Kick the ball, not the player! Moments when footballers 'lose it'

Liverpool thrashed Manchester United at home with a  5-0 victory in a game where Cristiano Ronaldo lost his temper and demonstrated his frustration in an incident involving Curtis Jones. The Manchester United star fouled Jones, who fell on the pitch, only to be kicked out by a frustrated Ronaldo who couldn't bear seeing his team being thrashed in the Premier League derby.

Whilst seeing opposing players get in each others faces is good fun, there are also times where it is taken to the extreme and the safety of those on the pitch is in jeopardy. The players that take this to the extreme will strike fear into the opposition (this is their goal), but consequently their reputation will be tarnished and even their teammates might struggle to defend them after their actions.

Today we're counting down some of the moments when footballers 'lose it' on the pitch.

Gattuso fight and head-butt Joe Jordan

Fans of AC Milan adore Gennaro Gattuso and no one can deny his passion, but many times this leaked over into dirty play and it is these moments which saw him develop a reputation as a dirty player. His ferocious play in Glasgow and in Italy would earn him the nickname “Il Diavolo” (The Devil), and there are many victims of his reckless challenges that would testify to this. During a Champions League fixture with Spurs in 2011, tempers flared and the final whistle saw Gattuso remove his shirt before hurling abuse at Tottenham’s assistant coach (and fellow hard man) Joe Jordan, before head butting him in a moment of madness.

Suarez and all those times he left a mark on other players

While Suarez has been one of the best players in the world during his career, he has also been seen as a villain-like figure. 

While playing at Ajax in Holland in 2010, he was suspended for seven games for biting PSV Eindhoven's Otman Bakkal on the shoulder. While playing for Liverpool in 2013, he was suspended for 10 games for biting Chelsea's Branislov Ivanovic on the arm. And while playing for Uruguay in the 2014 World Cup, he bit Italy's Giorgio Chiellini. He was not punished during the game.

Zidane headbutts Materazzi in the 2006 FIFA World Cup final

Zinedine Zidane had rammed his head into the Italy defender's chest during extra time of the 2006 World Cup final after Marco Materazzi said something to him. The incident sparked weeks of speculation about what Materazzi might have told Zidane to provoke such a reaction, and the Italian eventually acknowledged that he had insulted Zidane’s sister.

Speaking to Italian media outlet PassioneInter, Materazzi said, “It felt like a big bang, I didn’t want to take yet another scolding from Gattuso and so I held his shirt. He responded and that’s what happened, luckily, I didn’t expect it otherwise I would have had an early shower too. He asked me if I wanted his shirt, I told him I wanted his sister.”

Nigel De Jong’s karate kick

It became one of the most iconic moments of the 2010 World Cup. Nigel De Jong landing a kung-fu kick clean on Xabi Alonso's chest during the final is unlikely to be forgotten.

But the Dutchman, speaking to FourFourTwo, protested his innocence eight years on and hopes a time will come where he and the Spaniard can laugh over it. 

'I just wanted to play the ball – that was my only focus,' he said. 

'I didn't see Alonso coming because he was on my blind side. We've seen each other but we've never spoken about that moment – it's just a moment in football history. 

'Maybe one day we'll see each other, have a beer and laugh about it. Ultimately, he won the game. I think he had the last laugh.' 

The match in Johannesburg ended with Spain winning 1-0 after extra time as Barcelona legend Andres Iniesta got the winning goal.

Roy Keane and Alf Haaland's career

Roy Keane relishes his reputation as one of the scariest men in football, and his recent facial hair experiment is a testament to this. Since he finished playing he has resorted to intimidation in interviews, but during his playing career he developed this reputation through wild, over the top challenges with many of these being difficult to argue as “sportsmanlike”. There are dozens of altercations, but the most notable is Keane’s horrendous challenge on Alf Haaland, which effectively ended his career. After Keane suffered a season ending injury at the hands of Haaland, he sought revenge and went in wildly high on a tackle which left the Norwegian in a heap on the turf. Keane admitted in his autobiography that it was an act of vengeance.

Muscat's dirty reputation

Muscat’s reputation exceeds dirty play, and there have been a few alarming incidents which have little to do with football and can only be described as violent behaviour. This includes ending the career of Matty Holmes, which left Holmes needing four operations on his leg after there were initial fears it would need to be amputated. He has also more than left his mark on Craig Bellamy, Christophe Dugarry, Adrian Zahra, Ashley Ward and many more players. Making many enemies during his career, Muscat would be labelled “the most hated man in football” in 2000.

Muscat would consistently put in horror challenges and play well outside the laws of the game, putting many people on the pitch in danger due to his over aggressive and violent play.

Pepe and Messi's hand stamp

Pepe is prone to moments of madness. This includes stamping on Lionel Messi’s hand, kicking a player whilst he is down, slapping a player, kicking someone in the face and plenty more (sometimes in the same game). It is hard for his teammates to defend his actions at times, and those that are up against him are fully aware of his reputation.

Pepe's stamp on a prostrate Messi in the Spanish Cup quarter-final clash at Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabeu stadium on Wednesday, where the home team fell to a 2-1 loss, was splashed across the front pages of the sporting press.

"All I mean to do is defend my team and my institution. I give myself to it body and soul. It never crossed my mind to hurt a fellow professional," Pepe explained.

Eric Cantona famous kung fu kick against a fan

Eric Cantona was a tremendous player, but his career as a professional footballer will always be remembered for his actions on January 25, 1995.

The Frenchman received his marching orders just after half-time when he kicked Palace defender Richard Shaw off the ball.

A frustrated Cantona then shocked the world when he kung-fu kicked a Palace fan as he made his way off the pitch.

Cantona reacted after Matthew Simmons, the Palace fan, ran down 11 rows of stairs to shout abuse at him.

The Frenchman was subsequently banned from football for eight months and received fines worth £30,000.

He was also stripped of the captaincy for France and never played for his country again.

Speaking on a new film titled 'The United Way', Cantona said, per the Daily Mail: "I have been insulted thousands of times and have never reacted, but sometimes you are fragile.

"I have one regret. I would have loved to have kicked him even harder. I was banned for nine months. They wanted me to be an example."

Cantona could have been banned for longer after he was pictured playing in a behind closed doors friendly for United.