Determining the seriousness of a foul is, of course, a subjective exercise.
One person’s egregious tackle is another’s unfortunate coming together.
But there are some notorious incidents from the Premier League’s past which,
in Tifo’s opinion, have a clear hierarchy.
So, what is the worst Premier League foul ever?
In no particular order, Birmingham City’s Martin Taylor and his studs up,
shin-high tackle on Eduardo from 2008 belongs on this list. It left the Croatian with a
badly broken left leg and a dislocated ankle and a career that was never the same again.
It also resulted in Taylor facing death threats and calls for him to be banned
from football for life, from Arsene Wenger and Sepp Blatter among others.
Calmer heads prevailed, those demands were retracted, and Eduardo himself recognized
that there had been no intent to do harm. But it was an incident which scarred both players.
As did one involving another Arsenal player, when a Ryan Shawcross tackle at the Britannia Stadium
shattered the right leg of a young Aaron Ramsey and left players from both sides
in visible states of distress. Ramsey left the field on a stretcher, with oxygen,
while Shawcross was red-carded and departed in tears.
The animosity between Arsenal and Stoke lasts to this day and for years, nonsensically,
Ramsey was booed by Stoke supporters whenever he returned to the Britannia Stadium.
Roy Keane’s vicious tackle on Alf-Inge Haaland belongs in this company,
but we’ve covered that in more detail in a previous video.
Going back much further, to 1993, Wimbledon’s John Fashanu, who had cultivated a reputation
for himself as one of the game’s hardmen, left Tottenham’s Gary Mabutt with a fractured skull
and eye-socket following an elbow to the head. Shockingly,
Fashanu wasn’t even booked for an incident which would see Mabbutt miss three months of the season
and, on his return, become one of the first players to wear a protective mask during a game
In April 2006, Fulham’s Michael Brown saw a straight red card for a dreadful,
two-footed stamp on the ankle of Portsmouth’s Sean Davis,
which had little in the way of mitigation and occurred with the ball long gone.
In February 2009, another two-footed stamp, this one by Kevin Nolan on Victor Anichebe, actually
ended in court. The tackle, which occurred during a goalless draw between Newcastle and Everton,
damaged Anichebe’s knee cartilage and resulted in him missing the next 11 months through injury.
Two years later, in March 2011, it was announced that the Nigerian international
had received a “six-figure payout” from Newcastle,
after a legal claim for loss of earnings as a result of the tackle.
Nolan did apologise for the challenge, visiting Anichebe in the dressing-room
at half-time of that game. But that doesn’t make the impact of the tackle any easier to watch.
And these are just the memorable fouls; the ones that stick in the memory.
But, for Tifo’s worst, we’re selecting a foul which unfortunately comprised all the elements
contained within these other challenges – Ben Thatcher’s elbow on Pedro Mendes.
Back in 2006, Manchester City were a long way from being the global
superpower they were fated to become. Instead, they were a side built from
spare parts and journeymen, among them Thatcher, a former Millwall,
Wimbledon, Tottenham and Leicester defender who had had a chequered disciplinary past.
Just a few months into that 2006-07 season,
Manchester City entertained Portsmouth at the then-City of Manchester Stadium.
In the second half, with the game goalless, a City corner was overhit
and was headed out of play on the far touchline. Spotting the opportunity for a break, Portsmouth’s
Portuguese midfielder Pedro Mendes raced across to keep the ball in play and volley it forward.
However, with the ball gone, Thatcher – who had raced across seemingly to charge down Mendes’
ball forward – led into the Portuguese with his elbow, striking him on the jaw.
The force of the impact sent Mendes flying off the pitch and towards the advertising hoardings,
where he lay, apparently unconscious.
The first player to reach him was Glen Johnson, the full-back, and he immediately signaled that
something was wrong. In fact, Mendes was having a seizure. He would be taken away
by ambulance and placed on a drip, only regaining consciousness once in hospital.
Amazingly, Thatcher would receive just a yellow card for the tackle.
Post-game, then Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp was incredulous, saying that:
"Away from the pitch you couldn't meet a nicer lad than Ben. But on the field he is capable
of those things and what he did tonight was horrendous. It was totally out of order.
Thankfully, Mendes was okay. In fact, he would be discharged from hospital the next day and would
return to football within a few weeks. But the outcry was universal and as the footage was beamed
around the world, bordered on revulsion. There were even complaints made to Greater Manchester
Police. Thatcher wouldn’t be arrested – Mendes actually said in a later interview
that he “didn't think there was any need for the police to take action” – but he would be
suspended for four games by Manchester City and given a heavy fine in excess of £100,000.
In a separate punishment, the Football Association also banned him for a further 8 games.
Mendes and Thatcher would shake hands the next time they faced each other, by which time the
latter had moved to Charlton Athletic. He also sent a written apology to the Portuguese, but
it remains a dark moment in the Premier League’s history and our choice for its worst-ever foul.