Arsenal legend Patrick Viera named as ultimate crossover boxer and is set to fight Roy Keane in ‘Arsenal vs Man United’ bout
Former Arsenal midfield maestro Patrick Vieira has been highlighted as the Premier League player most suited to join the ranks of Misfits Boxing by the data boffins at Instant Casino.
The retired France international, who stepped away from his role as manager of Strasbourg earlier this summer, is remembered as one of the greats of the modern game with his silky skills and imposing physique.
Now Vieira could be set for a new athletic endeavour should he wish to put his popularity and physical gifts to good use inside the ring at a Misfits Boxing promotion following the decision by ex-Leicester City defender Danny Simpson to test out his fighting skills.
A study Instant Casino looked at the most combative figures of the Premier League era, assessing players for fouls, cards and sending offs per game, before compiling a ranking that also took into account the current size of their social media followings. Vieira came out on top ahead of Ian Wright and Cesc Fàbregas who each hold their own links to Arsenal.
Completing the top five are Plymouth Argyle boss and former Everton and Manchester United star Wayne Rooney, and Vinnie Jones – once of Chelsea and Wimbledon and now established as a hard man of Hollywood, at least on the big screen.
Rooney famously celebrated a goal for United by unleashing a quick combo of punches at the corner flag before dropping to the floor, mocking the story of how his friend and former team mate Phil Bardsley accidentally knocked him out in his own home during some friendly sparring.
Roy Keane, ranked eighth on the list, has recently spoken of his interest in getting back into the ring after taking up boxing in his youth but he would be up against it given the reach of another ex-United midfielder, Marouane Fellaini, who was ranked just above him.
Bayern Munich boss Vincent Kompany might not have enough time on his hands to take up any offers that could come his way from Misfits but he too has been identified as an ideal signing for the KSI-founded promotion.
Other interesting names include former Chelsea captain John Terry, who just snuck into the top 15. No word on whether he was wearing his full kit, boots and shin pads in order to get on to the bottom of the list.
No surprise to see the likes of Dennis Wise, John Hartson and Nemanja Vidic either given their reputations as players in the Premier League while El-Hadji Diouf and Robbie Savage would be sure to mix it up with their mouths as well as their fists.
A spokesperson for Instant Casino said: “Misfits Boxing has already attracted attention in the world of football even before Danny Simpson stepped up to fight in the promotion. Back in 2018, KSI even called out Rio Ferdinand.
“Even if Rio didn’t fancy it, Simpson is unlikely to be the last Premier League star to don their boxing gloves and give it a go. There are some huge names from the English game perfectly placed to take Misfits to the next level.
“With their careers on the pitch done and dusted, many footballers still crave competition and the fame that comes with it, and Misfits Boxing could give them a route to relevancy with a newer, younger audience.
“The results of our study show that Misfits themselves could branch out to find new audiences too by tapping into the star power of veterans from years gone by who remain in great shape such as Vinnie Jones.
“However, with Patrick Vieira and Roy Keane both included in our top 15 names for Misfits to sign up it’s clear what the dream fight could be for fans desperate to see these two former Premier League rivals go toe-to-toe in the ring as well as on the pitch.”
How the Misfits Score was calculated
Data from across the Premier League era was analysed player by player for fouls committed, cards received and sendings off.
This resulted in the Football ranking, as shown in the table above, to find the most combative players who should be well-suited to what Misfits Boxing are looking for.
To take into account the need for Misfits to attract talent that resonates with their audience, we then analysed the players with the highest Football ranking to measure their social media followings. This resulted in the Social ranking which is again shown in the table above.
The Football ranking was then divided by games played and multiplied by the Social ranking to give the final Misfits Score, and the top 15 most suitable former footballers to be picked up by the KSI-led promotion.