What Are The Dirtiest Matches In Premier League History
Blogs

What Are The Dirtiest Matches In Premier League History

05/04/25 23:38

What Are The Dirtiest Matches In Premier League History?

The Premier League is no stranger to heated encounters, with some of the biggest rivalries in the world.

James Tarkowski’s potential “leg breaker” challenge in the Merseyside derby against Liverpool has been making headlines as of late.

So with that in mind we’ve decided to look back and list the ‘dirtiest’ matches in Premier League history.

Chelsea 2-0 Tottenham Hotspur (May 2, 2016)

The Battle of the Bridge is one of the more famous Premier League fixtures in recent times.

Chelsea welcomed London rivals Tottenham Hotspur to Stamford Bridge with the league title at stake. A win for Chelsea would end Spurs’ pursuit of the title and confirm Leicester City as the champions of England.

Heated battles between the two sides are normal due to the nature of the rivalry. However, with so much on the line things were sure to boil over.

Having taken a 2-0 lead through Harry Kane and Son Heung-min, Spurs conceded twice in the second-half thanks to goals from Gary Cahill and Eden Hazard.

The match saw Tottenham break the record for the most yellow cards by a single team in a Premier League match with nine. Chelsea would also receive three cards during the contest.

Wolves 1-1 Newcastle United (August 28, 2010)

An early season clash between Wolves and Newcastle United in 2010 saw one of the highest carded affairs in Premier League history.

Stuart Atwell handed out 12 yellow cards during the fixture, seven for Wolves and five for Newcastle.

41 fouls were committed during the encounter - 20 for Wolves, 21 for Newcastle.

Despite being in control for the majority of the contest, Newcastle United went behind just before half-time due to Sylvan Ebanks-Blake’s effort before Andy Carroll levelled the scoring in the 62nd minute.

Six yellow cards were given out between the two sides after the 80th minute, with the first coming 22 minutes of action.

Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 Sheffield United (September 16, 2023)

Tottenham Hotspur pulled off the latest comeback in Premier League history when they faced off against Sheffield United in 2023.

Gustavo Hamer had given the Blades a 1-0 heading into the 73rd minute. However, an inspired substitution saw Spurs equalise in the 98th minute through Richarlison.

The Brazilian would continue to make an impact on the game, as two minutes later he assisted Dejan Kulusevski’s winner in the tenth minute of stoppage time.

With the focus centred around the late comeback from Spurs, many failed to realise that 12 cards had been handed out by Peter Bankes.

Tottenham received a total of six yellow cards, while Sheffield United received five.

Sheffield United striker Oli McBurnie would see red in the 14th minute of stoppage time due to his involvement in a touchline brawl.

Bournemouth 0-1 Chelsea (September 14, 2024)

Anthony Taylor dished out the most cards in Premier League history when Chelsea travelled to the Vitality Stadium to face Bournemouth in 2024.

A total of 14 yellow cards were issued by the referee but not a single red card was shown.

Chelsea received eight yellow cards (one away from tying the single team record) and Bournemouth received six. Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca would also receive a card.

Although technically the ‘dirtiest’ match in Premier League history due to the sheer number of yellow cards shown, the match itself was far from it.

With neither team seeming to take an aggressive approach against the other, attention turned to the referee, many feeling that he was quick to book players.

Anthony Taylor’s decision making caused controversy following the contest with claims that he stopped the game from flowing and made the occasion about himself.

Chelsea would win the contest, thanks to an 86th minute winner from Christopher Nkunku, who managed to get on the end of Jadon Sancho’s pass.

Benji Kosartiyer
Journalist
Reece Coughlan

Writer

Videos

See more
From Non-League to the AFCON Final - The Story of Kwesi Appiah
Listen to our full podcast with Kwesi Appiah as he discusses his sensational rise from non-league all the way to starting in the AFCON final.
Is it time for Luton Town to make THE DECISION?!
Watch out latest edition of EFL Hot Takes as the lads give their opinion on the Rob Edwards situation at Luton Town.
WHO is in our Championship TEAM OF THE SEASON so far?!
Find out how we would put in our Championship Team of the Season so far on YouTube as we approach the busy period.

Join our newsletter

Become a part of our community and never miss an update from Football Park.