16 Tallest Players in Premier League History [Ranked]

Football players come in all shapes and sizes – and the case is no different in the sport’s most-watched division: the Premier League. While some use their diminutive size to weave in and out of players and stay afoot in the tightest of spaces, there’s something weirdly majestic about watching an abnormally tall footballer do his thing.

Whether it’s a goalkeeper fills the sticks, a centre-back that dominates aerial duels or a striker that is often used as an old school target man, the tallest players often stick out like a sore thumb, purely because of how they tower above everyone else on the turf. Many of the all-time footballing greats have been on the shorter end of the height spectrum, take Argentina duo Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona for example, though being tall does have its uses on a football pitch, especially for those who typically use their hands rather than their feet.

This list looks at the 16 tallest players to ever step foot in a Premier League fixture, and there are some real throwback names who make it.

16 Sasa Kalajdzic – 200 cm

The Austrian’s time in the Premier League didn’t exactly get off a flyer after putting pen to paper in the summer of 2022. A five-year deal was rolled out in front of the large-statured frontman as Wolverhampton Wanderers looked to alleviate their goalscoring issues. Instead, on his debut in September, Sasa Kalajdzic suffered a season-ending ACL injury having played just 45 minutes for the Old Gold. If the striker thought he had put that issue behind him, then he was sadly mistaken. Kalajdzic suffered another knee injury while on loan at Eintracht Frankfurt in February 2024, with it being the third significant issue to do with his knee. Wolves fans will be hoping he can overcome another huge setback and really showcase his potential on the pitch.

15 Thibaut Courtois – 200 cm

A Premier League great, Thibaut Courtois established himself as one of modern football’s greatest goalkeepers while at Chelsea. Standing at 200 cm, his imposing silhouette in between the sticks was enough to strike fear into the finest of strikers during his west London days. Even better, the Belgian uses his height to his advantage even to this day with Real Madrid, commanding incoming set pieces and decreasing angles for strikers to shoot at. Once he hangs up his gloves, he will be well-placed alongside the likes of Manuel Neuer and Gianluigi Buffon as the best of the best – and not because of his height. A Champions League winner with Los Blancos, the big Belgian has seen it and done it all at club level.

14 Dan Burn

201 cm

Newcastle born and bred, Dan Burn, who makes the Premier League’s tallest XI, was a paramount aspect of Eddie Howe’s success in Tyneside, most notably their return to the Champions League for the 2023/2024 campaign. The 31-year-old enjoyed the trials and tribulations of English football before getting his chance to perform at its highest level, having endured stints at Darlington, Yeovil and Wigan.

Plying his trade at centre-back for the majority of career, a switch to left-back occurred while under Graham Potter’s watchful eye at Brighton & Hove Albion and the role change has persisted since, following his to Tyneside. A threat at both ends of the pitch, his game encapsulates much more about being a footballer given he is defensively astute and overly calm in possession of the ball.

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13 Fraser Forster

201 cm

Now out of favour at Tottenham Hotspur given the arrival of Guglielmo Vicario in the summer of 2023, Fraser Forster chalked up 148 games in the Premier League for both Spurs and Southampton. Throughout his career, the six-cap Englishman has struggled to cement himself as a sure-fire starter at a top club, though enjoyed the majority of success in Scotland with Celtic, a club in which he won four league titles and three Scottish Cup trophies at.

While things may not have exactly gone swimmingly in England’s topflight for the 35-year-old, there’s no doubt that he is a solid goalkeeper and is one of the tallest at that – standing at 201 cm tall.

12 Paul Onuachu

201 cm

Now on loan at Turkish Süper Lig side Trabzonspor, Paul Onuachu, who is 201 cm in height, failed to set England alight after joining Southampton in January 2023. Making his debut for the now Championship side in February, he failed to replicate his prolific form that people saw on show for Gent with transfer insider Dean Jones previously telling GIVEMESPORT that Onuachu’s situation in England was ‘confusing’.

Limited to 11 Premier League games in his career thus far, the 29-year-old Nigerian evidently has plenty more to give and will look to stamp his authority upon his return on the basis that the Saints achieve their objective of an immediate bounce back to the topflight.

Read more: Premier League’s 20 biggest flops ever (Ranked)

11 Stefan Postma

201 cm

Often filling the majority of the goal with his large frame, Stefan Postma barely got the opportunity to do so in the Premier League. The now 47-year-old made just 11 league appearances for Aston Villa as he was limited to a bit-part role during his four-year stay at the club between 2002 and 2006.

While failing to become the number one choice with the Villains, Postma opted to remain in the Midlands vicinity and join Wolverhampton Wanderers and enjoyed a 32-game season before being shipped off back to his native country of the Netherlands. The Dutchman also struggled to impress at international level and has just one cap, at U21 level, to his name.

10 Lars Leese

201 cm

Lars Leese once held the record for being the tallest player in the storied history of the Premier League after making nine appearances for Barnsley in the late 90s. Arriving for a mere £250,000, the Cologne-born ace was largely seen as a back-up to the first-choice stoppers at his respective clubs.

Now 54, Leese only racked up 119 appearances across his 16-year stint as a footballer and called time on his career at his boyhood club as he returned in 2003 for a two-season period. Standing at 201 cm, Leese – despite his short stint in England – finds himself on the list.

9 Ian Feuer

201 cm

More prominently known for his stints in England’s lower leagues, Ian Feuer became the joint-tallest goalkeeper to earn his corn in the Premier League when he returned to play for West Ham United, albeit for just three times, in the 2000/01 campaign.

The 201 cm-tall shot stopper previously endured a two-season spell in east London between 1994 and 1996 though failed to make an appearance. Born in Las Vegas, Feuer retired in 2002 – while playing for Wolves – with one international cap added to his CV and has now turned his hand to goalkeeping coaching at Los Angeles in the MLS.

8 Stefan Maierhofer

202 cm

Joining Mick McCarthy at Wolves in 2009 was Stefan Maierhofer, who stood at a towering 202 cm. Starting out his career in Bavaria for Bayern Munich, the Austrian frontman went on to be quite the journeyman having featured for 23 sides during his playing days – but he will be best remembered for being that ‘tall guy’ that played up top in the fabled gold strip of Wolves.

The striker, that stood at 202 cm, pulled the curtains on his career over the summer, aged 41, having played the majority of his games for Rapid Vienna (60) and is now working as a coach at Burgenland U18s.

7 Nikola Zigic

202 cm

Birmingham City’s giant Nikola Zigic. Remember him? The Serbian striker joined the then Premier League club from Valencia in 2010 for a fee around the £6 million mark and scored in the League Cup final against Arsenal as the Brummies secured their first trophy since 1963. Football’s archetypal outlet, Zigic proved his worth in front of goal for Red Star Belgrade but failed to hit the grade in England, however.

Unfortunately for Zigic, his large stature only blessed the English topflight for one season as Alex McLeish’s side succumbed to relegation on the final day, though he will always be remembered for leading Birmingham to one of their finest days of their history.

Read more: Clubs with the most Ballon d’Or wins

6 Peter Crouch

202 cm

The man. The myth. The legend. Peter Crouch, thanks to his towering presence, leads the league’s all-time charts for headed goals – but his skillset had much more to it than that. Much more than an outlet, the former Liverpool striker scored some absolute world-beaters during his time on the pitch but will largely be remembered for making those of an average height look tiny.

Having earnt his corn at a plethora of English clubs, Crouch enjoyed a 467-game career at the highest of levels, scoring 106 goals and providing a further 68 assists in that sequence. An iconic figure of the sport.

5 Lacina Traore

203 cm

Enduring a very, very short spell in the Premier League with Everton in 2013/14, Lacina Traore still qualifies for the list. In fact, he is only on the list by virtue of a last-minute substitution on the final day of the season. Bursting onto the scene as a keen teenager with Cluj, the Ivory Coast international, who is now without a club, got his big money move to Russian club Anzhi, though never managed to stamp his authority wherever he ended up.

Instead, he became a journeyman and endured tumultuous stints at the likes of Monaco, Sporting Gijon, and Amiens as he never quite lived up to his name, despite being named as one of Football Manager’s wonderkids in 2012.

4 Costel Pantilimon

203 cm

Best remembered for his days at Manchester City, where he largely acted as Joe Hart’s understudy, Costel Pantilimon racked up 54 appearances in the English topflight for a triumvirate of clubs: City, Sunderland, and Watford. A move to Nottingham Forest is also added to his list of English sides, though that was in the form of Championship football.

The goalkeeper, who is considered to be one of the luckiest players to have a Premier League title to his name, never quite got the chance he deserved in England. Now 36 years of age and retired, the 27-cap Romania international will hold a very dear place in the hearts of Premier League fans for being the second-tallest player to ever grace the league.

3 Carlos Miguel

204 cm

The newest signing on this list, Carlos Miguel hasn’t been a Premier League player for very long. The goalkeeper joined Nottingham Forest in the summer of 2024 and instantly became one of the tallest players in the history of the division. Despite being 25 years old, the Brazilian doesn’t have much experience in senior football, with just 33 appearances throughout his entire career.

It remains to be seen how heavily he’ll feature in Forest’s plans, but standing at 6 ft 8 in, the keeper will cut a rather imposing figure whether he’s merely sitting on the bench or in between the sticks.

2 Lucas Bergstrom

205 cm

Having spent time in Chelsea’s youth academy, Lucas Bergstrom arrived at the club in 2018 as a 16-year-old, and in the years since, his height has skyrocketed, making him the second-tallest player in the history of the Premier League. The young goalkeeper is yet to actually make an appearance in the division, but that doesn’t take away his status as one of the tallest players in its history.

The Finnish international recently extended his contract at Stamford Bridge, though, so there’s as good a chance as any that he might get his first game in the Premier League somewhere down the line.

1 Kjell Scherpen

206 cm

Standing at an eye-catching 206 cm, the Dutchman joined Brighton from Ajax back in 2021, though was reduced to the one fixture during his time in the Premier League Kjell Scherpen has endured a host of spells at KV Oostende and Vitesse as the Brighton higher-ups look to give him plentiful experience in senior football.

The youngster, now at Sturm Graz on loan, has made 18 appearances for his nation’s U21 side and his regarded as one of their finest goalkeeping exports of recent times. Still just 23, there is plenty of time for Scherpen to instate himself as a household name in England, though will already be one among the sharp-eyed viewers given his place in this list. Remember the name.

Statistics courtesy of WorldFootball.net and accurate as of 17/07/2024