Who Would Be In Your All-Time Bruiser XI?

The Premier League may have started back in 1992, but there have only been a few players who fans can truly refer to as hard-men or bruisers. So with that in mind, our weekly favourite or irrelevant XI this week is dedicated to some of the League’s tough guys.

Here’s my #BrusierXI line-up:

                                      Peter Schimechel

Gretar Steinsson, Christopher Samba, Tony Adams, Julian Dicks

             Joey Barton, Roy Keane, Yaya Toure, Lee Bowyer

                         Didier Drogba, Duncan Ferguson

Here’s @TacheyDelBosque’s #BrusierXI line-up, which as you’re see has less-active playsrs than mine, paying tribute to some of the league’s former tough-guys:

                               Jens Lehmann

Stuart Pearce, Japp Stam, Neil Ruddock, Julian Dicks,

David Batty, Roy Keane, Stig Tofting, Lee Bowyer,

              Kevin Davies, Duncan Ferguson

Here’s our contributor @KevinAshford7’s #BrusierXI team, see what you make of that:

                                     Petr Cech,

Wes Brown, Jaap Stam, Nemanja Vidic, Stuart Pearce

Joey Barton, Roy Keane, Patrick Vieira, Michael Essien,

                   Wayne Rooney, Duncan Ferguson

Lastly one of our followers @knockedoffperch posted his #BrusierXI team in response to Kevin’s, here’s his #BrusierXI side:

                              Neville Southall,

Lee Dixon, Tony Adams, Jamie Carragher, Sol Cambell

     Joey Barton, Patrick Vieira, Steve McManaman,

             Kevin Davies, Didier Drogba, Ian Wright

So looking at that it's funny how several names (Adams, Barton, Davies, Keane, etc) cropped up in that list on in 3/4 teams mentioned. If I were to highlight one player mentioned that would probably personify our #BrusierXI it would be Manchester United's Wayne Rooney's boyhood idol Duncan Ferguson.

Ferguson was so tough and bullish that he would have scared the crap out of legendary 1960-70's defenders Ron 'Chopper' Harris and Dave McKay who were both well known for kicking the lumps out of any opposition player back in their prime. In many ways Ferguson's toughness actually took away from his decent playing ability. 

At his best he was unplayable and but for injuries and suspensions he would have scored more than the 69 Premier League goals that he did. A big-money move to Newcastle in 1998 from Everton never really worked out and he returned back to Goodison two years later where there's no doubt his experience helped his biggest fan Rooney out when as a young player he needed all the help he could get.

Adam Dennehey @ADennehey87