Toney, Cantona and the longest player suspensions in English football’s top division

Suspensions are commonplace in football, with players being banned from games as a result of the red cards and yellow cards they can pick up in a match.

Though these suspensions typically last one game, throughout the history of the English top division many players have found themselves on the sidelines for long periods because of off-the-field issues or taking things to an extreme level on the pitch.

Let's look at the longest suspensions in English top-division history.

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In 1998, former Sheffield Wednesday striker Paulo Di Canio was banned for 11 games and fined £10,000 for pushing referee Paul Alcock onto the ground after being sent off, as reported by INews.

BBC reported that former Liverpool star Luis Suarez was banned from 'all football-related activities' in 2014 for four months after biting Italy's Giorgio Chiellini at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

According to SportsBible, football hardman Vinnie Jones was suspended for six months in 1992 for glorifying football violence in a video. He was charged with bringing the game into disrepute.

Kolo Toure was banned for six months in 2011 while playing for Manchester City after testing positive on a drugs test. The former defender claimed he failed the test after taking his wife's water tablets.

In 2004, Romanian International and Chelsea striker Adrian Mutu admitted to testing positive for cocaine, ultimately ending his Chelsea career and being banned from football for seven months.

In one of the most recent examples, Brentford striker Ivan Toney was banned from football for eight months in 2023 and fined £50,000 after breaching 232 of the Football Association's betting rules, As reported by Al Jazeera.

The Brentford and England striker returned to 'The Bees' on January 20 2024 against Nottingham Forest, scoring the team's opening goal in a 3-2 win.

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The Guardian reported that Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand was banned from football for eight months after failing to complete a drug test in September 2003.

An independent tribunal in charge of the investigation found the player guilty of misconduct after being selected to supply a sample by UK Sport.

The most infamous ban in English football happened in 1995 after Manchester United striker Eric Cantona 'Kung Fu' kicked a Crystal Palace fan, resulting in a nine-month suspension from football, as covered by the BBC.

According to the BBC, Cantona claimed he attacked the fan because he shouted racial insults and threw a missile at him as he walked off the pitch.

At a disciplinary hearing in 2002, Australian and Chelsea goalkeeper Mark Bosnich was found guilty of improper conduct and testing positive for a banned substance.

According to Skysports, former PFA chairman Greg Taylor stated, "Mark claims his drink was spiked but, while duty bound to give it consideration, it was a guilty verdict with a scale of penalties weighted down."

In 2017, Turbulent footballer Joey Barton had his career effectively finished after being banned from football for 18 months, admitting to betting misconduct.

Barton accepted charges that accused him of placing 1,260 bets on football matches between 2006 and 2013, according to ESPN.

In 1915, former Manchester United player Enoch West was banned for life after being found guilty of match-fixing. West later protested his innocence, and his ban was lifted in 1945, aged 59, as reported by SportsBible.

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