10 players who played the most minutes in the Premier League in the last five seasons

3) Ryan Shawcross – Stoke City: 14,301 minutes

Shawcross has been at Stoke City since 2008

Stoke City’s Ryan Shawcross is yet another defender who has constantly averaged more than 30 games a season. In spite of playing only 20 games last season due to a recurring back injury that required surgery, the English defender has marshalled Mark Hughes’ back-line ever since he took the captain’s armband in 2010.

Infamous for the tackle that almost ended Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey’s career, Shawcross bounced back from the criticism and vitriol that was directed at him. However, he never managed to get an England call-up after his debut against Sweden – the game where Zlatan Ibrahimovic effectively ended Shawcross’ international career with a sublime hat-trick.

With Stoke, however, Shawcross has managed to keep them in the Premier League ever since their promotion but they always seem to be stuck in the league’s doldrums no matter who they sign.