When it comes to success, some people find it hard to handle! Success can get to their head, leading them to display their arrogance on the field. In a popular sport like football, this behavior is evident, and many players have been fined or suspended for displaying bad behavior.
Take a look at some of the players and coaches who have been in the news for their arrogance and bad attitude.
Ashley Cole
This retired British football player (who later became a coach) was regarded as one of the best British left-backs of his generation. Well, as they say, “the best” often comes with a price, Ashley was no exception! In 2006, he made an issue over Arsenal offering him £55,000 instead of £60,000. He was nicknamed Cashley because of his greedy attitude, self-entitlement and arrogance. Not just this, he also went on to cheat his wife Cheryl Cole and was labeled ‘arrogant’ by Steve Nicol after he said MLS was an easy ride.
Louis Van Gaal
This Dutch football player and former manager was known for declaring himself as God! He was quoted as saying, “I am like God! I never get ill and I am always right,” and changed his statement a few months later saying, “I am not God. If I were God I would win everything all the time.” He had also called himself as “confident, arrogant, dominant, honest, hardworking and innovative,” and he has nothing more to learn.
Arjen Robben
People see this Dutch footballer as lazy, arrogant and egotistical! In 2013, after their win over Hamburg, “If I were a coach, I know what I have to do…I would pick myself.” He is also known for his selfish type of play, goal celebration and media comments. During a game in Euro 2012, he had told Holland coach Bert Van Marwijk to ‘Shut Up’.
Mario Balotelli
Brescia fans labeled this Italian striker arrogant! Apparently, several managers tried to guide him and help him realize that he has potential as a great player, but failed because of his wild behavior off pitch and arrogant attitude during games. Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho described Mario as unmanageable because of his arrogant and unpredictable behavior.
Eric Cantona
This Manchester United legend is known for his arrogant quotes, some of which are, “Become a legend? But I am already” and “I am not a man, I am Cantona.” His fans call him King Cantona. His arrogance continued off the pitch when he turned into an actor. His movie Finding Eric tells his story.
Didier Drogba
Ivorian football player Didier Drogba was considered one of the best strikers in the world, which might have contributed to his over-confidence and arrogance. He often acted like he was more important than others. He not only criticized his manager, but also complained about him and threw tantrums. He had faked injury to win undeserved free kicks.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
This Swedish footballer had called himself “perfect.” He considers himself the best player and has a “not my fault” attitude. However, despite his arrogance, people love him because they find his quotes entertaining.
Cristiano Ronaldo
Who doesn’t know him! He is a Portugal football legend and one of the high-profile players, often grabbing a lot of media attention. All of this makes it obvious that a superstar like him would have an ego. You can see his arrogance when he takes a free kick. He is over-confident, throws tantrums and loves taking off his shirt at any opportunity. He is stylish and even has a museum dedicated to himself, which makes him appear even more arrogant. Well, there is no denying that, “Love him or hate him, but you can ignore him!”
Jose Mourinho
When you talk about Jose, the former Portuguese player, manager and coach, you either hate him or you love him, there are no neutral feelings! People often remember him for his arrogance. In 2004, Jose asked people not to call him arrogant and referred to himself as the special one. He had said, “Please don’t call me arrogant, but I’m a European champion and I think I’m a special one.”
Former Bosnia coach Susic once said that he didn’t like Jose’s arrogance because when things didn’t work, he blamed his players and it’s not surprising that he had conflicts at Real and Chelsea.
Wojciech Szczesny
This Arsenal goalkeeper comes across as arrogant. He was benched because of his poor decisions that led to goals against Southampton, and he might have to re-evaluate his behavior. His confidence on the field frustrates fans and his teammates, as it doesn’t always lead to the expected results. His arrogance is also displayed on his social media, where he often expresses his opinions and appears over-confident. He was also caught smoking in the showers, which shows immaturity and lack of respect.
Didier Drogba
He might be a well-known player in Chelsea, but he is not popular outside the club because of his arrogance. Didier was criticized and complained about his manger and threw tantrums over small things, and even hinted at leaving clubs. He has a noticeable ego and annoying goal celebrations.
Dani Osvaldo
Each club he joins, he becomes isolated from the rest of the team because of his arrogance. He thinks he is bigger than the team because of this, he often clashes with his teammates and management. He had punched his teammate Erik Lamela because of which he was fined and suspended. In 2013, he shouted and insulted caretaker manager Andreazzoli for giving him just 15 minutes of playing time off. In response to the manager’s decision, he protested by refusing to attend the awards ceremony.
Joey Barton
Joey Barton, who played for Manchester City and was a manager, has a lot of self-confidence that he shares his opinions on everything from football and music to politics and philosophy. He had fights with everyone- from managers to teammates to opposing players to fans, due to his arrogance, but a lot comes from problems with anger. Even though he played for England team only once, he criticized them, claiming that if he was from Northern Ireland, Wales, or Scotland, he would have had 100 caps. When talking about midfielders in England, he called himself “the best.”
Nicklas Bendtner
Considering he has not achieved much in his career yet, his level of arrogance was surprising. Besides his silly haircut and ridiculous boots, he made claims of being better than Zlatan and he is one of the best! He displays a lot of arrogance and immaturity off the pitch, which has hindered his reputation.
Adel Taarabt
Adel Taarabt had clashed with almost every manager that he played for and often claimed he deserved to play for the biggest clubs in the world even though he occasionally showed his talent. Despite his potential, he was often described as lazy and his confrontations with management showed his lack of respect and arrogance.
Carlos Tevez
This former Argentine football player and manager used to throw tantrums when he was substituted and left the stadium before the match ended. He even hinted at leaving Manchester United before the season finished and joined their rivals Manchester City, where he displayed his most notorious moments of arrogance.
Samir Nasri
This French footballer had admitted that he can come across as an arrogant little jerk! He was known for throwing tantrums, complaining about management and displaying bad attitude. In Euro 2012, he swore and clashed with reporters, for which he was nicknamed “The Terrible Child.” Because of this attitude, he was excluded from the squad for a summer’s World Cup. Post this incident, he decided to retire from international football. His career at the club level and with the national team was negatively affected because of his disruptive, disrespectful and smug behavior.
Antonio Cassano
Although Antonio was a talented Italy forward, he was known for his strange character, temper, lack of discipline and poor behavior, which led to many controversies. He had clashes with several top coaches, suggesting he held a high opinion of himself and even disrespected manager Luciano Spalletti by saying, “You’re not coaching those useless players you had at Udinese. This isn’t your house, it’s my house.” (Quite a bold statement, right!) After being dismissed during a match, he showed the “sign of the horns” at the referee, which showed his disregard for authority. After moving to Real Madrid, he gained a lot of weight and led a lavish lifestyle, which hampered his performance.
Francesco Totti
The Italian and Roma football legend was known for showing a lot of arrogance and crazy moments both on and off the field. He often tried to embarrass his opponents with backheels, lobs and fancy footwork. His goal celebrations also came off as arrogant. Incidents like spitting at opponents were unacceptable and caused him to lose respect among fans.
Sergio Ramos
The Spanish footballer has had a successful career in clubs and the international level. He is known as master of the dark arts. A tough defender with an aggressive style, he is known for making things difficult for the attackers. He is known for confronting his opponents. He is known for his bad temper. Although many see him as arrogant, his team and fans feel that his idea of leadership is unique.
Marko Arnautovic
He is known as an Australian bad boy for his arrogance and bad behavior. Marko moves confidently with superior attitude and doesn’t treat opponents in a fair manner. Although his fans like his swag, but for viewers it comes across as arrogance. Often, he gets into trouble because of his immature actions on the field. During Euro 2020, he faced a one-match ban for his mid-game rant against North Macedonia. Captain David Alaba had to keep the striker’s mouth shut by gripping it tight. Jose Mourinho had even said that Marko had ‘the attitude of a child’ and his own teammates think he’s arrogant.
Kylian Mbappe
This French World Cup winner was an example of how too much success too early can result in arrogance! Kylian had an argument with Neymar Jr. during PSG’s victory over Montpellier regarding a penalty kick. In the same game, he was seen bumping his shoulder into Messi’s, as the later failed to give him a pass. While Neymar felt that the new powers that were given to Kylian made him arrogant, Manchester United player Wayne Rooney called Kylain an egotistical.
Sean Payton
Sean Payton, who was the head coach of the New Orleans Saints, was suspended from the NFL because of his involvement in the Bountygate scandal. He had strongly denied allegations and allegedly encouraged his coaching staff to make false statements. When questioned, he lied to the league and even dodged questions about the same. However, he was eventually caught lying and faced consequences. His attitude and reaction to this incident displayed a high level of arrogance.
Rex Ryan
Rex Ryan, who was the head coach of the New York Jets, often came off as arrogant in most press conferences, especially considering the fact that he hadn’t won anything significant. American quarterback Joe Namath believed Rex’s behavior contributed to his team’s arrogance. Not just on-field, but even outside the field, he had problems. The NFL fined him $50,000 for flipping off a fan.
Jim Schwartz
Jim Schwartz, the head coach of the Detroit Lions, is known for his post-game fight with the San Francisco 49ers’ head coach Jim Harbaugh. His unprofessional behavior affected his players like Ndamukong Suh, who stepped on an opponent’s arm and later denied it. He was also known for his explicit behavior on the sidelines, which some of his players seemed to enjoy.
Joe Flacco
Indianapolis Colts Quarterback Joe Flacco was known for being overly confident and arrogant. Joe not only saw himself as the best quarterback in the NFL, but also believed that he was better than other top players like Tom Brady and Peyton Manning, to name a few.
Bart Scott
The New York Jets’ linebacker was known for his trash-talking both on and off-field. His immature behavior and arrogance perfectly matched the attitude of his head coach Rex Ryan. Bart was also known for his post-game interviews, where he insulted his team. He was also fined for making an obscene gesture toward the media.
Tom Brady
The New England Patriots’ quarterback was known as one of the most arrogant players in the NFL. He was seen constantly trash-talking opposing players and celebrating scores excessively. He had mocked the New York Giants before they defeated the New England Patriots.
Randy Moss
Randy Moss’ former teammate Cris Carter had accused him of quitting on the teams he played for. In response to this, Randy had publicly criticized him. San Francisco 49ers’ Wide Receiver has a history of arrogant celebration, quotes and even mooning a crowd in Green Bay.
Jay Cutler
The Chicago Bears’ quarterback’s attitude towards the media often comes across as dismissive and uninterested. He believes that he has a stronger arm than legendary quarterback John Elway.
Philip Rivers
The San Diego Chargers’ quarterback is known for being loud-mouthed, and can back up his taunting with great performance. He was even fined for his taunting. When things go his way, he comes across as arrogant, but if it doesn’t, he can be seen sulking.
Cam Newton
The Carolina Panthers’ quarterback was known for celebrating excessively. He even had said, “I don’t want to sound arrogant but I did something in one year people couldn’t do in their whole collegiate careers. We had a chance to do something great and we did it.” Although he mentioned he doesn’t want to sound arrogant, it definitely comes across that way!”
Jared Allen
Jared Allen, who was known as one of the top pass-rushers in the league, was famous for his ridiculous celebration where he dropped to one knee. Even though the NFL banned this celebration, he was seen publicly complaining about the same.
Steve Johnson
Like several other players, Steve Johnson was also known for his excessive celebration on the field. The Buffalo Bills’ wide receiver was fined several times for his celebrations, wearing illegal gear and inappropriate end zone dances.
Ndamukong Suh
The Detroit Lions’ defensive tackle stomped on an opposing player and then tried to fool a national audience by claiming he didn’t mean to do it. The NFL mentioned that he broke on-field rules five times since 2010. This showed his arrogant and irresponsible behavior.
DeAngelo Hall
DeAngelo Hall is known for talking a lot and isn’t afraid of telling everyone how great he thinks about himself. DeAngelo called himself the “best guy,” and was quoted as saying, “When a guy catches a pass, it almost seems like luck to me. If a guy makes another catch, I’m like, ‘Two? How did that happen?”
Matt Hasselbeck
Although Matt has had good career so far, but one moment puts him on this list! During the 2004 NFC Wild Card game, before kicking off halftime, the Tennessee Titans’ quarterback said that his team wanted the ball, and was going to score, which didn’t work out as he ended up throwing the interception that lost the game.
Antonio Cromartie
Antonio Cromartie believes he is the best cornerback! He openly criticized New England Patriots’ quarterback Tom Brady in a rude manner and also took a dig at his team’s new quarterback, Tim Tebow.
Chris Johnson
The Tennessee Titans’ running back had an outstanding season and decided to hold out for a bigger contract. When his holdout ended, he had an average season, proving that he wasn’t worth the extra money. He also thinks highly of himself and even compared his impact in the NFL to Obama’s achievement. He said, “It’s like Obama. Obama was the first black president. I could be the first black face of the NFL.”
James Harrison
The Pittsburgh Steelers’ outside linebacker openly admitted that he won’t follow the NFL rules to protect other players and continued making illegal hits. He also said that fines and suspensions against him for the illegal hits are laughable. What do you call such an attitude: arrogance, right?
Terrell Suggs
The Baltimore Ravens’ outside linebacker was often seen trash talking to both opposing players and the media. In an interview, he openly criticized Tim Tebow and has a habit of appearing online wearing explicit shirts, insulting rival teams.
DeSean Jackson
The Philadelphia Eagles’ wide receiver had issues being humble in his football career. He is known for his excessive celebrations and talking trash. He was even fined for taunting and sometimes managing to hurt his team.
Greg Williams
Greg Williams broke NFL rules by running an illegal bounty program, Bountygate, with several teams. He was arrogant enough to do this in front of reporters who had recording devices. Although he was told to stop, he was too arrogant to listen to the NFL.
