47= John Carew – 293
Carew took his punishment from Dean much better than Ivanovic, but he made the same number of offences as the ex-Chelsea man in 138 fewer outings.
Few players can match the Norwegian's remarkable ratio of 293 fouls in 123 appearances for Aston Villa and Stoke - that's almost 2.5 per game, for crying out loud.
43= Clint Dempsey – 299
Like Pedersen, Dempsey also fell painfully short of the 300 mark - and given that he retired in 2018, the American has no chance of getting over the line.
Dempsey wasn't afraid to stick his foot in during his time on the books of Fulham and Tottenham, although he only had his name taken by the referee 21 times.
36= Cheick Tiote – 315
The late Tiote was a fan favourite throughout his time at Newcastle, with his willingness to get stuck in endearing him to the St James' Park faithful.
The Ivorian's timing in the tackle wasn't always perfect, though: he committed 315 fouls in 138 top-flight games for the club.
36= Morgan Schneiderlin – 315
At 30 years of age Schneiderlin still has plenty of time to climb further up this list, provided he retains the faith of Carlo Ancelotti.
The tough-tackling Frenchman has earned the referee's wrath 315 times during his Premier League career with Southampton, Everton and Manchester United.
35. Phil Bardsley – 317
Now 34, Bardsley looks to be coming to the end of a Premier League career that's taken in spells with Manchester United, Aston Villa, Sunderland, Stoke and Burnley.
It's safe to say the no-nonsense right-back has protested his innocence even more regularly than he's committed fouls.
34. Fernandinho – 318
Manchester City have been criticised for their habit of tactical fouling under Pep Guardiola, but Fernandinho was committing misdemeanours long before the Catalan came to England.
The Brazilian, who's turned out in 217 top-flight games for City, has been ticked off by referees on 318 occasions.
31= Dimitar Berbatov – 323
Yes, that's right: Dimitar Berbatov. The classy Bulgarian wowed Premier League audiences with his flawless first touch at Tottenham, Manchester United and Fulham, but he wasn't a total stranger to the dark arts.
Berbatov committed 323 fouls during his time in England's top tier, although they were all probably someone else's fault.
27. Charlie Adam – 334
Adam was one of the Premier League's standout performers in his debut campaign with Blackpool, but he quickly proved that he had more in his locker than left-footed pings and shots from the halfway line.
Indeed, by the time Adam bade farewell to the top flight in 2018 he'd made 334 fouls for Blackpool, Liverpool and Stoke.
19= Robert Huth – 355
Huth is something of a rarity in this list in that he's a defender. However, anyone who saw him play will know that he deserves his place in the top 20.
The centre-back, who played such a starring role in Leicester’s stunning 2015/16 title triumph, committed an average of more than a foul a game over 322 Premier League appearances for the Foxes, Middlesbrough, Stoke and Chelsea.
19= Mohamed Diame – 355
Handing Diame the No.10 shirt at Newcastle was a somewhat baffling decision, given that he’s registered just five assists and 18 goals in 239 Premier League games.
On top of that, he's spent a lot of his time hauling down opponents in the centre of the pitch during spells with the Magpies, Hull, West Ham and Wigan. No red cards though, to be fair.
18. Wayne Rooney – 368
Rooney is well known for having a hot head and it’s no surprise to see Manchester United and England’s all-time top scorer on this list.
The striker committed 368 fouls in 491 Premier League games for Everton and United, which is by no means a shocking ratio compared to some others in this ranking.
17. Mousa Dembele – 371
Dembele now plies his trade and earns his millions in the Chinese Super League after 11 seasons and 243 Premier League appearances for Spurs and Fulham.
The technically gifted yet tough-tackling midfielder made 371 fouls in that time, but to his credit was never sent off in the top flight.
6. Antonio Valencia – 426
The Ecuadorian made his presence felt during spells at Wigan and Manchester United before his return to his homeland in 2019.
To his credit though, Valencia was only ever sent off three times in the English top flight – twice for Wigan and once for United, which isn’t bad going after 325 games.
5. James Milner – 434
Milner still has time on his side to make a push for a podium place in this list as the highest-ranked player currently active in the Premier League.
The England midfielder has committed 434 fouls and counting during spells with Leeds, Newcastle, Aston Villa, Manchester City and now Liverpool.
3. Marouane Fellaini - 588
The Belgian’s name is synonymous with a blur of flailing elbows and tangled limbs.
His efforts at Everton and Manchester United earned him a place in the top three, and if he’d stuck around instead of heading for China, you would’ve backed him to make a surge for the number one spot.
