We take a look at the top five Tottenham players for red cards across the Premier League era, with one member of the current Spurs squad making the cut.
Tottenham have historically not been a dirty side, and across the Premier League era, the club have had far more technically gifted players, who like to have the ball, rather than ones who pride themselves on putting in tackles.
In fact, that has been the enduring criticism of Spurs over the years, with the side accused of having a soft underbelly and lacking fighters.
The record of their most red-carded players certainly bares that out, with the numbers being relatively low compared to some other sides.
Just one player has been sent off on four occasions for Spurs, while four other players have been red-carded thrice across their Tottenham careers, including one current player.
Here is the list of the players who have been red-carded the most often in a Tottenham shirt.
Not many Spurs fans will be surprised to see Michael Dawson make the list. While the Englishman was a solid defender and aerial dominant, he was sometimes late on the tackle, with nimble forwards getting the better of him.
The likes of Luis Suarez and Sergio Aguero sometimes made him look average and the former Tottenham was certainly not one to take any half-measures when he went in for the tackle.
However, Dawson was far from a dirty player, and that is clear when looking at his ratio of red cards, with the 41-year-old being sent off three times across 236 appearances for Spurs.
Spurs fans of a certain age will not be surprised to see Colin Calderwood on the list, with the Scotsman not being too dissimilar a player to Dawson.
Arriving at White Hart Lane from Swindon Town in 1993, the defender spent six years at the club, playing 163 times and being sent off on three occasions.
On all three occasions, Calderwood received two yellows, with none of those being straight reds, which shows that he was not a player who made nasty challenges.
Mauricio Taricco was another fan favourite at White Hart Lane, continuing the rich legacy of Argentine greats who have worn the famous white shirt.
The left-back arrived at Spurs from Ipswich Town in 1998 and spent six years at the club, making 130 appearances, three of which ended with an early shower after he got his marching orders.
The 51-year-old has had a successful coaching career since hanging up his boots, currently serving as the assistant at Bordeaux, and one would assume he demands more discipline from his players than he himself showcased in his playing days.
This is by far the most shocking name on the list as not many Spurs fans will realise that their current captain has been set off three times over his ten-year career at the club.
Interestingly, all three of those red cards came in the same year, 2019, with the forward receiving his marching orders against Bournemouth, Chelsea and Everton.
The one he picked up against Everton was the tackle that led to Andre Gomes’ horror injury, which left the Tottenham man in tears, although it was clear that the 32-year-old did not intend to hurt his opponent and was pushed towards him by the momentum of his teammate Serge Aurier.
Interestingly, all three of Heung-min Son‘s sending-offs at Tottenham have been straight red cards, which does not make for good reading for the South Korean.
The next time the Tottenham captain asks the likes of Yves Bissouma or Cristian Romero to stay on their feet and keep their head, perhaps they should banter him by asking him to take his own advice.
Younes Kaboul is the only player who has been sent off on four different occasions for Tottenham in the Premier League era.
The Frenchman made 110 appearances for the Lilywhites across two different spells and has an unenviable ratio of red cards, higher than any of the other players on this list.
His minutes-to-red card ratio is even worse. According to Stat Bunker, on average, Kaboul got sent off once every 1,430 minutes of football he played for Spurs, which is approximately one every 15 games if one considers all matches as 90 minutes.
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