In football, players can be loved, be it by one set of fans, or just in general by the whole football community. Some, on the other hand, are so disliked by fans that it’s become part of their game and what makes them so vilified.
Not everyone can be like Paolo Maldini who is adored by fans across the world for his career and for being an all-round good guy, but then you get some players who are so hated that opposition fans take great pleasure in booing them and shouting abuse at them.
There are loveable players like Francesco Totti, amongst others, but some here in this list are disliked by everyone, in some cases even their own fans.
Here at the top 5 most disliked players in the modern game.
#5 Giorgio Chiellini
The Italian defender isn’t a horrible person and is quite respected by fans across the world, but that isn’t what makes Chiellini disliked. His style of play requires him to be annoying and do whatever it takes to win, whether that be kicking people, waving imaginary cards at the referee or screaming and shouting at every foul.
He may not be hated in terms of how he is as a human being, but mainly because he is such an irritating defender to play against.
Watch any Juventus game and you can bet that Chiellini will be booked for dissent, and he will almost certainly foul someone in the first five minutes. Out of the Juve backline, Chiellini will be the worst to play against because he never lets the opposition rest. In terms of hated footballers, Chiellini is high on that list, but thankfully he’s not disliked as a human, which has him at number five on our list, but instead because of his playing style.
#4 Diego Costa
Similar to Chiellini, Diego Costa’s reputation within the game is that of a horrible, irritable player on the football pitch, but not so much as a human being. Unlike some other players soon to come on this list, Costa’s off the field life is relatively calm.
Whether it is nearly breaking Adrian’s leg, scratching Gabriel’s face and neck or having an ongoing feud with Manchester United’s Marcos Rojo, it’s safe to say that Costa is always in a spot of bother. His antics somewhat take away from his footballing ability, and many will agree that Costa is a deadly striker, one of the best in the Premier League, but he is also the pantomime villain of the English top flight.
Fans love to hate Costa because he is such a caricature of villainous footballers, and they take great pleasure in booing him and cursing at him, at least until he pops up with a goal for Chelsea. He could be quite a nice guy, but on the football pitch, the Spaniard is one of the most unliked and most hated in the Premier League.
#3 Pepe
For years, Pepe has been regarded as a dirty player who batters people in the field. The Portuguese defender has kicked people in the head, elbowed people, stood on people and aggravated fans, whilst also play acting to the finest degree for someone who is meant to be a defensive “hard man”.
Despite his success on the pitch for Porto, Real Madrid and for Portugal, Pepe is generally hated for his antics and is recognised as one of the dirtiest players in the game, as opposed to an endearing one (yes, such a thing exists).
However, it was always against Barcelona where Pepe let the world see what he was capable of, nearly breaking Dani Alves’ leg in a Champions League semi-final, and being as destructive as possible every time Messi and his team came to town.
What made it worse was that Pepe knew exactly what he was doing, and it was all part of his plan. His displays of violence and play-acting is what made him the player he was and still is to this day. Some people love it, the majority hate it but, nevertheless, Pepe will go down in football history as someone who fans loved to hate, despite his success for club and country.
#2 Joey Barton
This couldn’t have come as a surprise? Joey Barton is one of the most disliked individuals in Premier League history because of how aggressive he was on the pitch. Known for his problems on and off the field, Barton has earned himself the reputation as a “hard man” of English football, but he blurs the lines between hard man and angry man.
His list of misdemeanours includes punching Morton Gamst Pedersen of Blackburn Rovers, nearly breaking Xabi Alonso’s leg, or his multiple offences off the field including stubbing a cigarette in the eye of a teammate or beating up another in a club. Barton is/was a very angry player and a very angry man. It takes a special type of person to do some of the nonsense that he has done, and whilst some pass it off as him being “passionate”, that is simply not the case.
Regardless of his footballing ability, it is very difficult to separate the man from the player. Barton has had a respectable career in English football, but there will be a lot of fans who will be calling him a lot worse things than anything said on this list.
#1 John Terry
Of course, how could you have a list of disliked footballers and not include John Terry? Despite his playing career, the Chelsea legend has become one of the most hated individuals in the history of English football.
No one can argue that Terry has been one of the best defenders in the Premier League, but his lifestyle and actions have caused him to become someone who fans boo at every opportunity and sing about almost every Chelsea game (especially about his slip in the Champions League final in 2008).
On the field, the Englishman forged a reputation as a no-nonsense defender who led by example and was one of the most decorated English players in the modern generation, however, it was his off the field adventures that caused a lot of the hate.
His alleged racial abuse of QPR defender Anton Ferdinand and subsequent sacking as England captain was just one moment that stands out.
Back in 2008, Terry parked his car in a disabled space outside a shop and prevented multiple disabled people from parking their cars, and eventually paying the £60 fine. There have been multiple times where Terry is alleged to have cheated on his girlfriend/wife, including with a 17-year-old, and with former teammate, Wayne Bridge’s then girlfriend.
Terry and multiple other Chelsea players also taunted American travellers at Heathrow, hours after the 9/11 terrorist attacks had prevented them travelling home.
