The Top Five Players With The Most Red Cards In Premier League History

David Tully

3 years ago

Categories: Galleries, Manchester United News

Tags: Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Everton, Leeds, Leeds United, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Sheffield United, Southampton, Spurs, West Ham, Wolves

Today, we take a look at the so-called “hard men”: the players who have been sent off the most times in Premier League history.

Just to note that the top five on this list have been separated based on the number of appearances they have made, with the fewer games played taking up the higher position.

Surprisingly, the likes of former Manchester United midfielder Roy Keane didn’t quite make it into the top five, although the Irishman was very close to being included.

Press the next page as we count down the five players with the most red cards during the Premier League era.

5) Lee Cattermole (Middlesbrough, Wigan and Sunderland) – 7 Red Cards in 271 apps

The combative midfielder spent 12 seasons playing in the Premier League and he built his reputation as a tough-tackling enforcer in the middle of the park.

Cattermole was a reliable player, if not particularly talented, and his penchant for picking up red cards meant he had a tendency to put his team in difficult situations.

4) Vinnie Jones (Chelsea and Wimbledon) – 7 Red Cards in 184 apps

The midfielder’s reputation as a hard man proceeds him, with some of that down to his subsequent career as a Hollywood movie star. During his playing days, he was known for flying into tackles and still holds the record for the quickest ever booking (3 seconds).

Jones was also one of the most prominent figures of Wimbledon’s “Crazy Gang” which was notorious for both its off-the-pitch antics (practical jokes and macho behavior) and on-field reputation (hard tackling and aggressive playing style).

3) Richard Dunne (Everton, Man City, Aston Villa and QPR) – 8 Red Cards in 431 apps

The Irishman was not a ‘dirty’ player so to speak, but the defender’s lack of pace meant he did tend to give away fouls when he was the last man.

Dunne also had a lengthy career in the Premier League, which spanned two decades, so it is not a surprise that he is quite high up on this list.

2) Patrick Vieira (Arsenal and Manchester City) – 8 Red Cards in 307 apps

Again, like Dunne, the Frenchman was never labeled as particularly ‘dirty’ but he did lack discipline at times, which led to him picking up needless suspensions and getting involved in scrapes with opposing players.

One unsavoury incident, involving wind-up merchant Neil Ruddock, led to Vieira being banned for six matches after spitting at the defender.

1) Duncan Ferguson (Everton and Newcastle) – 8 Red Cards in 269 apps

The hard-nosed Scottish striker’s reputation was entirely justified. He has been sent off for head butts, elbows, and other misdemeanours in his career, and he was not a player to be trifled with.

Ferguson had his house burgled on two separate occasions. In the first incident, he managed to apprehend one of the burglars, and on the second occasion, the burglar ended up in hospital.