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John Terry

I've seen the discussion about including the likes of John Terry and Steven Gerrard in the list. A one-club man is a one-club man and if he represented the club for 10 years or more he should be included even if he's still young. Besides both players have on many occations explained their desire to stay at their respective clubs until the end of their careers.

A little note: Steven Gerrard is indeed included but John Terry is missing.

Terry has also played for Nottingham Forest. - Dudesleeper / Talk 01:56, 8 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

"Famous for being at one club"

Shouldn't an article about "one-club men" stick to players who only played for one club?

Do you suggest a seperate article for 'players famous for being at one particular club?' Mark272 01:38, 28 November 2005 (UTC)[reply]
Several players on the first list played for more than one club. Isn't "famous for being at a certain club" a matter of opinion? SteveO
The second heading is mostly about longevity at a particular club, so it should probably be changed to clarify. I suppose the first list needs re-doing. Mark272 17:09, 29 November 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Second Section

I would argue about the inclusion of a number of players in the second section. The obvious one, and one I have now removed, is Dennis Bergkamp. I appreciate that he has been at Arsenal for a very long time, but the implication that he had not made his name until he joined the club is silly. He was a professional for some 10 years before joining the Gunners and won a total of three major European trophies before joining the club (compared with none since joining Arsenal). I remember him being a huge name when he played for Ajax and Inter (also worth mentioning that he spent 7 years at Ajax). Rje 00:05, 26 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

I would propose to remove the second section entirely, it doesn't fit in with the subject of the article and, in some cases, is so subjective as to be useless, as the above example shows. Does anyone have any objection to this? Leithp (talk) 12:54, 13 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]
It should go. "famous for being at one club" is merely a matter of opinion. Even the first section should be trimmed, since Billy Bonds played over 100 games for Charlton, Ron Harris played for Brentford right at the end of his career, David O'Leary played for Leeds etc etc. Also, John Terry and Steven Gerrard are in their mid-20's. Shouldn't the list be reserved for players who are retired? SteveO 15:56, 17 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

If Gerrard and Terry are in the list, then so should Paul McKenna of Preston North End - he has been there 12 seasons without playing for anybody else. Bezza. 10:50, 4 June 2008. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.244.179.100 (talk)


Okay, I'll remove it. I'll also remove Harris and O'Leary, per your comments. I also tend to agree regarding current players, for example when I was adding Scottish players I had no doubts about adding Willie Miller but I wouldn't have added Russell Anderson. Leithp (talk) 16:03, 17 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Okay, I've also removed Billy Bonds. On current players, I think it's best to stick to players who are known to have spent their entire professional career at one club, as the article states. SteveO 16:08, 17 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Sorry, I missed Billy Bonds. Wrt current players, Ryan Giggs and Paulo Maldini seem reasonable to have on the list, given the length of time they've been at their clubs, but Terry and Gerrard seem to be stretching it, as you say. We should probably also have less of a UK-bias to the entries, at present Maldini is the only non-Brit on the list. Any suggestions? Leithp (talk) 16:17, 17 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Maldini's been at Milan for 20-odd years, and is nearing the end of his career. He's unlikely to move away now, so it's reasonable to keep him. You could argue the same for Giggs. There should definitely be more non-British players here, and I'm sure there are plenty from the likes of Real Madrid, Juventus, Barca etc. But I can't think of any right now, though. I'll add them if I do. SteveO 16:27, 17 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Possibly introduce a cut-off of, say, 15 seasons for current players. Maldini is probably the best known (POV) one club man, and he's still going; Giggs is a bit touch-and-go, and Scholes even more so. Theoretically, if we're going to make this truly famous OCMs, the list could probably be pared down to Adams, Le Tissier and Maldini... Kinitawowi 21:36, 15 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I too have recommended 15 years as a minimum service length for inclusion in the article. I'll amend the article accordingly, with a reference pointing to the talk page. - Dudesleeper · Talk 16:00, 19 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Well, Gary Neville has not been removed yet. I should note that it was me that added some current United players, but each of G. Neville, Giggs, and Scholes has now been at the club 15 years and shown no desire to leave. Based on your proposed cut-off, putting Scholes back in. Perhaps we should also have a category for this? Less noteworthy categories exist. Pellucidity 06:14, 30 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I added some Italian one club man: Bergomi, Boniperti, Alessandro Mazzola... Gianni Rivera played his early years in Alessandria, Giuseppe Baresi (brother of Franco) spent all his career in Internazionale, but the last two seasons in Modena, Mariolino Corso always played for Inter but the last season in Genoa, Giuseppe Giannini spent almost his whole career at Roma, Gigi Riva played his first season in Legnano before moving to Cagliari: it's really difficult to find a one club man! P.S. sorry for the big amount of mistakes I made in writing, I'm not so good in English! --80.104.88.115 13:21, 25 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I had a terrible time finding the one club men that I added a couple of weeks ago, so I sympathise. I wasn't able to find any South American ones at all, though I'm sure there must be a few examples. Leithp 13:46, 25 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]
I've just found a couple now, though. Leithp 13:57, 25 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Ricardo Bochini and Antonio Rattín are already in the list. they are the best known examples in Argentina, but there are many others. From the rest of South America, I'm not sure. Well known one-club men from Spain are Carles Puyol (BCN), José Antonio Camacho (Real) and Pichichi (Bilbao). Mariano(t/c) 10:03, 29 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]


Nobody had added Francesco Totti in the list. Roma is his only club. I added him yesterday. Please check out and verify the same. -Warlord88

Steve Clarke

Played for St Mirren before moving to Chelsea. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 199.67.203.137 (talkcontribs)

Luigi Riva

I deleted Gigi Riva from the list: as I told in this page some months ago, Riva also played for Legnano. --Lanerossi 12:24, 21 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Vassilis Hatzipanagis

You can add Vassilis Hatzipanagis if you like. Ilakast 12:19, 25 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

He played 4 seasons in Pakhtakor. DenCA (talk) 01:30, 13 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Raul

Raul's barely turned 29. Isn't it a bit stupid to have him in the list, especially considering that he started his career at underage level with Athletico ? Niall123 17:43, 16 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I concur. I've removed Raul. SteveO 11:57, 17 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

In this case, I think only his relatively low age is an argument to not have him on the list. The fact that he spent 2 of his youth club years with Atlético Madrid shouldn't matter, imo, since he spent the 2 remaining youth years with Real Madrid, and has so far stayed with the latter for his entire professional career. -DraugenCP

Teodoro Lolo Fernandez and Jose Carranza

Teodoro Lolo Fernandez was a peruvian soccer player (1913-1996) had played only for Universitario de deportes from lima Peru since 1931 to 1953, he won 4 times the peruvian league and 6 times the leadership in goals (1932, 33, 34, 38, 40, 42 and 45), and he played the 1936 berlin olimpyc games, he won a america cup (1939) and he is the third most goaler in the american cup history. (see http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teodoro_%22Lolo%22_Fern%C3%A1ndez)

Jose Carranza (1964-)know as el puma, was a peruvian soccer player who had played only for universitario since 1986 to 2004, he won 7 peruvian leagues and played more than 60 clasic-games againts alianza lima. (see http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jos%C3%A9_Carranza)

both of players are one club men too

Giuseppe Baresi

Giuseppe Baresi didn't spend all his career at Inter, he played last 2 season in Modena. Anyway, I found him twice in the list and I deleted twice... --Lanerossi 22:42, 22 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Julen Guerrero

I believe Julen Guerrero was in Bilbao from 1992 to 2006 instead of 1982-1996 —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 213.22.98.47 (talk) 03:45, 26 January 2007 (UTC).[reply]

Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Gary Neville

All at Manchester United?

Re: Scholes, see below. - Dudesleeper · Talk 16:14, 19 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Eligible for list in 2008

Scholes is on the list now! Should it be now or 2008? Paulbrock 11:55, 1 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I removed him again. An annoying anonymous editor has an unhealthy obsession about including him in the list. - Dudesleeper · Talk 13:16, 1 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]
We can include all of the above now. - Dudesleeper · Talk 03:03, 2 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Eligible for list in 2009

Why is Raúl already included on the article? -Lemmy- (talk) 20:59, 12 March 2008 (UTC) [reply]

If Raúl is not removed, may I add the players above? -Lemmy- (talk) 16:55, 13 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]
Yep, the criteria has changed since the above list was made. - Dudesleeper / Talk 17:00, 13 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I should have stated in my edit summary that he has played for four senior clubs, not just clubs, since there are players in the list who have more than one team their infobox list. - Dudesleeper · Talk 09:44, 27 March 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Small Table of Contents

As this list is fairly long, would a Compact tables of contents (as per Wikipedia:Template messages/Compact tables of contents) be suitable? I was thinking Template:CompactTOC2 is fairly unobtrusive and useful. Fedgin | Talk 11:25, 13 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Oops. I was in the process of turning it into a sortable wikitable when you posted that. - Dudesleeper · Talk 12:03, 13 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]
That's much better. Looks good. Fedgin | Talk 12:12, 13 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Speaking of: if anyone's up to adding a column containing the players' span at their club (which will help weed out entries that shouldn't be there), feel free. If not, I'll be happy to do it after the weekend. - Dudesleeper · Talk 12:14, 13 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

You can add Fritz Walter for 1. FC Kaiserslautern — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.94.40.69 (talkcontribs)

Done, per here. - Dudesleeper · Talk 22:12, 22 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Mike Davies

I really should have read the full article first!!! Of course he is famous in some places....!! (Just not many!)♦Tangerines BFC ♦·Talk 03:07, 25 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I've considered removing the famous restriction in the past, since it's somewhat POV, so I went ahead and did it. It's up to others to decide if that or some other restriction should apply. - Dudesleeper · Talk 03:13, 25 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Looking at the names on the list anyway, I would consider Mike Davies to be on a reasonably similar standing "famous wise" to Michael Buskermolen. And I believe that the article should not be restricted to "famous" players partly because what is famous to one person is a complete unknown to someone else. In my opinion the article would be best being all inclusive to all pro footballers, as it is now. ♦Tangerines BFC ♦·Talk 03:29, 25 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Jimmy Hampson

Played for Nelson when they were a league club prior to joining Blackpool. WikiGull 21:40, 25 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I have removed William Waddell but if he debuted at 17 then surely he was at Rangers for 18 years, not 9 as previously specified q.v. William Waddell Dirkbb 13:04, 1 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]

P.S. How about adding number of appearances or is that somewhere else? Dirkbb 13:05, 1 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]

As the note at the top of the article states, only active players must have spent at least fifteen years at their club. Retired and deceased players don't have to meet this criteria. There will obviously be some discretion as to what counts as a decent length of service at a club; retiring after a two-year professional career won't cut it.
As for the number of appearances, I considered it a while ago but, personally, I don't see it as being as relevant as number of years served. Dudesleeper · Talk 13:16, 1 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Apols, and thanks for the reply. I see now that the operative word here is "active". Dirkbb 10:22, 2 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Nae prob. And, now that I've given it more thought, maybe adding players' appearances and goals stats is worthwhile. - Dudesleeper · Talk 14:56, 2 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Excellent, and I'll contribute if required as I would find this interesting information to have in one place. Dirkbb 14:29, 3 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I think we need to add criteria for a minimum amount of time to be included. As, for example, people such as Peter Kaye could be included. Mattythewhite 16:05, 2 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Right. This was mentioned in the Willie Waddell section above. - Dudesleeper · Talk 16:08, 2 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]
So, how should we go about this? I say a player has to have served a minimum of ten years at a club in order to be included. Implementing this criteria would only exclude two players in the current list. - Dudesleeper · Talk 12:50, 4 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Ja oder nein, people? - Dudesleeper · Talk 13:56, 17 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Sounds OK to me but why does the 15 year minimum apply to current players? If the concern is that they are young enough to still change clubs, thus rendering the information obsolete, then the information can always be changed. Plus, I think the 3 players named under the Antonio Puerta section (including Bill "Don't call me fatty" Foulkes) should be added to the list. Plus I still wanna see those appearances! Dirkbb 12:51, 22 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Grabowski?

I think Jürgen Grabowski should also be eligible as his former clubs Biebrich 02 and Biebrich 19 are amateur clubs. Anyone disagree? -Lemmy-

Nope, don't disagree here. I'm sure I've added at least one player with amateur clubs listed in their article. - Dudesleeper · Talk 16:00, 3 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]

15 seasons for the club

How those seasons are counted? For example, Egor Titov started his professional career for Spartak Moscow in 1992, aged 15, and was theoretically eligible to play for the first team. Should he be included in the list (2007-1992=15), or seasons should be counted from 1994 when he actually played his first match for the first team? MaxSem 18:13, 15 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I think we're going with the date on which the player makes his first-team debut. This is what's holding Paul Scholes back from being included until next year. He was a United youth player for two years before his debut in 1993. - Dudesleeper · Talk 22:47, 15 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Furthermore, why are several players with less than 15 seasons at their sole club listed here? - 217.43.105.203 18:42, 20 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]
The reason is given in italics at the top of the article page. - Dudesleeper · Talk 20:10, 20 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Johnny Haynes

I have removed him from the list because, and check his page before posting him back up, he played a season at Durban City F.C. and as such his entire professional career was not spent with one single club. - 217.43.105.203 18:41, 20 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Comment removed
Yeah, that'll help people see your side of the matter. - Dudesleeper · Talk 22:37, 23 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]

don't belive everything u read on Wikipedia. Haynes was a one club man as it says on the Fulham website. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 220.101.67.110 (talkcontribs)

This isn't Wikipedia. - Dudesleeper · Talk 14:02, 7 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Bobby Charlton?

Didn't Bobby Charlton spend his entire career at Manchester United? Shouldn't he be there in the list? I checked his wikipedia article - "He played almost all of his club football at Manchester United" and he has played for only one senior club - ManU. Warlord88 07:45, 13 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]

He played for Preston right at the end of his career, something which is quite well attested (see here and here). Preston were in the Second Division at the time, so I'm unsure why his time there does not appear in his infobox. SteveO 11:41, 13 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Having looked through the history of the Bobby Charlton article, his career with Preston was in the infobox, but was removed without explanation. I've changed it back now. SteveO 11:48, 13 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]

List order

Is this list random? I would vote for the list to be in alphabetic order by nation and then by year. What you guys think? Ordep 02:55, 20 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]

The list is in alphabetical order by last name. Plus, the columns are sortable separately by clicking the arrow next to the column heading. - Dudesleeper · Talk 09:36, 20 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Lars Ricken?

He should be eligible for list in 2008? tontotti

I've added him to the above list. - Dudesleeper · Talk 14:12, 26 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Francesco Totti

does he count? He has been with Roma (including youths) since 1989 (seniors since 1993), he was in the Lodigiani youth squad for a period but never actually played first team football for them.-- SalvoCalcio 10:12, 3 July 2007 (UTC)[reply]

He's eligible next year. See list above. - Dudesleeper · Talk 16:49, 3 July 2007 (UTC)[reply]

João Pinto

Portuguese player João Domingos Pinto spent 16 seasons (81-97) with FC Porto. Shouldn't he be in the list?

Giuseppe Baresi

he played for inter from 1978 to 1992. Shouldn't he be in the list? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Wael.Mogherbi (talkcontribs)

If Inter was his only club, yes, but he also played for Modena. - Dudesleeper · Talk 09:25, 24 July 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Adelardo Rodríguez

Known just as "Adelardo". I think he should also be in the list. Played for Atlético de Madrid from 1959 to 1976, when he retired from "big" football and joined a futsal team. Yeah, before playing for Atlético he was part of many minor clubs in Extremadura, his homeland, but I think they weren't even professional. His first club in Primera División was Atlético. 89.130.53.218 18:03, 13 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Antonio Puerta

we should add Antonio Puerta —Preceding unsigned comment added by Wael.Mogherbi (talkcontribs) 22:22, August 28, 2007 (UTC)

For a three-year career? - Dudesleeper · Talk 00:56, 29 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Come on. The guy was respected beloved and is culturally significant to football. He deserves to be on the list, if only with an asterisk next to his name, explaining the details. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.39.115.180 (talk) 23:01, 8 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Hungarian Florian Albert played only for Ferencvaros 1958-1974, was best european player in 1967. He should be on the list. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.108.239.155 (talk) 17:51, 15 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

What about bill foulkers? Played 18 years for Manchester United, his one and only club. 86.15.103.173 23:51, 18 September 2007 (UTC)James P[reply]

Why isn't Sotiris Kaiafas on this list? He played 17 seasons for AC Omonia in Cyprus, won the Golden Boot, and is widely considered the best Cypriot footballer ever... - Justin

The page isn't protected. If these players are genuine one-club men just add them. SteveO 00:11, 28 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Alessandro Costacurta!

Costacurta played for Milan for 22 years, except for the 86/87 serie a sesason where he was loaned out AC Monza, so in reality he played for 21 years but he DID play for all those years and is a hero in Milan, technically he never left the club....

Alessandro Del Piero is not eligible for inclusion for 2008 as he played between 1991 to 1993 for Padova:
Italy Alessandro Del Piero (Juventus, 1993-present)

What kind of rubbish is this ??? Alessandro Del Piero has played for Juventus FC from 1993 till 2008 (present) ; for 15 whole years !!! Players (past or present) must have been at their club for a minimum of ten years in order to be included here. -- He has stayed for more than your stipulated 10 years at Juventus FC.... One-club men often become club captain at some point in their career. He has been the captain of Juventus FC since 1997 till 2008 (present).... What a ridiculous list !!!

Raul is eligible for inclusion for 2009:
Spain Raul (Real Madrid, 1994-present)


Costacurta played 21 years for Milan, but he was loaned one season to Monza, so he didn't spend his entire career only in one team (as the article says: A one-club man is a term used to describe a football player who has played his entire professional career with only one club.) --Gaúcho 15:06, 27 September 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Seriously?? sometimes a player has no choice but to be loaned out from the club by the president....so just for ONE season in the 80's, even after 21 years of playing with ac milan, ur denying him????? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.211.73.146 (talk) 03:50, 4 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I'm not denying his great career at Milan, I'm saying that he DIDN'T play his entire career in only one team simply because he didn't (even if it was only for one season...) --Gaúcho 17:29, 4 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Sorry but I think it is utter bullshit to disqualify a player based on being loaned out. His entire professional career was under contract with 1 club, AC Milan. If you look at the state of the modern game, almost all youth players at big clubs are loaned out to gain 1st team experience before being thrust into 1st team football, other than child prodigies such as Wayne Rooney and Michael Owen for example. I think that the point of this list is to show players who were 100% dedicated to their club, and I don't think spending a season away on loan changes that at all. Again, players like Costacurta never signed a professional contract with any club other than Milan, I don't see the relevance of his loan move in disqualifying him from being a "one club man" —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.39.115.180 (talk) 22:49, 8 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]
Again, which bit of "one club" are you having trouble with? - Dudesleeper / Talk 17:18, 19 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Cristóbal Ortega

I think that we should put the mexican midfielder Cristóbal Ortega on this article. He played 18 years for the team Club América from Mexico First Division (since the 1974-1975 season to the 1991-1992 season), all his career on the same club. He was also capped more than 50 times in Mexico national team and played as starter with Mexico on Argentina 1978 world cup.--Jorgerobles 20:10, 28 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Steve Cherundolo is an American footballer who has spent his entire pro career at Hannover 96. He will be eligible in 2009, which will be his tenth year at the club. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.166.18.121 (talk) 13:07, 29 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Wikilinking to the talk namespace

The main page links to the talk page for the list of players eligible for inclusion in 2008. Isn't this against the rules? DamionOWA 08:21, 10 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

If you can provide the rule in question then maybe. - Dudesleeper · Talk 09:19, 10 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Marco Bode and Dieter Eilts?

Marco Bode: Werder Bremen 1989-2002, played youth for Osterode, but Bremen was the only pro club

Dieter Eilts: Werder Bremen 1985-2002

both played on the national team, so not some random players who just managed to hang around. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.12.79.32 (talk) 21:26, 30 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]


15 years for all players

There are too many players on this list, especially a few with less than 15 years, including one with only 9. If we allow any retired player which has played a few years with one team this list will never end. so i think what we should do is cut them from the list and allow only players with 15 years minimum, both retired or not. OPINIONS? Udonknome 15:03, 31 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I agree that there are too many players on the list, but to arbitrarily set the cut-off at 15 years would exclude extremely notable one club men like Antonio Rattin and Berti Vogts who have 14 years of service and George Cohen with 13. I think the emphasis is far too Anglo-centric with more Blackpool F.C. players on the list than all of the clubs in Argentina combined, also all the combined clubs of Brazil, France, Holland, Portugal or Spain to name a few. The list probably needs a trim but to do it at the expense of Rattin and Vogts would be to the detriment of the article.King of the North East (T/C) 15:59, 31 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I don't understand your problems.Whether we have One-club players...or not. How should we make a qualitative player selection? If a player only played for one professional club he will be eligble for this list. That's the thought of it all.-Lemmy- 19:27, 31 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]
There are tens of thousands of players who have only played for one professional club, some just for one game, if they are all eligible for the list then the list becomes virtually worthless. It is absolutely necessary to have player selection, 10+ years of service would seem reasonable to me. If you don't set any limits the list will end up full of people that even ardent fans will have trouble remembering because they played so few games before disappearing into obscurity.King of the North East (T/C) 20:32, 31 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]
I agree that there should be some criterion, but any cut-off will seem arbitrary. Rather than going by number of years, I would prefer some "quality" measure. What about the player must have played for the national team at least 25 times? This way we get rid of most of the more obscure players. I know this is a very imperfect measure (e.g. goalie stuck behind a very dominant no. 1) but better than a x-year cut-off. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.53.130.17 (talk) 13:25, 1 November 2007 (UTC)[reply]
While I agree that there should be some kind of quality criterion, I'm not sure that national team statistics are necessarily the best measure for several reasons, the most important being:
  1. This page is principally concerned with achievements in club football.
  2. The disparity between different national teams would exclude players like Ricardo Bochini who got 11 caps for Argentina but won 13 major titles for Independiente spending his entire career in the Argentine Primera, but allow the inclusion of someone who had played 25 times for say American Samoa or Macau and stayed with the same club for a few years.
  3. x number of appearances for whatever national team is as arbitry as x number of years at whatever club.
If we are going to set limits, we should probably look at something like "the player must have played in a fully professional, top flight league for at least x seasons during his time with the club. King of the North East (T/C) 15:32, 1 November 2007 (UTC)[reply]
That looks way better to me.I could live with this compromise.-Lemmy- 17:04, 1 November 2007 (UTC)[reply]
How many seasons in professional top flight football? Any preferences? King of the North East (T/C) 17:38, 1 November 2007 (UTC)[reply]
Should we say 10 years in fully professional top flight league? King of the North East (T/C) 23:49, 7 November 2007 (UTC)[reply]
yes, i agree Udonknome 11:50, 3 January 2008 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Udonknome (talkcontribs)
I'll go ahead and make ten years the minimum for inclusion. - Dudesleeper Talk 16:25, 6 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What about Bill Foulkes Played for Man United from 1952 - 1970 and never played for anyone else. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Huweybaby (talkcontribs) 10:45, 23 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

He has been added now. - Dudesleeper Talk 16:26, 6 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

José Antonio Camacho

I've added José Antonio Camacho, he's played only with Real Madrid for 16 years. --Muppeteer (talk) 23:20, 22 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Paul Hurst

Should he be removed now he's playing for Burton? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Greenrowe (talkcontribs) 23:05, 27 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Xavi

Why is Xavi eligble for the list? He plays pro since 1999. In 1991 he was 11... -Lemmy- (talk) 17:26, 11 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

My mistake. The information added to the list was misleading. - Dudesleeper / Talk 19:07, 11 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Selection advice

I have a number of players from Cardiff City who are eligible for this list in Ron Stitfall, Alan Harrington and Colin Baker. But can someone tell me if Phil Dwyer (was loaned to Rochdale for three months in his last year) or Scott Young (Made a handful of appearances for Newport County, who I think are a fully professional side despite their non-league status) are also eligible? Thanks. Kosack (talk) 19:30, 11 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Nope, loans violate the one-club criteria. - Dudesleeper / Talk 19:31, 11 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]
What about Scott Young? Kosack (talk) 19:30, 11 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]
Still no. One club, no matter what (professional) league the second one is in. - Dudesleeper / Talk 19:24, 12 March 208 (UTC)

Who are you to decide that?

I think common sense dictates that the ever expanding article List of One Club Men, should be limited to players who have only ever played for one club. EP 17:33, 23 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Nationality

When you click on the nation of a player the link goes to the national team. I don't know how but we should find a way to link to the nation's article and not to the national team. -Lemmy- (talk) 10:54, 16 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I've now changed it to the country, but have maintained the fact that the "nation" column reflects the country the player represented internationally (if applicable). - Dudesleeper / Talk 16:35, 17 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]
User:Stevew2022 has, in his own words, rationalized East/west Germany players as follows: "East or West if whole career within 1949-90, else just Germany". IMHO, that is a bad move, as information is lost with this approach. Maybe we should go back to using whatever nation the player has represented during his career as a factor, or use a construction such as "East Germany/Germany (East) Germany" (and West Germany, accordingly) to show that the nationality changed. Ideas/comments? Madcynic (talk) 18:31, 15 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]
I'd be more than happy to fall in with this; I only changed it at all because there were clear errors (e.g. East Germans playing in the 50s and 60s showing up as 'Germany'). The only issue is what to do with uncapped players (Thomas Schaaf is an example) who straddled the 1949 or 1990 threshhold. Probably the same methodology but just look at the player's club career, rather than international. We'll have the same issue if any Czechs, Slovaks, 'former Yugoslavians' or 'former Soviets' from the early 90s make an appearance. Stevew2022 (talk) 18:14, 17 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Gareth Barry

Gareth Barry qualifies, yes? Unless I'm mistaken, Aston Villa have been his only senior club, and he has been there since 97, making him eligible under the ten year rule. I even checked Soccerbase to make sure he hasnt been loaned out. I added him but if he doesnt qualify and I made a mistake, its gravy. 90.210.163.168 (talk) 23:24, 17 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Gareth Barry was signed from Brighton - some might argue he was poached, in fact - so is not technically a one club man78.86.3.221 (talk) 00:31, 1 September 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Technically, Gareth Barry was signed from the Brighton YOUTH TEAM,and as the rule states that time in the youth clubs DO NOT count, Gareth Barry still qualifies as a one-club man. Further proof of that is the fact that he was given a 10-year testimonial this preseason.(User:Shaze)

Albano

Albano Narciso Pereira played for Sporting Portugal from 1943 to 1956, and never played for any other team. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.181.35.163 (talk) 11:26, 15 May 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Luis Arconada

Can we add him to the list? He spent his whole career at Real Sociedad (exactly 15 years, 1974 - 1989). Cheers - Johnny McGibbits —Preceding comment was added at 15:57, 10 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Added. - Dudesleeper / Talk 00:45, 11 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks very much. - Johnny McGibbits —Preceding unsigned comment added by 144.131.47.53 (talk) 03:27, 11 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Ledley King

He should be on the list. He's only played for Tottenham. He was a youth player between 1997 and 1998, and signed professionally on 20th July 1998 (soccerbase actually says 1st August, but Spurs website says 20th July, so I'm going with that). I don't know whether that makes him elligible for the list at the moment or not.79.74.164.177 (talk) 19:54, 10 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I don't think we're going by exact dates, just years. - Dudesleeper / Talk 00:41, 11 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]
Added. - Dudesleeper / Talk 00:45, 11 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks for adding him!79.77.157.66 (talk) 18:12, 11 June 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Rinus Michels

Shouldn't he be on this list? He played his entire career at Ajax if I'm not mistaken 90.199.32.15 (talk) 13:22, 4 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I am almost certain that you are right. I will add him now, if anyone finds evidence to the contrary, he can be removed. Methodicmadness (talk) 00:37, 7 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

António Jesus Correia

António Jesus Correia was a Sporting Portugal player for 10 years (1943 to 1953), he never played professional football for any other team, but he played roller hockey for Paço de Arcos between 1942 and 1955, should he be aded? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.180.218.191 (talk) 00:14, 17 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

João Baptista Martins, another Sporting Portugal star, played for the team for 12 years (1947-1959), but before playing at Sporting he was in the rooster of CUF Barreiro, although he never played a single game for that team, should he be added? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.180.218.191 (talk) 00:47, 17 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Changing of Criteria?

We really need to change the criteria for the players being listed. I'm sure as more and more people from different countries reaching this page, they will list the players in their countries, which I am sure will be thousands and thousands. Instead of setting a time served limit of 10 years, I suggest we simply list the top 100 players in order of most time served. If there is a tie for the amount of year served, a player who currently still plays always be listed ahead of the retired players. For example, currently Paolo Maldini will be at the top of the list by serving 24 years with AC Milan only, while still being active. By next month he would probably be top of the list outright by playing in his 25th season. Alcatrazhack (talk) 13:28, 20 August 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Javier Zanetti

I am surprised to see Javier Zanetti on this list. He has played for a couple of teams in Argentina before joining Inter. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Thebigbee (talkcontribs) 03:16, 22 September 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Vast number of linking errors

Very sloppy linking in this article, with links to, for example, Liverpool instead of Liverpool F.C. Needs fixing Grunners (talk) 18:16, 27 October 2008 (UTC)[reply]

John Angus

Apparently played entire career at Exeter but Neil Brown says he also played for Scunthorpe & Wolves...GiantSnowman 00:26, 7 November 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Toni Huttunen

This guy is on for MyPa - but has also played for Kuusankosken Kumu and Falkirk, as confirmed by National Football Teams - surely this makes him ineligible? GiantSnowman 00:45, 7 November 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Remove. Hubschrauber729 (talk) 01:08, 7 November 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Dane Whitehouse

Should Dane be included on this list? He served Sheffield United for 13 seasons between between 1987 and 2000. I've not seen a source stating that he'd spent time away from the Lane, but equally I've seen no evidence that didn't. Anyone got an information? L.J.Skinnerwot|I did 16:33, 21 November 2008 (UTC)[reply]

He appears to be a one-clubber. - Dudesleeper / Talk 21:01, 21 November 2008 (UTC)[reply]
And his Soccerbase profile backs this up. - Dudesleeper / Talk 21:03, 21 November 2008 (UTC)[reply]
I've added him. If anyone can see a reason to remove, then please do so and inform here. L.J.Skinnerwot|I did 02:30, 22 November 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Paolo Maldini

The table currently has him from 1984 until present. However he didn't make his first team debut until 1985 (as his own article says), so shouldn't the start date be 1985 and the number of years 23? Just wanted to check there isn't another reason. 81.108.87.117 (talk) 15:25, 21 December 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Just for the record I'm the same IP user as made the above comment, I don't want to be accused of sockpuppetry. Please leave me a message here if I'm wrong to go by the player's debut. My belief is that if this doesn't go by something verifiable (for instance, but not necessarily, the player's first and last game), then the list itself is merely trivia and should be removed. 82.13.161.114 (talk) 13:41, 9 February 2009 (UTC)[reply]
Side note, if Maldini IS deemed to have been at Milan for 25 years, then Alan Knight should be considered as having been at Pompey for 26 years- he was in a matchday squad in 2004. 82.13.161.114 (talk) 14:24, 9 February 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Spanish B Clubs

does featuring for the spanish B clubs, such as Real Madrid B or Atlético Madrileño, which are often entities in themselves count as playing for a second club, or are we assuming that they are part of the same club? i think yes, but just wanted to check... Jw2035 (talk) 20:02, 1 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

featured for portsmouth for his entire pro career, but wasn't he also paid keeper/coach at havant and waterlooville for several years after he left portsmouth? Jw2035 (talk) 20:05, 1 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Are H&W a professional club? - Dudesleeper / Talk 21:44, 1 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Appeared as a guest for many clubs in WWII. Should he be on the list? Davy Allan 23:53, 24 February 2009 (UTC)