Skip to content

5 villains from the opening half of the Premier League season

Lee Smith / Reuters

The Premier League season is now 20 matches in, with the likes of Diego Costa and Alexis Sanchez putting forward early arguments for PFA Player of the Year, while Simon Mignolet and Loris Karius have taken turns wearing the dunce cap at Liverpool.

But what about personalities who've done more to offend than thrill or humour? Here, theScore picks out five that assumed the role of villain in the campaign's first half.

Jose Mourinho

Jose Mourinho's eventual correcting of his stuttering start at Manchester United has been hamstrung by his own disciplinary issues.

The Portuguese gaffer has served two touchline bans for his conduct in two matches against West Ham United, most recently for booting a water bottle when referee Jon Moss brandished a yellow card after Paul Pogba's alleged dive.

Mourinho also fell foul of the Football Association's standards when he questioned whether official Anthony Taylor - an Altrincham fan originally hailing from Manchester - could fairly preside over United's trip to Liverpool in October. The referee actually made a commendable job, while Mourinho stunk the place out with a defensive 0-0 draw on Merseyside.

Karren Brady

Upton Park was one of the most iconic football neighbourhoods in the United Kingdom. The Boleyn Ground was bordered by terraced homes that breathed all things West Ham, establishments that sold classic Cockney foodstuffs like jellied eels, and, of course, pubs daubed in claret and blue.

But for some reason, vice-chairman Karren Brady believed a move to London Stadium - the shiny sporting complex used for the 2012 Olympics - was necessary to address a supposed lack of identity for the Irons.

"There were two interesting things about (the West Ham project). One, it had £100 million worth of debt. Two, it had no, what I would call, culture," Brady said.

"At football clubs we don't make anything, we don't manufacture anything, we don't really produce anything other than more players. So getting the culture right, being a place where something is expected of you, having discipline, planning, and process, and strategy. That wasn't there."

Maybe stick to aiding Sir Alan Sugar on "The Apprentice," Brady.

Sergio Aguero

True, Claudio Bravo hasn't made himself greatly popular among Manchester City supporters due to his limp flapping and disorientated positioning, but there may be a new villain emerging across the Premier League.

With his wide grin and impeccable work rate, Sergio Aguero was previously a darling of the league, but not this term.

The Argentinian's swung elbow at West Ham's Winston Reid and his egregious high tackle on Chelsea's David Luiz have been punished with a combined seven matches on the sidelines. City won six and lost just one of those tests.

Pep Guardiola has hinted at wanting more from Aguero - perhaps a busier role similar to what David Villa did for him at Barcelona - but if Aguero continues to fall foul of referees and the Football Association, Kelechi Iheanacho and the soon-to-arrive Gabriel Jesus will quickly stake a claim in the starting lineup.

Related - Aguero 2.0: Guardiola's reinterpretation of City's Argentinian idol

Aguero has 33 goals in his last 35 Premier League outings, however, meaning that he continues to be a thorn (and elbow) in the side of opponents.

Joey Barton

He's back.

Joey Barton's brief stint at Rangers was cut short in November after a suspension from the Scottish Football Association due to betting on 44 matches between July 1 and Sept. 15, and a training ground bust-up with manager Mark Warburton and teammate Andy Halliday following September's embarrassing 5-1 loss to Old Firm rival Celtic.

That didn't deter Burnley manager Sean Dyche for reintroducing Barton to Lancashire, with the combative Scouser in the stands to watch the New Year's Eve visit from Sunderland.

But controversy follows the ex-Manchester City man, and he may have to wait some time before making his first Clarets outing since the side confirmed promotion to the Premier League in May.

Related: Barton hit with another betting charge

This time, Barton has been accused of having a football flutter 1,260 times between March 26, 2006 and May 13, 2016, and is awaiting what could be a heavy punishment from the Football Association.

Huw Jenkins

Swansea City was lauded as the prime example of how to run a club, through its control from the Fans' Trust and a habit of hiring managers that continued the Welsh outfit's upward trajectory - eventually reaching the Premier League in 2011 after nearly being relegated into non-league football in 2003.

Now, whether you track back the Swans' downturn to Garry Monk's firing in Dec. 2015 or the change to American ownership last July, there's no doubting they're an outfit in disarray.

Bob Bradley's appointment was disastrous. Giving the former United States boss a mere 11 matches to change the fortunes of a clearly lacking squad was not enough, and suggested not all of the boardroom was convinced by the decision to appoint a manager with no Premier League experience.

Related - Bob Bradley: A casualty of forces beyond his control

Unless there's a dramatic change in Swansea's fortunes, this could be the end of its six-season residency in the top flight, something that can be charged by Huw Jenkins' decision to sell to Jason Levien and Steve Kaplan.

Monk, meanwhile, is doing a superb job at Leeds United in the Championship, despite working under the trigger-happy Italian businessman, Massimo Cellino.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox