5 most hated footballers in the world right now
Football is a game of raw emotions, unbounded passion and relentless drama. At the top most level, it is difficult to satisfy the hunger of a professional footballer who has tasted victory once. Their ego, nurtured with utmost conviction, propels them towards greater heights and major silverware, repeatedly.
Fans join their favorites in the stadiums and on various other platforms to show support, demand more intensity and chase glory as a unit. Sure, football is a team sport, but every individual who watches the game as an audience identifies with someone on the field.
And that is the beginning of favoritism, sometimes temporary, which vanes with fading contributions, sometimes endless, which is survived by innate liking. Now 'hate' is a strong word, one that is even more harmfully propogated in today's age.
But the spectators must not be taken for fools, they judge everything keeping the spirit of the game in mind. In that case, any shenanigans and antics which are unnecessary, manipulative and sneaky are hardly ever appreciated and invite strong emotions of dislike.
Some footballers have unfortunately been on the receiving end of those negative emotions, sometimes for warranted reasons while sometimes for just being who they are. Here are the five most hated footballers in the world right now.
#5 Raheem Sterling (Manchester City/England)
England international and Manchester City forward Raheem Sterling is one of the most hated players in the country. There have been hateful comments directed towards him numerous times on social media platforms recently. The player has unfortunately been on the receiving end of racist abuse as well.
Sterling's playing style has not been easy on the eye as a winger and his running action is quite unnatural. Although that is all nature's doing, Sterling has been trolled for it and rudely treated for the same. However, not all of it is uncalled for and the forward has been correctly criticized for his intentions of diving.
“Tom Daley must’ve been watching Raheem Sterling dive all summer at The Euros to be this good [laughs], but no seriously congrats to the lad on becoming an Olympic champion.” https://t.co/DvcFeLL2nb
While the game is being played at a frantic pace one can be forgiven for making rash choices, what fans refuse to forgive players for is the act of simulation. The 27-year old has often been found looking for a touch to go down in the penalty area and has gone down on the softest contact.
The most recent incident of Sterling getting bashed on social media for the same came at Euro 2020. In the semi-final, the English forward dived to win a penalty with the score poised at 1-1. The resulting penalty helped the Three Lions reach the finals. Danish and Italian fans were extremely upset with the 27-year old.
Even Manchester City fans themselves have booed the winger. In 2020, two City supporters were banned from the stadium for racially abusing Sterling. Back in 2018, the player was the victim of racial abuse at Stamford Bridge and Chelsea banned those who were responsible.
Sterling is and continues to be one of the most polarizing figures in English football.
#4 Mario Balotelli (Adana Demirspor/Italy)
A man who holds little regard for others' emotions, Mario Balotelli has always divided opinions among football fans. The Italian has a boastful CV in terms of the clubs he has been with - AC Milan, Inter Milan, Manchester City and even Liverpool are just some of the top clubs he has played for.
Yet most managers who have managed him and the players he has played with will tell you that Balotelli never reached his ceiling. It was all down to his attitude. A provocative figure, the striker knew exactly how to annoy opposition players and crowds in the stadium.
His celebrations in the most tense and high stakes games, the way he threw tantrums on a few other occasions, were all traits of his personality. The 31-year old was being his usual unapologetic self on all those occurrences, but continued making enemies throughout his career.
At this point I don’t know what universe I’m in where white Italians show up in droves for Black Lives Matter. All the hate thrown at Cécile Kyenge, the hate towards migrants + immigrants, the exploitation, Mario Balotelli! https://t.co/zj27OKr8b6
From his teenage days, when Balotelli was granted Italian citizenship, racist and abusive phrases were hurled at him for no reason. One of the most notable instances from the early days was a 1-1 draw between Juventus and Inter Milan in 2009. The striker was the target of such demeaning chants throughout the match.
Media outlets that were heavily influenced by right-wing ideoligies directed hate towards the Italy international. US-based website Stormfront was shut down in Italy for the same reasons. At Euro 2012, he was again targeted by Croatia and Spain fans.
Sure, Balotelli is a difficult character to understand, but he's definitely one of the most mentally driven and strong footballers around. He has had grumpy relationships with his teammates and ex-managers, but he's not a bad bloke as such.
The abuse never stopped when he played for Manchester City or OGC Nice in France, the occurrences continued.
But 'Super Mario' has taken a strong stand from time to time and continues to smile through it all. His famous celebration "Why Always Me?" captures all these interesting aspects and instances.