Ricardo-CarvalhoMost articles that we attempt to throw up on the Center Circle tend to avoid too much material based on an opinion. However, with the recent move of Carvalho to big spenders and future French Ligue 1 competitors AS Monaco, I am left with a vein bulging in my neck. I truly thought that one of the dirtiest defenders to ever play in the game might be walking away after Mourinho left Chelsea and now that he is on the outside of Portugal’s international picture, but I am now forced to suffer through another year or more with Cheatin’ Carvalho.

Carvalho spent three years with Madrid and he only ended up making 16 total league appearances over the last two years. He also “quit” international football in 2011, although he was probably not the first choice Portuguese defender anymore, and his run at Madrid seemed to be the winding down of a career that has been laden with trophies. My hope was to no longer see strikers pop up with ripped jerseys or to see replays where Carvalho was holding down attackers on corners, but it seems that the French upstarts have denied my dreams.

For those of you that did not get to experience Carvalho at the height of his powers, he was one of the most dangerous defenders from a set piece and one of the smallest central defenders to play in some of the world’s major leagues. He and pundits have often talked about how much he loves to go to ground and make hard tackles on opposing players. As mentioned earlier, I may have seen three players in my entirety of watching football pop up from a scuffle with a ripped jersey. BUT, I have seen the man that Carvalho is marking showing the ref a ripped kit on at least FIVE separate occasions.

There are some players in world football that you just love to hate. For me, Carvalho ranks quite highly on any negative list of footy players that I would like to amass. You would not get to play for the clubs that he has without some talent, but his appearances for high-profile clubs just makes me more aware about his style of play. Are there any players that you love to hate? What player would you be upset about if your club decided to purchase them?

 

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