One-club players are rare and precious.
The likes of Paolo Maldini, Raul, Steven Gerrard and Paul Scholes might be handsomely paid by their clubs, but the fact they have spurned chances to get even richer elsewhere suggests they share at least some of the fans’ devotion to the colours they wear.
Inter Milan’s Patrick Vieira recognised this recently when talking about his former Juventus team mate Alessandro Del Piero.
“What I like about him, and envy a little, is that he has played all his career for the same team and won everything with that team,” Vieira told La Gazzetta dello Sport.
Indeed, Del Piero has a good claim to being the world’s top one-club man.
Five Serie A titles and a Champions League are part of the 34-year-old’s trophy haul at Juventus. He also holds the Turin club’s record for appearances and goals — he netted his 250th for Juve in Saturday’s 4-0 win at Reggina.
AC Milan’s Maldini has more Serie A and Italy appearances than Del Piero, Real Madrid’s Raul has scored more European goals and both have won more Champions Leagues, as have Scholes and his Manchester United team mate Ryan Giggs.
Del Piero probably trumps them all though because he has a World Cup-winner’s medal in his cabinet.
What’s more, Del Piero gets bonus club-loyalty points because he stuck with Juve when they were relegated for match-fixing in 2006, scoring 21 goals to help them to immediate promotion and finding the net as many times last season to fire them to a third-place finish on their return to the top flight.
Sticklers might argue that, strictly speaking, Del Piero is not a one-club man. He also played for Padova in Serie B before joining Juve in 1993, but I think it would be churlish to count a few seasons outside the big time when he was a teenager (if you’re too rigid Raul would fail the one-club test too as he played for Atletico Madrid’s academy before it was closed and he moved across town).
Nevertheless, my vote does not go to Alex but to another 2006 World Cup winner, AS Roma’s Francesco Totti.
Del Piero is a wonderful player but he has a tendency to blow hot and cold, while Totti has consistently been excellent in Serie A when fit.
And, unlike the other footballers I’ve mentioned, Totti did not have the fortune to start his career at a club regularly vying for domestic and European trophies.
He has less honours to his name, but only because he stayed true to Roma rather than succumbing to the courtship of clubs such as Real and Milan. In my book that sacrifice more than makes up for the European club trophy missing from his CV.
And if Roma are now a force to be reckoned with outside Italy, Totti deserves a large slice of the credit.
What do you think? Who would you give the top one-club player award to? Is there anyone I have overlooked altogether who’s more worthy?
PHOTO: Juve’s Alessandro Del Piero celebrates after scoring as AS Roma’s Francesco Totti watches during their Serie A match in Turin Feb. 16, 2008. REUTERS/Max Rossi
Trackback
40 comments so far
Previous | 2 | 1 | Next
maldini..900 caps for rossoneri.
- Posted by faris[...] the history between Barca-Real and Juve-Milan is the players on show. As Paul Virgo pointed out in a recent blog, these four sides are the home of the one-club player. Raul, Puyol, Xavi, Maldini and Del [...]
- Posted by You can’t beat Barca v Real or Juve against Milan | Sports 40[...] the history between Barca-Real and Juve-Milan is the players on show. As Paul Virgo pointed out in a recent blog, these four sides are the home of the one-club player. Raul, Puyol, Xavi, Maldini and Del [...]
- Posted by Football Parade | You can’t beat Barca v Real or Juve against Milan[...] the history between Barca-Real and Juve-Milan is the players on show. As Paul Virgo pointed out in a recent blog, these four sides are the home of the one-club player. Raul, Puyol, Xavi, Maldini and Del [...]
- Posted by You can’t beat Barca v Real or Juve against Milan | Soccer News Infoi’m surprised noboby hs mentioned the one and only edson arantes donascimento - PELE.
- Posted by chiku mteghaNeil Kennedy for Histon - 10 years, helped with 5 promotions, (no relegations) and 302 goals in that time - completely unmatched anywhere i believe.
- Posted by StuartI agree, Simon, that the fact that Maldini has been such a gent as well as one of the all-time great defenders makes him a strong candidate.
- Posted by Paul VirgoTotti certainly does not have the same spotless record and he’ll be remembered by many for the spitting incident at Euro 2004.
And you’re right that he has hinted about moving on from time to time. But I think the odd moment of weakness is forgivable given that Roma have had plenty of ups and downs and Totti was and is good enough to play for a bigger club.
Maybe it was easier for Maldini because Milan have been winning trophies regularly since he started playing. Totti and Del Piero, on the other hand, made career sacrifices to stay with their teams.
John Terry, ’nuff said.
- Posted by The Angry InternNot Totti.
Every other summer he made hints about leaving Roma or even raised the possibility outright in the papers. That’s not what a loyal one-club man does.
There were never reports of any serious bids for Totti - Roma always paid him plenty more than the rest of the players to make sure he wasn’t tempted though.
There is only one choice - Paolo Maldini. Won everything, behaved like a gent throughout, never blackmailed his club or turned against a coach in public. A true club man and also the best defender in the world over the past 20 years.
- Posted by Simon EvansPaolo Maldini
- Posted by vavaC’mon people, how hard is it to win trophies at ManU if you are there for 15+ years? Or in Milan? You only know Roma because of Totti, and he had some seriously lean years when he probably SHOULD have gone elsewhere. ManU and Milan can always afford to pay you.
- Posted by wacokidRAUL is that one
- Posted by salmaMALDINI
- Posted by SantiI think it would be between P.Scholes ,Maldini,Ryan Giggs and Del Piero - I Think the former three would be stronger candidates ,but mostly i take my hat off to Pauly as he has played and represented Man.U in such a loyal way that we barely saw any offers for him over the years.When players put on a jersey ,and take it off in such a way that makes a statement to the world,that ”dont even bother charming me up’ ,i think that is valuable to a club.Reliability is certainly hard to come by.Maldini and Giggsy arent far off from Pauly and could very well be placed in the same catagory ,,but Del.P had looked at other oppertnuities and there after chose to stay on,which every player has the right to.However keeping buyers at bay by mere conduct and performance has got to earn one the most praise-Well done to the Trio!!!
- Posted by TimRyan Giggs. Lived in Manchester since he was 6. Signed for the United’s youth club when he was 14. Debuted 90-91, before Ferguson’s team started dominating.
His haul.
10 domestic league titles
4 FA Cup winners medals
2 FA League Cup winners medals
2 Champions League winners medals
1 Intercontinental Cup winners medal
Giggs joins Best in being the greatest players never to compete in the World Cup finals.
- Posted by AndersenTOTTI TOTTI TOTTI TOTTI TOTTI TOTTI TOTTI TOTTI TOTTI
- Posted by MARCOI’d give it to Paolo Maldini just for the sheer number of years he’s been at the club. I mean, he *litterally* grew up in the AC Milan youth system: he’s been at the club since 1978. That’s over 30 years!!!!! And he’s turned into a real legend, both on and off the pitch.
- Posted by Marco P.Sao Paulo goalkeeper and captain Rogerio Ceni at least deserves a mention here. He has 16 had seasons at the club, winning the Brazilian championship, Libertadores Cup and World Club championship and has scored 83 goals from penalties and free kicks, making him the game’s highest-scoring keeper.
- Posted by Brian HomewoodI think Totti is better. talent wise and also personal achievement wise. as i have read before he is the calcio-all-time top scorer among the players that are still playin’. Plus the fact that he has rejected many offers from bigger teams but chose to continue with his childhood.
- Posted by JoeMy vote goes to steven gerrad because he achieved all troophy with lfc except epl troophy.so he deserve the award
- Posted by Chijioke ilo