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Top 10 Players Who Wouldn't Dare Hand In A Transfer Request - Alessandro Del Piero, Ryan Giggs And Many More
Club loyalty may be dying out in the modern game but it hasn't always been the case...
Jan 23, 2011 2:00:00 PM
By Patrick Reilly
10) Pele (Santos)
Yes, we know Pele wound down his career with the New York Cosmos and has endorsed everything from credit cards to Viagra since but as a player he was loyal to Santos for 18 years.
"Real Madrid wanted me, along with Manchester United and Juventus," he told Eurocalcio in a 2009 interview.
Pele added, "In fact, the Juventus president almost reached a deal with Santos which included support from Fiat. I thought about coming to Europe a lot, but I preferred to stay with the team in my heart, Santos."
Another goalkeeper who remained loyal to one club - Bayern Munich. Maier was a fixture between the sticks for the Bavarians for 17 years winning numerous titles as well as the World Cup with the nationalmannschaft in 1974.
No doubt Maier would be proud of Danish keeper Lars Hogh who spent a remarkable 23 years with Odense BK clocking up over 800 games before retiring in 2000.
Born in Guernsy Le Tiss was eligible to play for France and in truth his sublime skills were more suitable to Les Bleus instead of the Three Lions. At one point in the mid 90s he threatened to make goal of the season his own personal prize and was offered a king's ransom to leave Southampton. His old Saints strike partner Alan Shearer wanted them to join forces at Blackburn Rovers while Manchester United were also interested.
Le Tissier remained at Southampton for his entire career and was so good Spanish genius Xavi Hernandez idolised him hailing his talent as 'sensational.'
Voted the greatest goalkeeper of the 20th century, Yashin was nicknamed the Black Spider due to his incredible reflexes. A veteran of three World Cup tournaments, as a player Yashin remains the only goalkeeper to win the Ballon d'Or which he earned in 1963. He played his entire 22 year career at Dynamo Moscow and remained at the club for a further two decades in an administrative capacity before his death in 1990.
Fellow great Russian shot stopper Rinat Dasayez spent most of his career with Dynamo's rivals Spartak Moscow before ending his career in Spain with Sevilla in the late 80s.
To effectively end Roberto Baggio's career at Juventus you have to be something special and Del Piero has demonstrated that on countless occasions since joining from Padova in 1993.
Often linked with moves to Spain and England during his long stint in Turin, the Bianconeri legend considered his options when Fabio Capello was in charge. When Don Fabio left for Spain in 2006 Del Piero stuck with Juventus through their season in Serie B and despite talk of a sensational move to Milan to wind down his career looks likely to end playing days at Juve.
He told Sky Italia recently, "They have been my history and I don't think I'd be able to play for another Italian side, so I hope to find an agreement to stay."
For football fans of a certain vintage the sight of Ceulemans patrolling the Belgian midfield with his trademark beard and rolled down socks is pure 1980s. He captained Belgium to fourth place in Mexico '86 and racked up a record 96 caps for his country.
Regarded as one of the best midfielders in the world during his prime, Ceulemans played his entire career in his native Belgium. He transferred from local club Lierse to Brugge for a club record in 1978 and stayed there for the next 14 yours ignoring overtures to move to Serie A during his heyday.
4) Carles Puyol (Barcelona)
For Paolo Maldini at Milan read Carles Puyol at Barcelona. It simply isn't possible to imagine the Spaniard's distinctive shaggy mane of hair popping up over anything other than a Blaugrana club shirt.
A first team veteran for over a decade, Puyol was willing to leave Barcelona in 2003 when Manchester United expressed an interest.
The defender said at the time, "United are one of the best clubs in the world and any footballer would be happy to play there.
"If it's for the good of the club I'll help out, but I'm happy here and this is home for me."
Barcelona's press secretary said in reply, "United are interested in the player but we are not interested in selling him. No-one at the club wants him to go but everyone is available if the offer is good enough."
Plata may not be a household name but in Central American football circles is a icon after two decades of goalscoring exploits. The striker broke numerous records playing for Municipal, winning 15 titles and the undying devotion of Guatemala for scoring a late equaliser against Brazil in 1998 to square the game at 1-1. Truly a legend in his own lifetime, Plata was the subject of a lavish documentay about his life and career back in 2006 when he was still playing!
A European Plata can be found in Norway with Rosenborg hero Roar Strand who won 16 league titles during 21 years with the club.
2) Ryan Giggs (Manchester United)
He may have started his career as a youngster at Manchester City but the Red Devils legend has never shown any desire to leave Old Trafford during his two decades of service. Milan were tipped to make a big money move for Giggs in the mid 90s while Inter President Massimo Moratti has always been a fan of the winger.
In 2003 Giggs was tipped to leave Manchester United and join Inter in a swap deal involving Brazilian striker Adriano. Giggs said of the possible move;
"I don't think there's ever been a serious possibility of me leaving this club. I went through a sticky patch around 2002/2003 and there were stories linking me to Inter but it was never close. Certainly not from my point of view anyway."
With 11 league titles and the possibility of more Giggs remains a class act at 37 years of age.
Cut Paolo Maldini and chances are he would bleed black and red, such is his long association with the Rossoneri. From making his debut as a 16 year old, wearing boots too small for him, to winning seven Scudetti and five European Cups Maldini was a constant presence in the Milan success story for over 20 years.
Along with his defensive partner Franco Baresi and fellow Italian international Giuseppe Bergomi he remained loyal to one club for his entire career. Maldini had plenty of chances to leave and said the closest he came was when Ruud Gullit tempted him to join Chelsea in 1997 when Milan were enduring a brief lean period.
Fans are now eagerly awaiting the progress of Maldini's two sons who are both in the Milan youth set up.
Yes, we know Pele wound down his career with the New York Cosmos and has endorsed everything from credit cards to Viagra since but as a player he was loyal to Santos for 18 years.
"Real Madrid wanted me, along with Manchester United and Juventus," he told Eurocalcio in a 2009 interview.
| Bet: | Returns: | Santos £15.71 | Draw £36.00 | Vélez Sarsfield £52.50 |
|
| Bet: | Returns: | Santos £16.00 | Draw £37.50 | Vélez Sarsfield £50.00 |
|
| Bet: | Returns: | Santos £16.15 | Draw £35.00 | Vélez Sarsfield £50.00 |
|
| Bet: | Returns: | Santos £16.20 | Draw £38.00 | Vélez Sarsfield £55.00 |
|
Pele added, "In fact, the Juventus president almost reached a deal with Santos which included support from Fiat. I thought about coming to Europe a lot, but I preferred to stay with the team in my heart, Santos."
Another goalkeeper who remained loyal to one club - Bayern Munich. Maier was a fixture between the sticks for the Bavarians for 17 years winning numerous titles as well as the World Cup with the nationalmannschaft in 1974.
No doubt Maier would be proud of Danish keeper Lars Hogh who spent a remarkable 23 years with Odense BK clocking up over 800 games before retiring in 2000.
Born in Guernsy Le Tiss was eligible to play for France and in truth his sublime skills were more suitable to Les Bleus instead of the Three Lions. At one point in the mid 90s he threatened to make goal of the season his own personal prize and was offered a king's ransom to leave Southampton. His old Saints strike partner Alan Shearer wanted them to join forces at Blackburn Rovers while Manchester United were also interested.
Le Tissier remained at Southampton for his entire career and was so good Spanish genius Xavi Hernandez idolised him hailing his talent as 'sensational.'
Voted the greatest goalkeeper of the 20th century, Yashin was nicknamed the Black Spider due to his incredible reflexes. A veteran of three World Cup tournaments, as a player Yashin remains the only goalkeeper to win the Ballon d'Or which he earned in 1963. He played his entire 22 year career at Dynamo Moscow and remained at the club for a further two decades in an administrative capacity before his death in 1990.
Fellow great Russian shot stopper Rinat Dasayez spent most of his career with Dynamo's rivals Spartak Moscow before ending his career in Spain with Sevilla in the late 80s.
To effectively end Roberto Baggio's career at Juventus you have to be something special and Del Piero has demonstrated that on countless occasions since joining from Padova in 1993.
Often linked with moves to Spain and England during his long stint in Turin, the Bianconeri legend considered his options when Fabio Capello was in charge. When Don Fabio left for Spain in 2006 Del Piero stuck with Juventus through their season in Serie B and despite talk of a sensational move to Milan to wind down his career looks likely to end playing days at Juve.
He told Sky Italia recently, "They have been my history and I don't think I'd be able to play for another Italian side, so I hope to find an agreement to stay."
For football fans of a certain vintage the sight of Ceulemans patrolling the Belgian midfield with his trademark beard and rolled down socks is pure 1980s. He captained Belgium to fourth place in Mexico '86 and racked up a record 96 caps for his country.
Regarded as one of the best midfielders in the world during his prime, Ceulemans played his entire career in his native Belgium. He transferred from local club Lierse to Brugge for a club record in 1978 and stayed there for the next 14 yours ignoring overtures to move to Serie A during his heyday.
4) Carles Puyol (Barcelona)
For Paolo Maldini at Milan read Carles Puyol at Barcelona. It simply isn't possible to imagine the Spaniard's distinctive shaggy mane of hair popping up over anything other than a Blaugrana club shirt.
A first team veteran for over a decade, Puyol was willing to leave Barcelona in 2003 when Manchester United expressed an interest.
The defender said at the time, "United are one of the best clubs in the world and any footballer would be happy to play there.
"If it's for the good of the club I'll help out, but I'm happy here and this is home for me."
Barcelona's press secretary said in reply, "United are interested in the player but we are not interested in selling him. No-one at the club wants him to go but everyone is available if the offer is good enough."
Plata may not be a household name but in Central American football circles is a icon after two decades of goalscoring exploits. The striker broke numerous records playing for Municipal, winning 15 titles and the undying devotion of Guatemala for scoring a late equaliser against Brazil in 1998 to square the game at 1-1. Truly a legend in his own lifetime, Plata was the subject of a lavish documentay about his life and career back in 2006 when he was still playing!
A European Plata can be found in Norway with Rosenborg hero Roar Strand who won 16 league titles during 21 years with the club.
2) Ryan Giggs (Manchester United)
He may have started his career as a youngster at Manchester City but the Red Devils legend has never shown any desire to leave Old Trafford during his two decades of service. Milan were tipped to make a big money move for Giggs in the mid 90s while Inter President Massimo Moratti has always been a fan of the winger.
In 2003 Giggs was tipped to leave Manchester United and join Inter in a swap deal involving Brazilian striker Adriano. Giggs said of the possible move;
"I don't think there's ever been a serious possibility of me leaving this club. I went through a sticky patch around 2002/2003 and there were stories linking me to Inter but it was never close. Certainly not from my point of view anyway."
With 11 league titles and the possibility of more Giggs remains a class act at 37 years of age.
Cut Paolo Maldini and chances are he would bleed black and red, such is his long association with the Rossoneri. From making his debut as a 16 year old, wearing boots too small for him, to winning seven Scudetti and five European Cups Maldini was a constant presence in the Milan success story for over 20 years.
Along with his defensive partner Franco Baresi and fellow Italian international Giuseppe Bergomi he remained loyal to one club for his entire career. Maldini had plenty of chances to leave and said the closest he came was when Ruud Gullit tempted him to join Chelsea in 1997 when Milan were enduring a brief lean period.
Fans are now eagerly awaiting the progress of Maldini's two sons who are both in the Milan youth set up.
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