option.
This was just the beginning of the bad times to follow for Aurier. In May 2016, the PSG player was involved in yet another controversy, when he attacked a Police officer outside a nightclub. A Correctional Court in Paris gave him a suspended two-month prison for using violence on a Police officer.
After these two issues rocked his career in 2016, a third incident involving Aurier is now under investigation by FIFA. The right-back’s throat-slitting gesture to the supporters, in a World Cup Qualifier between Ivory Coast and Mali this month, is the reason. The PSG defender seems to have a knack for trouble.
#8 When Jason McAteer was not feeling that hungry
Jason McAteer is a retired professional footballer, who represented the Republic of Ireland in International football with over 50 International caps to his name. During his professional career, McAteer played for Bolton Wanderers, Liverpool, Blackburn Rovers, Sunderland and finally the Tranmere Rovers.
The former Irish international player was good at his game, but he would have never guessed that football fans would remember him more for pizza rather than his talent on the field.
When the player was at Liverpool, McAteer ordered a pizza. The executive at the other end asked him if he would like it to be cut into eight slices or four. McAteer’s answer was epic. He never knew that his answer would make him famous for all the wrong reasons. The former Liverpool player said, “Four, I am not that hungry.”
For McAteer, only the number of slices mattered, not the size of it.
#7 Ever Banega’s own car runs over his foot
Former Valencia playmaker Ever Banega missed a few months of football action, with a broken ankle after being run over by his car, a few years back.
This happened on the eve of Valencia’s second leg semi-final Copa del Rey clash at Barcelona in early February 2012. The former Valencia player had to miss the match, despite the opposition Manager Pep Guardiola showering praise on the young talent.
While filling up his car at a petrol station, the Argentine footballer came a cropper when he forgot to apply the handbrake as he got out of the vehicle. The car rolled backwards and trapped the player's ankle against the curb, causing a fractured tibia and fibula in his left foot. Ever was sidelined for the rest of the matches of the season, and was out of action for over six months.
#6 Ashley Cole on fire
Having a neat and tidy playing style is one of the main highlights of Ashley Cole’s impressive and consistent career. Given his good track record and calm nature, one would find it hard to believe that the English footballer was in trouble once, for firing a rifle at a student.
In February 2011, the great left-back landed in a major controversy when his carelessness ended in an almost fatal accident. Ashley Cole was having a good time playing around with his high-powered .22 air rifle at Chelsea’s training ground, until he accidentally fired it at a student, who was just five feet away.
The student, Tom Cowan was injured, and was given medical treatment right away. Cole later said that he didn’t know the gun was loaded. However, this doesn’t negate the scary fact that the student would have become history if Cole had aimed it right.
#5 Shootout at Buenos Aires
Ashley Cole is not the first footballer to have larked about with an air rifle, as if it was a toy that means no harm. Football legend Diego Maradona did something similar, if not more dangerous, in a time when getting into serious troubles was a routine for the footballer.
The Argentine’s career in football was a roller coaster ride, despite having an elite place among the pantheon of football legends. He was in eye of the storm many times, for reasons that were not related to his performance on the pitch.
In one such incident, like a gangster, the former Napoli star fired at photographers and journalists with an air rifle, outside his Buenos Aires country home in 1994. The shocking TV footage of the incident shows Maradona, who was found guilty of assault with a weapon, crouched behind a Mercedes and two other men, firing a compressed-air rifle at the media, for invading his privacy. The legendary footballer was handed a suspended sentence for his reckless and dangerous behaviour.
#4 Even millionaires like petty theft
Even if you are a millionaire, the idea of getting something for free can drive you crazy, and make you devise crooked plans in order to get it. Glen Johnson’s plan wasn’t devious, but it was cheap.
The English footballer was earning over £30,000 a week in 2007. Despite having a fat payroll, Johnson was caught by a security guard in Dartford, when he tried to put a toilet seat into a box with a cheaper price tag.
The former Liverpool player also hid a set of taps underneath a sink at the checkout, to avoid paying for them. The Kent Police had to arrest the then 22-year old footballer on suspicion of theft. Glen Johnson was playing for Portsmouth then, on loan from Chelsea.
#3 Mario Balotelli’s firework display in his own bathroom
He is talented, and he is a nightmare for defenders all across the globe. Mario Balotelli personifies ‘danger’ on the field for the opponents. However, off the field, the player is no different - he is totally dangerous.
Who would store dozens of fireworks from ‘multi-shot barrage cannons’ in their house? The answer is Mario Balotelli. On the day before Manchester City’s historic win over the Red Devils in 2011, firefighters put out a massive blaze in the Italian player’s house that caused him a reported £400,000 of damage.
The fire that destroyed the rooms of his mansion was allegedly set off by Balotelli’s friend during an infamous house party in the French footballer’s million dollar mansion. However, the prodigious footballer has proved time and again that these issues don’t bother him much. In the match against arch rivals Manchester United, Balotelli scored twice.
#2 Leo’s controversial visit to Gabon
It was the time when Lionel Messi was going through a rough patch, for his alleged involvement in tax evasion with his father. Till then, the Barcelona player was the last person football fans would point fingers at when they spoke about corruption. But Messi’s activities during the Copa America season in 2015, caused raised eyebrows, and paved the way for a lot of speculative stories about his corrupt way of handling and making money.
In 2015, the Barcelona legend arrived in Gabon, the former French colony, as a guest of controversial President Ali Bongo. Leo was invited for officially laying the foundation stones for a new stadium in the city of Port-Gentil.
With Ali Bongo linked to corruption and human rights abuses, the Argentine’s visit became controversial as stories cropped up, on how he received at least £2.4 million in cash for supporting one of the most corrupt dictators in Africa.
#1 Rush hour and hangover
There are people, who are ready to work despite having a hangover from the previous night. But is it possible to go to work, if someone has been chugging all night till next day morning? Well, Matty Pattison believes that it is possible.
In 2008 the South African footballer visited a nightclub after his side Norwich City, defeated Sheffield United 2-0. The next day morning, still drunk, Pattison woke up to the fear of getting late for practice. Wearing just his T-shirt, with no shoes, and reported, just his underwear, the former Norwich City player began driving to the training ground in haste.
The police tailed him halfway and pulled him over. He was charged for drunk driving and had to be checked into a rehab. What makes this incident funny is the fact that he was arrested on Sunday morning, and there no training scheduled for that day, and the police did say he was fully dressed, phew.
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