#6 Gennaro Gattuso
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For most of the noughties, Gennaro Gattuso epitomized the image of the footballing hardman at the highest echelons of football.
Having represented Perugia and then Rangers, the defensive midfielder with the fearsome temper really came into his own with his 1999 move to Italian giants AC Milan. His immense work-rate and defensive nous allowed Milan to thrive on the club stage, and his crazy temper made them a fearful outfit to face.
The fans loved him, his teammates loved him and opponents were absolutely infuriated by him - he was the ideal club superstar. He slapped future teammate Zlatan Ibrahimovic when the young Swede was still in Ajax. He throttled Tottenham coach Joe Jordan as Redknapp's Tottenham tried to overwhelm Milan and - as expected - he was tasked with literally breaking down their attacks. That earned him a 5 match ban. He also snatched a yellow card off a Swiss referee's hand in 2012 as his career wound down.
For all his madness, however, he was a huge champion. A 2006 World Cup title was just the icing on the cake with 2 Champions League titles, 2 Serie A titles, 2 Super Cup titles, 2 Supercopa titles, 1 Coppa Italia and 1 Club World Cup medal all hung around his neck.
In true Gattuso style, he celebrated the World Cup win by taking his pants off!
“Either you do things seriously or you don't do them at all” - On a player’s performance
