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Most football fans would think of James Tarkowski as a solid, dependable sort of defender who can be relied upon each week to deliver a strong 7/10 performance. He is a bit old school, a no-nonsense player who is unlikely to be seen on Instagram showing off a new hairstyle or his latest electric pink supercar. He is not a player who seeks the spotlight and to use a bit of Ronglish (that’s classic football-speak, as pioneered by Ron Atkinson) he is very much one of football’s solid citizens.
However, as if more proof was needed that the world really is going mad, in recent weeks Tarkowski has been attracting more attention that Donald Trump. OK, well that is clearly impossible, but he’s certainly pushing the orange one close. First there was the defender’s unstoppable volley in the 98th minute of the Merseyside derby. Then, in the reverse fixture, there was the furore over his tackle on Alexis Mac Allister, for which he received a yellow card which, amazingly in the eyes of many, was not upgraded to red by VAR.
Now, following his booking against Arsenal in Everton’s recent 1-1 draw with Arsenal, the former Brentford and Burnley centre back has made history. Tarky collected his 64th Premier League yellow card in the 63rd minute against the Gunners and that booking moved him out in front in a rather niche metric. He now has the most bookings of any player in Premier League history without ever seeing red.
Tarkowski – Dirtiest Player Never to Be Sent Off?
The PGMOL have acknowledged that James Tarkowski should have been shown with a red card for his tackle on Alexis Mac Allister last night. ❌ pic.twitter.com/eJpsOr07QY
— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) April 3, 2025
Tarkowski, who was 32 in November, was booked for a foul on Arsenal youngster Myles Lewis-Skelly. That was his 64th yellow card in the Premier League but he has somehow managed to avoid seeing red. That either makes him the dirtiest player in Premier League history never to have been sent off, or perhaps the most cunning defender. Depending on your point of view, he has either shown incredible self-control, or alternatively he has just got lucky.
The truth is probably a bit of both, with the Manchester-born defender certainly a little fortuitous to have avoided a red in the Merseyside derby for his tackle on Mac Allister, even if he did very much take the ball first. But Tarkowski, who has also played for Oldham, Brentford and Burnley – as well as twice for England – is also an incredibly experienced defender.
He knows how to look after himself and his teammates on the pitch and knows exactly where the line is when it comes to what he can get away with. He has probably crossed the line more than once but in general he has the awareness and self-control to keep himself out of trouble once he has been booked.
It is also noteworthy that he has now gone 301 top-flight clashes without being dismissed. That is a lot of football and adds credence to the notion that he knows how to walk the line. He is physical, aggressive and always ready to step in to back his teammates up – but has managed to do so without incurring the ultimate sanction from Premier League referees.
Whose Record Did He Take?
Prior to his most recent caution, Everton’s defender was tied with Oriol Romeu on 63 yellows without a red. Romeu, who played for Chelsea and Southampton in the Premier League, and now is with Girona on loan from Barca, managed to collect his “impressive” haul of bookings from just 239 appearances in the English top flight.
His bookings-per-game ratio, is therefore, far greater than Tarkowski’s, and the Spaniard was certainly known as a highly combative player. Instinctively one might assume that central defenders would be among the most-booked players but this is far from the case. Whilst Tarky may now top this particular list, most of the others beneath him play in more advanced positions.
Centre backs generally have the play in front of them and so can see the picture of the pitch more clearly and tend to avoid having to over-commit. Moreover, most of the duels and big tackles occur in midfield. Also, crucially, much of the work done by centre backs tends to be in their own box, so avoiding fouls, let alone bookings, is vital.
Romeu was, indeed still is, a strong-tackling, very physical player and his role to shield the defence and break up attacks means he has no doubt collected a good few yellow cards making tactical fouls. Behind the Spaniard with 62 PL yellow cards (from 378 games) but no red ones, is Luke Young. Young was a right back who played seven times for England and plied his trade at Spurs, Charlton, Boro, Aston Villa and QPR.
Tarkowski, Romeu and Young are the only players with 60 or more bookings that have managed to avoid ever seeing PL red. Ashley Westwood and James McArthur both collected 52 yellows, with the latter an archetypal battling midfielder. Joel Ward and Chris Brunt are next with 50 bookings each whilst Ruben Neves comes next with 46.
Neves is a surprising entry on this list because he only played 177 times in the PL for Wolves before moving to Saudi Arabia. Leighton Baines was also booked 46 times but never sent off in the top flight but he made around two and a half times as many appearances as the Portuguese midfielder, playing 420 matches.
One man who comes close to matching Neves in terms of the prolific rate at which he has collected bookings is fellow Lusophone, Joelinton. The Brazilian is still playing and given his forceful style of play he is sure to move up this list in the years ahead. The Newcastle United midfielder has been booked 45 times in 182 games for the Magpies and given he is 28 years old he is, perhaps, a contender to move past Tarkowski if he plays out the rest of his career in the North East, which is certainly possible.