Australian Footballers: "Mr. Aggressive" - Kevin Muscat

D.O.B: August 7, 1973 (38)Position: DefenderStatus: Retired – Assistant coach at Melbourne VictoryClubs: Sunshine George Cross, Heidelberg United, South Melbourne, Crystal Palace, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Glasgow Rangers, Millwall, Melbourne VictoryNational Team: Australia (51 games, 10 goals)AchievementsRangers: SPL Championship, Scottish Cup, Scottish league Cup – 2002-03Melbourne Victory: A-League Championship – 2006-07 and 2008-09 A-League Premiership – 2006-07 and 2008-09 Melbourne Victory Medal – 2005-06, 2006-07, 2008-09Australia: OFC Nations Cup – 2000 and 2004Behind the hatred people have of Kevin Muscat, he is a fine defender of this era. Muscat was strong at the center of midfield in his early days and then later, when he movied into the center of defence.

He is a legend to Australian football, even though some may disagree. But with a good European career and also national career, you can’t hide the fact that he is an icon to Australian football.

The bad side of Muscat was his aggression. On FIFA 11, he had the 3rd highest aggression out of any other player and this was a mid 60’s rated player in the A-League. Seasons on, he would get lots of yellows and red cards. In his 6 seasons at Melbourne Victory, he got 38 yellows and 5 reds.

In 1996, he was sent off for Crystal Palace after ‘body checking’ a player, which led to a 21 man bust up where Arsenal striker Ian Wright called him a ‘lowlife’ and ‘nobody’. Then in 1999, he was dubbed the ‘most hated man in football’ by former Birmingham player Martin Grainger, after yet another reckless tackle.

Over the next couple of years, Muscat continually got in trouble with slide tackles from behind which brought more suspensions. Whilst at Millwall, he was threatened by the Chief Executive saying that he needs to ‘clean up his act’ if he wants to stay at the football club.

In 2004, Muscat was involved in a lawsuit brought by former Charlton Athletic player Matty Holmes after Muscat tackled him in which Holmes almost lost his leg. The settlement ended up being £750,000.

He also came up against Liverpool striker Milan Baros, where he grabbed him by the throat in the 2004 FA Cup final. He continued to get suspensions throughout his European career and finally decided to come home in 2005.

You have to think past his aggressive nature to actually see what a player Muscat was if he stayed on the pitch. Up until he retired, he was still agile and giving 100% every week and was a pivotal player in Melbourne Victory’s double-winning seasons in 2007 and 2009, and was a fantastic captain on and off the pitch.

Sadly Muscat’s career ended on a low note, after going through the whole 2008-09 and 2009-10 season without a red card and then announcing his retirement, ready for his last season in 2010-11.

In Round 22, he received a red card for elbowing Adam Hughes in the face and received a one match ban, but what happened on the 22nd of January on his return in Melbourne Derby will be forever remembered.

In that match, Muscat put in a horror tackle on young Melbourne Heart player Adrian Zahra which was seen around the world, with The Sun calling it “one of the worst tackles in football history.” He received a 9 match ban which ended his A-League career and Zahra hasn’t played since, but is on the road to recovery. Muscat is a player Australian football fans love to hate. But if you ignore his aggressive nature, he is a true legend to Melbourne Victory and also Australia. He is currently the Melbourne Victory assistant coach. Over his 23 year career, Muscat’s received 123 yellows and 12 red cards.