For every awe-inspiring dribble you see on a football pitch, there is (inevitably) at least one member of the opposition looking to ‘disrupt’ their flow.
When Diego Maradona shimmied his way through the England defence on that fateful, scorching hot day at Mexico ’86, you can bet your life Peter Reid wishes he had scythed the magician down.
For every showstopping artiste that captures the imagination of the crowd, there is an unscrupulous enforcer looking to stop them – this has been the pattern in football since records began.
Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson was left incensed as a frustrated Wilfried Zaha saw red for two petulant yellow cards at Southampton on Wednesday night.
The former England boss said of his talisman: “It’s disappointing that a player who perhaps provided the most entertainment throughout the game was consistently fouled.
“That he wasn’t able to contain his frustration with that consistent fouling and complains about a foul that wasn’t given and probably should have been.
“I don’t think he’s targeted as a person I just think players who run with the ball as well as he does just get fouled. His play was good enough to provoke those fouls.”
But does Hodgson have a point; do players who constantly look to dribble the ball constantly get fouled?
Thanks to Whoscored.com, it’s possible to see who has been fouled the most so far in the Premier League this season.