World Football: 17 Meanest Players in Football History

 The hard men are one of the most important parts of modern football. They provide a counter to the image of a silky, flowing, elegant game in which dribblers and passers are kings. It also helps to ground the sport of football, and helps it keep its proximity to other sports.

"Some players come on the field...simply to provoke injuries in other persons—to break a career," FIFA medical official Michel D'Hooge said.

Stuart Pearce

Stuart Pearce is the greatest left back that England has ever had in my opinion. He had a great engine, supreme crossing ability and a good reading of the game. But his most important feature was his meanness.

And he had it in spades.

Playing for Nottingham Forest and for England, most famously in Euro 1996 and World Cup 1990.

Tough in the tackle, and a never-say-die attitude.

Claudio Gentile

The Italian defender was paired with Gaetano Scirea in the centre of defence for Juventus and Italy at both of their peaks. The contrast between the two defenders is stark, to say the least. Scirea was graceful, elegant and fair. Gentile he was not.

His fame mainly stems from his marking of Diego Maradona at the 1982 World Cup and completely stifling the Argentinians creative talent.

Norman Hunter

Norman Hunter was the enforcer in a Leeds United side that was famous for dirty play and pushing players around. Hunter was actually asked to do this by manager Don Revie. Hunter did this very well and created a reputation for himself in the annals of the English game.

Dave Mackay

Dave Mackay was the bruiser for the great 1961 double Spurs team. Mackay in midfield had to cover for the flair of Jones, Blanchflower and White altogether going forward. He, like others on this list, was not purely a Storey or a Hunter, but more of an all-around player, and these qualities, helped aSspurs team flow better as a side.

Roy Keane

Keane is a special exhibit at the psychopaths hall of fame. The Irishman played a defensive midfield role for Manchester United's great treble side. He is one of the most revered psychopaths in the history of the world game. He certainly has the qualities required. He had the drive, tenacity, bravery and never-say-die attitude that truly sets the greatest players apart from the rest.

Tarcisio Burgnich

The Italian was part of the " La Grande Inter" side that won two European Cups under the managership of Helenio Herrera. Herrera is famous for creating the defensive tactic, Catenaccio, which required man-marking, discipline and a certain ruggedness. Burgnich was the epitomy of Catenaccio, a supremely skilled man-marker with unflagging commitment.

Marco Tardelli

Marco Tardelli is remembered primarily for scoring the goal that won Italy the World Cup in 1982. It is more easily forgotten that Tardelli was the midfield enforcer and engine of the side, along with the holding player Gabriele Oriali. Jimmy Greaves said of him, "He's responsible for more scar tissue than the surgeons at Harmsfield Hospital."

Andoni Goikoetxea

The Butcher from Bilbao was one of the toughest midfielders in Spanish football history. He is famous for marking Diego Maradona for Athletic Bilbao and breaking his leg, almost beyond repair. He was also one of Gary Lineker's toughest opponents. 

Gennaro Gattuso

The Italian is one of the most famous hustlers of all time. His non-stop energy, work ethic and tactical intelligence helped Milan play a diamond formation with three playmakers, running himself into the ground for the likes of Andrea Pirlo, Manuel Rui Costa and Seedorf.

Ron "Chopper" Harris

Ron Harris is one of the greatest Chelsea players of all time. An iron man defender, he was the product of one of the most rugged eras in English football. He stuck out among the likes of Norman Hunter and Tommy Smith in the 1960s, equally rugged players.

Antonio Rattin

Antonio Rattin was an Argentinian international who most famously played for Boca Juniors and Argentian. He was a tough midfield enforcer who also had a bit of all-around passing and dribbling talent.

Billy Bremner

Bremner was the swashbuckling all around central midfielder in Revie's Leeds, a side reputed as a dirty side, who remonstrated with the referee and went in very clumsily. Bremner as Leeds captain was a very tenacious player.

Juan Carlos Arteche

Arteche is another of Spanish football's hard men. He was an athletic central defender with a permanent scowl on his moustachioed face. Arteche played for Atletico Madrid and Spain alongside Jose Camacho.

Patrick Vieira

To mention Roy Keane without mentioning Vieira would be doing him a disservice. As their great fights showed, none was ever really better than the other. Although they played the same position, their interpretation of the role was different. Vieira was a tall, strong, yet elegant box-to-box player, who could dribble his way anywhere and create.

Tony Adams

Adams will forever be remembered by Arsenal Football Club as an uncompromising defender who always gave his best. Despite some unsavoury incidents on and off the pitch for Arsenal, he always managed to make sure opponents knew he was there.

Martin Keown

Keown was another one of the Arsenal back four who was hard as nails. Keown was known as "The Rash," due to his prodigious close man-marking. He won many trophies in both the George Graham and the Arsene Wenger eras at Arsenal.

Duncan Ferguson

Duncan Ferguson was one of the greatest Everton players of all time, a supremely tall striker who didn't hesitate to strike a player. He was referred to as "Duncan Disorderly," due to his disorderly behaviour and his love of alcohol.