Behold! Some of the greatest One-Club Footballers in history

With all the money in football, loyalty seems to have gone out of the window. However, despite the multi-million pound wages, endorsements and glamour, some players still carved a niche for themselves. They stayed put with just one club throughout their careers notwithstanding the challenges of the club. So considering all that we take a look at some of the greatest one-club footballers in history…

Maldini

Paulo Maldini: AC Milan (1985-2009)

Probably one of the greatest defender in the history of football, Maldini spent 24 successful years at Milan. He won every trophy possible plus 2006 world cup for Italy. He made around 900 appearances for Milan and won multiple European titles and many domestic cups and league.

Ryan Giggs: Manchester United (1987- 2014)

One of the greatest Manchester United players, Ryan Giggs tearing defenses apart for three decades. He has most united appearances than any other player, the most decorated player in the history of English football. Teams like Inter Milan and Barcelona approached him in the early 2000’s but he is a one-club man and ended his career at United.

Totti

Francesco Totti: AS Roma (1992-present)

Totti has made around 700 appearances for AS Roma and is icon of the team since very young age. He was the main player for Fabio Capello, which won the Serie A title back in 2002. Totti is still going strong and is captain of the team.

Matthew Le Tissier, Southampton (1986-2002)

Ever watched tape of the greatest goals in premier league? Matt Le Tissier comes a few times in the top 10 best goals ever scored in premier league. Le Tissier scored 210 goals for Southampton in his 16 year career with 540 appearances to his name.

Adams

Tony Adams, Arsenal (1983-2002)

Adams spent 19 years at Highbury, a time which saw many ups and downs but Adams managed to put his name in the history book making near to 700 appearances for Arsenal plus winning a few league titles.

Carles Puyol, FC Barcelona (1996-2014)

Puyol

He was an integral part of most successes Barcelona recorded in last decade. Puyol made around 400 appearances. He won three champions league titles and 6 league titles with highly successful Barcelona side.

Franco Baresi, AC Milan (1977-1997)

Baresi

One more Italian wall, Baresi was the greatest Italian defender and played for AC Milan from 1977 to 1997, had a big impact on Paolo Maldini career. Three European cups and 6 Serie A titles in his 20 years of career making more than 700 appearances.

Thomas Schaaf, Werder Bremen (1978-1995)

Now here is one-club man in true sense, Schaaf started his career with Bremen back in 1978 and played for 18 years making almost 550 appearances and won two Bundesliga titles, and in 1999 he became the head coach of Werder Bremen and guided them to a Bundesliga title.

Rogerio Ceni, Sao Paulo (1992-2013)

The great Brazilian goal scoring keeper, who won the world cup with Brazil and played over 900 games for Sao Paulo from 1992 to 2013. He is a legend in his own right as not only is a world class keeper but also good at taking free-kicks and penalties.

Gary Neville, Manchester United (1992–2011)

One off the “golden generation” member, came through united academy and captained Manchester United in his last couple of seasons. He played a few great seasons under Sir Alex Ferguson with David Beckham on the right midfield. He had more than 600 appearances for United.

Lionel Messi, FC Barcelona (2004-present)

Three champions league title, five La Liga titles and countless other domestic cups. Recently he revealed that he will spend the rest of his footballing career at Barcelona. If he spends rest of his career at Barcelona he will surely top the list of greatest one-club men.

Sir Trevor Brooking, West Ham United (1967–1984)

Spent entire career at West Ham scoring 88 goals in 530 appearances, he was also part of England setup.  He managed West ham on two brief occasions.

Jamie Carragher, Liverpool (1997-2013)

Carragher

Played more than 500 games for Liverpool, was key player alongside Steven Gerrard in the 2000’s. 16 year career of Carragher came to an end without the league title but he has some European glory and domestic cup successes.

Paul Scholes, Manchester United (1993-2013)

Scholes

When Paul Scholes retired at the end of last season, there was an outpouring of gratitude from Manchester United fans, as well as footballing fans in general. Scholes racked up 466 appearances and 102 goals for Manchester United.

Note: These are just few of the notable ones, more payers are still playing but there is possibility that they might move before the end of their careers.