Which current Premier League players commit the most fouls?

You might be surprised to see names such as Kevin Davies, Peter Crouch and Marouane Fellaini in the top eight for committing fouls in the Premier League era, big frontmen clearly can't tackle.

But what about current Premier League players? Which players are the most likely to wrack up the fouls and who you should always add to your fouls count in your bet builder? 

Let’s take a look at all 20 current Premier League teams and see their top three players are when it comes to committing fouls on opposition players. 

(all stats are correct to 12 matches played in the Premier League before the November 2023 international break)

 

Arsenal

3. Gabriel Jesus

While the Brazilian is not the biggest fouler by any means, he has not exactly been a complete stranger when it comes to this part of the game since he arrived in the Premier League back in January 2017.

Jesus has committed a total of 186 fouls in the over the course of his career playing in England’s top-flight with 43 being his highest number over the course of one season which coming in his first one for the Gunners which was the 2022/23 campaign.

2. Bukayo Saka

This one may come as a surprise to many as it often feels like Saka is the one who gets fouled by his opponents rather than him being the one doing the fouling. But it turns out that the Gunners’ academy graduate likes to dish it out as well.

The 22-year-old is currently top of the North London outfit’s fouling charts in the 2023/24 campaign with 15 and has committed a surprising number of a combined 82 fouls in each of the last two full seasons.

1. Kai Havertz

Havertz has already committed 14 fouls in the Premier League in his short time at the Gunners.

In the 2022/23 campaign as a Chelsea player, he committed 60 fouls which was nearly double the amount of their second-place in this area. He also led the charts for the West London club in this department throughout the 2021/22 campaign with 40 fouls committed.

 

Aston Villa

3. Boubacar Kamara

The Frenchman seems to be enjoying committing fouls so far this season with 21 in 12 Premier League appearances.

The 23-year-old only made 24 league appearances in his first season at Villa Park (2022/23) but even then the former Marseille man committed 34 fouls in total.

2. John McGinn

This one will not come as a surprise to many people as McGinn is a midfielder who loves to go in for tackle.

The Scottish international has committed 193 fouls in total while playing in the top-flight of English football, and has picked up a total of 32 yellow cards in 146 Premier League appearances.

1. Douglas Luiz

The Brazilian is having a fine season so far playing under Unai Emery and is another one of Villa’s midfielders who seems to love a foul.

Since joining in 2019, 25-year-old has topped the club’s fouling charts in three of his four full seasons, committing 209 in total.

 

Bournemouth

3. Milos Kerkez

He may have only recently joined the Cherries from AZ Alkmaar but Kerkez currently tops the club’s fouling charts with 14 in his first 11 league appearances.

2. Phillip Billing

One of the Cherries’ most technically gifted players but also someone who does not mind committing a foul or two.

Since the club’s promotion back to England’s elite division in 2022, Billing has committed 41 fouls in the Premier League and while this is not a staggering number by any means, it still makes him one of the club’s biggest foulers.
 
1. Dominic Solanke

The striker has now been at the club since 2019 and while he has often been topping their charts when it comes to goal-scoring, he is with fouling also.

Solanke committed the most fouls for the club in the league last season with 40 and has committed 13 so far in this campaign. 

Brentford

3. Mathias Jensen

The Danish international has been one of the club’s most reliable players since joining them in 2019 but the midfielder does not shy away from committing a foul or two.

Since the West London club’s promotion to the Premier League in 2021, Jensen has committed 66 fouls in total. Again, not a staggering number but one that is sure higher than the majority of his team-mates.

2. Christian Norgaard

Another Danish international comes at the top end of the Bees’ fouling charts. Norgaard sits top of the club’s fouling charts in the 2023/24 campaign with 17 so far.

He has also committed a combined 91 fouls in each of his two full seasons in the league with the club.

1. Ivan Toney

Of course, Toney is currently unable to play for the Bees due to the eight-month ban he picked up at the end of last season, but when on the pitch, he commits fouls on a regular basis.

Last season, the forward committed a total of 52 fouls which was 17 more than the club’s next biggest fouler. This was also the 5th most in total across all individual Premier League clubs.

Brighton & Hove Albion

3. Pervis Estupinan

The Ecuadorian is one of many Brighton players who have caught the eye in recent seasons but the left-back has totted up the fouls since joining the Seagulls in the summer of 2022.

In total, he has committed 51 fouls in 41 Premier League appearances.

2. Joel Veltman

The Dutchman joined the Seagulls in 2020 and the defender is another player who does not mind fouling his opponents.

Veltman has committed 111 Premier League fouls since joining the club and topped Brighton’s fouling charts in 2021/22 campaign with 39.
 
1. Solly March

A player who has now been in the first-team at the Amex Stadium since 2013 and has made nearly 300 appearances for the Seagulls, March is arguably a modern-day club legend.

One of the biggest reasons for this is his commitment but that does lead him into making plenty of fouls in the midfield. He has committed 183 fouls in 182 Premier League games overall.

 

Burnley

3. Luca Koleosho

He may still be a teenager, but Koleosho has been afraid of getting stuck in for the Clarets so far this season with the former Espanyol man committing 12 fouls in his first 12 league appearances.

2. Josh Cullen

The 27-year-old midfielder is currently top of the club’s fouling charts for the 2023/24 campaign with 13 in 10 outings and he has also picked up a total of five yellow cards.

1. Josh Brownhill

Another midfielder called Josh in the Clarets’ squad that loves to commit a foul on the opposition.

Brownhill has topped the club’s fouling charts in each of their last two full seasons with 65 fouls in 41 Championship appearances throughout the Lancashire-based outfits successful 2022/23 campaign and 39 in 35 appearances in the 2021/22 Premier League season when the club were relegated to the second-tier.

 

Chelsea

3. Raheem Sterling

Sterling also feels like a player who gets fouled himself rather than him fouling his opponents. While he is nowhere near the biggest fouler, it turns out that he does dish it out too.

Since making the move to West London from Manchester in the summer of 2022, the winger has made 33 fouls in 52 league appearances for Chelsea.

2. Moises Caicedo

When it comes to foulers at Chelsea, it is fair to say that there is a huge jump up from Sterling in 3rd up to Caicedo in 2nd.

The midfielder only arrived at Stamford Bridge in the summer and has already committed 17 fouls in his first 10 league games for the club.

Last season at Brighton, the 22-year-old finished joint-top of the Premier League fouling charts with 65 in total.

1. Connor Gallagher

Not only is Gallagher the biggest fouler at Chelsea, but he is also one of the biggest foulers in English football altogether.

The 23-year-old midfielder has played in every league game under Mauricio Pochettino so far this season and is top of the fouling charts not just for Chelsea, but the Premier League in general with 26 in 12 games.

He also ended his loan campaign at Crystal Palace in the 2021/22 season with the most fouls across the division with 65 in total.

Crystal Palace

3. Odsonne Edouard

The French forward has started the season in fine goal-scoring form for Palace with five league goals in his opening 11 games and he is another Premier League striker who is often penalised for committing fouls.

Since joining the South London club from Celtic in the summer of 2021, Edouard has committed a total of 68 fouls 74 league appearances.
 
2. Jeffrey Schlupp

The very versatile Schlupp has never been afraid of committing fouls throughout his career.

In the 2022/23 season, Schlupp topped Palace’s fouling charts and came sixth in the Premier League overall with 51 in 34 league appearances. He has also made 11 in 10 appearances so far this campaign.

1. Jordan Ayew

Admittedly, it was close between Palace’s number one and two when it comes to committing fouls but Ayew just about edges it ahead of Schlupp in this department.

The Ghanaian forward currently sits top of the fouling charts for Palace so far in the 2023/24 campaign, already committing 21 in 12 league appearances.

Also, since joining the Eagles permanently in 2019, Ayew has committed a total of 202 fouls and topped the club’s fouling charts at the end of a season on two occasions.

 

Everton

3. Amadou Onana

Most of the Toffees’ fouls on opposition players tend to be committed by midfielders and one of them is Onana.

The Belgian international ended the 2022/23 campaign top of the Merseyside club’s fouling charts with 44 in 33 league appearances.

He has also not stopped his fouling habits in this campaign with 14 in 10 games so far in the 2023/24 Premier League season.

2. Abdoulaye Doucoure

It was the 30-year-old’s winning goal against Bournemouth which kept the Toffees in the top-flight of English football back in May and he has often been an important player since joining the club back in 2019.

Doucoure currently tops the club’s fouling chart for the 2023/24 campaign with 22 in 12 games and this also puts him joint-second in the Premier League fouling charts so far this season overall.

He also topped the Toffees’ fouling charts in the 2021/22 campaign with 39.

1. Idrissa Gueye

A name that not many people will be shocked to see on this list. Gueye is now well into his second spell with the Toffees, and committing fouls has always been a part of his game.

In his first spell at the club between 2016 and 2019, the Senegalese international topped the club’s fouling charts in each of his three seasons.

He has calmed down slightly since his return in the summer of 2022 but has still committed 53 fouls in 42 league games.

 

Fulham

3. Kenny Tete

The right-back may currently be sidelined with a groin problem but when he is on the pitch, he is a player does not mind committing a foul.

The Dutch international has made 58 Premier League appearances overall and has committed 77 fouls in total with 42 of them coming in the 2022/23 campaign.

2. Antonee Robinson

Sticking with full-backs who play for the Cottagers, Robinson is another one who does not mind committing fouls on opposition players.

Since the clubs promotion back to the Premier League in 2022, the United States international has committed a total of 49 fouls in 46 appearances.

1. Joao Palhinha

Many people would argue that Paulhinha is the club’s most important player and their supporters would have undoubtedly breathed a huge sigh of relief when his move to Bayern Munich fell through in the summer.

With all this being said though, the 28-year-old Portuguese international midfielder certainly enjoys committing a foul.

Paulhinha topped the club’s fouling charts in the 2022/23 campaign with 48 in 35 games and also tops those charts so far this season with 17 in 10 appearances.

 

Liverpool

3. Ibrahima Konate

The French centre-back has shown that he has plenty of potential since signing for Jurgen Klopp’s Reds in the summer of 2021 but he also seems to enjoy committing fouls.

In total, Konate has committed 48 fouls in 37 Premier League appearances.

2. Cody Gakpo

This one will surely surprise people as when you watch Gakpo play, the Dutchman does not seem like the type to commit fouls but the statistics certainly suggest otherwise.

He may have only arrived on Merseyside in January, but the former PSV Eindhoven man has already committed 36 fouls in 31 Premier League appearances so far.

1. Alexis Mac Allister

Probably not all that surprising as the Argentinian loves to put himself about in the middle of the park.

Mac Allister tops the Reds’ fouling charts so far in the 2023/24 campaign with 21 in 11 appearances.

He also committed a committed a combined 65 fouls in his final two seasons playing for Brighton.

 

Luton Town

3. Marvelous Nakamba

The former Aston Villa midfielder currently sits top of the newly-promoted club’s fouling charts with 21 in his first 12 appearances of the 2023/24 season.

2. Carlton Morris

He may have been the club’s main source of goals since their promotion to the Premier League but he also is a forward who commits a few fouls.

Morris currently sits second in the Hatters’ fouling charts in the 2023/24 campaign with 18 in 12 appearances so far but more notably when it comes to his fouling stats, he committed 71 in 44 Championship appearances throughout the 2022/23 season.

1. Elijah Adebayo

Another one of the Hatters’ key frontmen who does not mind committing fouls on his opponents.

In fact, in the club’s promotion from the Championship last season, the 25-year-old committed 73 fouls in 42 appearances and in the 2021/22 campaign, he committed the joint-most fouls in the England’s second-tier with 76 in 40 appearances.

With this being said, he has calmed down in the Premier League with only 10 fouls committed in 12 games so far.

 

Manchester City

3. Erling Haaland

With the Norwegian’s size and strength, it probably comes as no surprise that he commits a fair few fouls.

Since joining the club in the summer of 2022, Haaland has committed a combined 38 fouls in 47 appearances.

2. Bernardo Silva

With how much the Portuguese international runs around the pitch, it should come as no surprise that he commits his fair share of fouls.

The 29-year-old is far from the biggest fouler himself but has committed 145 in his 209 league appearances for City since joining from Monaco since 2017.

1. Rodri

I struggle to think of any footballer around the world who has had a better 2023 than Rodri with the role he plays in Pep Guardiola’s treble winning City side, he is bound to commit a fair few fouls.

Since the Spaniard joined City in 2019, he has topped their fouling charts in each and every season.

In total, Rodri has committed 192 fouls in 148 league appearances for City.

 

Manchester United

3. Sofryan Amrabat

The 27-year-old may have only just joined the Red Devils on loan from Fiorentina but even in his brief stint, it is already obvious that he likes to commit a foul often to break up opposition attacks.

Amrabat has only made five Premier League appearances for the Red Devils but has already committed nine fouls.

He also committed plenty of fouls in the Serie A as he made 54 last season and he came third in the fouling charts at the 2022 World Cup when playing for Morocco with 14.

2. Bruno Fernandes

With how much he sometimes complains on the pitch, it would be easy to realise that Fernandes gets fouled a fair bit but he actually dishes out plenty of fouls himself.

The 29-year-old has never topped the Red Devils’ fouling charts at the end of a season but he sits top of it so far in this campaign 13 in his opening 12 league games.

Overall, the former Sporting Lisbon man has committed 140 fouls in 136 league appearances for United.

1. Casemiro

Who else was going to top this list from the Red Devils’ squad of players?

While it is undeniable what the Brazilian achieved throughout his highly decorated career, committing fouls has always been part of his game.

Casemiro ended the 2022/23 season on top of the Red Devils’ fouling charts with 48 in just 28 appearances and he also ended that campaign picking up two red cards.

He has also committed 11 fouls in eight league appearances so far this season.

 

Newcastle United

3. Kieran Trippier

This one may come as a surprise but the right-back does commit fouls more regularly than it seems.

This was especially true last season as the 33-year-old committed 48 fouls in 38 league appearances, meaning he came second in the Magpies’ fouling charts.

He currently sits third so far this season with 13 fouls in his opening 12 league appearances.

2. Bruno Guimaraes

A player who can get very aggressive when he wants to. The Brazilian has plenty of quality but the midfielder loves to commit a foul.

Guimaraes currently sits top of the club’s fouling charts for the 2023/24 season with 19 in his first 11 appearances.

The 26-year-old also committed 45 fouls in 32 league appearances throughout the 2022/23 season, meaning he came third in the Magpies’ fouling charts.

1. Joelinton

Not only is the Brazilian the Magpies’ biggest fouler but he is one of the biggest in the Premier League altogether.

Converted into a midfielder under the stewardship of Eddie Howe, the Brazilian has been committing plenty of fouls ever since.

He finished joint-top of the Premier League fouling charts for the 2022/23 campaign with 65 and second in the 2021/22 season with 64.

He has committed 15 fouls in nine league games so far this season.

 

Nottingham Forest

3. Ibrahim Sangare

The summer signing from Eredivisie side Feyenoord has hit the ground running when it comes to committing fouls on the opposition with 14 in his eight league appearances.

2. Orel Mangala

The Belgian international was not exactly foul crazy in his first season at Forest during the 2022/23 campaign, committing 22 in 27 league appearances but he certainly has been so far this season as he sits top of Forest’s fouling charts with 15 committed in 11 league appearances.

1. Ryan Yates

The Forest academy graduate is a player who often goes under the radar with his steady performances but not always for the number of fouls he commits.

Yates topped the East Midlands outfit’s fouling charts at the end of the 2022/23 season with 50 in just 26 league appearances and has already committed 12 in nine appearances so far in this campaign.

 

Sheffield United

3. Vinicius Souza

The Brazilian defensive-midfielder arrived in the summer and is already making a habit of committing fouls in the middle of the park.

The 24-year-old currently sits second in the Blades’ fouling charts for this season with 14 in his first 12 league appearances for the club.

2. Anel Ahmedhodzic

The centre-back has always seemed to love committing fouls since joining the club in the summer of 2022.

He committed 40 in 34 Championship appearances in his debut campaign and has committed 11 in eight Premier League appearances so far this season.

1. Gustavo Hamer

Hamer is not only the biggest fouler at the Blades but he is surely one of the biggest in English football.

He currently sits top of their fouling charts for this season with 15 in 11 appearances but it is his Championship fouling stats when playing for Coventry City which really stand out.

In the 2022/23 campaign, Hamer topped the overall fouling stats in the Championship with 75 in 44 appearances but even in prior seasons, he was no stranger to committing fouls with 66 in 2021/22 and 85 in 2020/21.

 

Tottenham Hotspur

3. Yves Bissouma

Bissouma would possibly be top of the fouling charts for most clubs in the Premier League but not quite Spurs.

He has already been shown a red card this season in the North London outfit's away win at Luton Town and has committed 16 fouls in 11 league appearances.

The Mali international did top Brighton’s fouling charts at the end of the 2020/21 campaign with 55.

2. Cristian Romero

Well, he had to be on here, didn’t he?

Romero is up there with one of the most aggressive players in English football once he loses his head and can have the tendency to be rather dangerous as seen with his horror challenge on fellow countryman Enzo Fernandez in Spurs’ recent loss to Chelsea.

The Argentine did top Spurs’ fouling charts last season with 42 in 27 league appearances.

1. Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg

It may be hard to believe that Hojbjerg tops the list of fouling for Spurs but surely the longevity of committing fouls needs to be considered here?

The Danish international is 69th when it comes to committing the most fouls in the Premier League era with 284 across his time at both Spurs and Southampton.

Hojbjerg finished the 2020/21 campaign with 69 fouls which was the joint-most that season.

 

West Ham United

3. Vladimir Coufal

Am I the only one who feels like Coufal has been at the Hammers forever?

The right-back has made over 100 Premier League appearances for the club and is not afraid of a sturdy challenge with 98 committed in total.

2. Lucas Paqueta

The Brazilian is an extremely technically gifted player, but he also gets stuck in.

Paqueta currently tops the Hammers’ fouling charts this season with 21 in 11 league appearances.

The 26-year-old also finished joint-top of their fouling charts last season with 50 in 28 appearances.

1. Tomas Soucek

Another Czech Republic international who is at the top end of the Hammers’ fouling charts.

When you look at the size of him and the way that he plays, it probably is not much of a shock that Soucek commits loads of fouls.

In his very first season playing in the Premier League, the 28-year-old committed the joint-most fouls in the division with 69.

In total, the midfielder has committed 168 fouls in 120 league appearances.

 

Wolverhampton Wanderers

3. Craig Dawson

An experienced no-nonsense centre-back that loves to go in for challenges on the opposition.

The Ballon D'awson, as he was dubbed by West Ham fans, is now 33-years-old and has already committed 12 fouls in an as many appearances this season.

In total at Wolves, the former Hammer has committed 23 fouls in 29 Premier League appearances.

2. Joao Gomes

He may have only joined the club in January but it is not hard to figure out that Joao Gomes loves to commit a foul.

Gomes currently sits top of the club’s fouling charts for this season with 22 in 11 league games. He also committed 17 fouls in 11 appearances for the West Midlands club in the last campaign.

1. Nelson Semedo

The Portuguese right-back certainly loves committing fouls these days and often tops the club’s fouling charts.

This was certainly the case at the end of the 2022/23 campaign with Semedo committing 47 fouls in 36 league appearances. He currently sits second in the fouling chart so far this campaign with 18 in 11 appearances.

 

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