The most iconic Premier League figures aren’t all signified by mercurial talent and goalscoring feats. For all the heroes and memorable moments enjoyed on these shores since the 1992/93 season, there have been plenty of villains and ugly scenes too.
Long before the days of VAR and disciplinary clampdowns, players would get away with all sorts. Some didn’t necessarily escape red cards and punishments, but their commitment to being hated still never wavered.
Express Sports ranks the nine most-hated Premier League players in the competition’s history. Of course, some have been unlucky to miss out, but if only for the wrong reasons, the streets will never forget the ones who haven’t.
And no, we don’t know how Diego Costa missed out either…
No.9 – Ben Thatcher:
Ben Thatcher made 209 Premier League appearances for Wimbledon, Tottenham, Leicester, Charlton and Manchester City, racking up more than 40 yellow cards and four red ones. And yet, his defining moment escaped dismissal.
While playing for City, THAT elbow on Portsmouth’s Pedro Mendes in 2006 was essentially thuggery. The incident tainted Thatcher’s reputation forevermore and cemented his spot as a villain for crowds.
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No. 8 – Robbie Savage:
Whether it was the on-field mythering, the constant fouls, the long blonde hair or the perceived arrogance, Robbie Savage was the ultimate Premier League pantomime villain. Given he was actually never sent off in his 346 top-flight games, that’s quite an achievement.
The way he engineered a move out of Birmingham City was classical s**thousery. Citing the need to be closer to his family, he duly joined Blackburn Rovers, which the internet soon worked out was essentially further away from them.
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No. 7 – Luis Suarez:
Arrived with a reputation for biting and diving, and proceeded to do just that in his three-and-a-half years at Liverpool. For good measure, there was also the eight-match ban after being found guilty of racially abusing Patrice Evra, too.
Rightly or wrongly, his club stood by him through it all, even to their own detriment with the infamous t-shirt stunt. Suarez rewarded them by trying to engineer a move to Arsenal, which was denied, before taking off to Barcelona the first opportunity he got.
Through it all by the way, he revelled in opposition hatred and produced an all-time great individual Premier League season in 2013/14. But that’s not what this list is for.
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No. 6 – Roy Keane:
Only begrudging respect for Roy Keane’s leadership skills and ability in his prime years prevents him from being lower down this list.
Nowadays, Keane can be a jovial caricature of himself as a pundit. In his playing days, he was a snarling, aggressive hothead, fortunate to have only seven red cards to his name. As if Manchester City fans needed an excuse to hate him, the tackle on Alfie-Inge Haaland hardly endeared him to City fans. His subsequent autobiography endeared him to nobody.
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No. 5 – Craig Bellamy:
Now considered an articulate international manager, but was once viewed as a gobby, spoilt, liability.
Craig Bellamy scored for eight Premier League teams, and pretty much fell out with all of them, too. As if the whining at referees and sniping at team-mates wasn’t bad enough, there were the frequent arguments with team-mates and managers too.
At Liverpool, he infamously struck teammate John Arne Riise with a golf club and tried to take on manager Graham Souness at Newcastle. Whether you were with or against him, he annoyed you.
(Image: Getty)
