20 Players Who Left Their Club Too Early To Become A Legend (Ranked) | OneFootball

In the world of football, the phrase "one club man" is a term of endearment, a badge of honour that signifies loyalty, commitment, and a deep-rooted connection between player and club, and many thought Mason Mount would be that guy with Chelsea.

GIVEMESPORT VIDEO OF THE DAY

Play Video

Mount's move to Manchester United has effectively ended his chances of becoming a Chelsea legend, despite winning the Champions League with the club in 2021.

It's undeniable that had he stayed with Chelsea, Mount would have become a club legend, but he joins a long list of players who left their clubs too early to become legends.

So, in this list, GIVEMESPORT ranks the 20 best players who, for various reasons, left their respective clubs too early to become legends.

20 Mason Mount

Let's kick things off with the aforementioned Mason Mount.

As a Chelsea Academy graduate, the stage seemed set for Mount to stay for the entirety of his career, winning multiple trophies with his boyhood club, potentially even as captain.

However, after months of speculation, Mount left Chelsea to join Manchester United this week in a move that, just one year ago, almost no one would have seen coming.

Who knows what Mount would have achieved at Chelsea had he stayed at the club, but one thing is for, and it's that the Englishman will no longer have the chance to become a legend at Stamford Bridge.

19 Coutinho

Had he stayed at Liverpool, it's quite possible that Coutinho would have gone on to become one of the best players in Liverpool history.

However, the Brazilian essentially forced a big-money move to Barcelona in 2018, while Liverpool were on the ascent, and probably regrets that decision now.

Since leaving Anfield, Coutinho would have had to watch on as his former side won the Champions League in 2019, and the Premier League the following year, missing out on medals on both occasions.

Had he stayed at the club, which Jurgen Klopp wanted him to do, Coutinho would have likely played vital roles in both campaigns, going on to become one of Liverpool's biggest legends, but that isn't how things panned out.

18 Kyle Walker

Walker's move from Tottenham to Manchester City in 2017 came after he had established himself as one of the best right-backs in the Premier League.

Despite his success at City, which has seen him win the Premier League in the majority of the seasons that he's been in Manchester, the feeling is he'd have become a Spurs legend had he stayed at the club.

Walker was on route to becoming one of the best defenders not only Tottenham history, but also in Premier League history, and while he went on to achieve the latter, he left Spurs too soon to be recognised with the former.

17 Cesc Fabregas

Fabregas's move to Barcelona in 2011 came after a successful spell at Arsenal, in which he was the club captain.

Having joined the club at a young age, it seemed like Fabregas would go on to become a club legend, but he ended up asking to leave after falling for the idea of a return to Barcelona.

Despite his success at Barcelona, many believe that had he stayed at Arsenal, he could have become a club legend.

16 Ashley Cole

Chelsea legend Ashley Cole, had things panned out differently, could well have ended up as one of the best players in Arsenal's history.

Cole's move from Arsenal to Chelsea in 2006 was a controversial one, but one that probably paid off for the left-back, as he went on to achieve great success at Chelsea.

However, had he stayed at Arsenal, he could have become a club legend, and possibly helped The Gunners win several league titles.

15 Arjen Robben

From a player who joined Chelsea from Arsenal from one who left Chelsea for Real Madrid.

Arjen Robben's move from Real Madrid in 2007, after scoring 15 goals in 67 leagues appearances for the Blues, came after a successful spell at Stamford Bridge

Despite his success at Madrid, and to an extent at Chelsea, he's far more recognised as a legend of Bayern Munich, having helped the German giants win multiple league titles, and the Champions League in 2013.

His departure from Chelsea came before he was really able to stamp his mark on the Premier League, and considering what he went on to achieve, it's clear that Robben left too early to become a legend.

14 Carlos Tevez

Tevez not only left Man United too early to become a legend, but the fact that he left to join arch-rivals Man City means that fans of The Red Devils really don't see the Argentinian as a club great.

Tevez's controversial move from United to City in 2009, after scoring 19 goals in 63 appearances for United, made him a villain in the eyes of United fans, despite his incredible performances for Sir Alex Ferguson.

What he achieved at Man City, in scoring 58 goals in 113 appearances, and being part of the squad that won the Premier League in 2012, means that he simply CANNOT be seen as a Man United legend.

13 Wayne Rooney

Undoubtedly a legend of Man United, it's fair to say that Rooney left Everton as a teenager before he was able to properly become a club legend.

Rooney's move from Everton to Manchester United in 2004, after making 67 appearances for the Toffees, was a significant step in his career.

He's undoubtedly one of the best players to ever play for Everton, in terms of natural ability, but he played the majority of his career at Man United, meaning he can't be a legend of his boyhood club.

12 Michael Owen

Owen's move to Real Madrid in 2004, after scoring 118 goals in 216 appearances for Liverpool, came just three years after the Englishman won the Ballon d'Or whilst at Anfield.

Despite his success at Liverpool, his premature departure from the club, and the fact he went on to play and win the Premier League with Man United, means Liverpool fans don't see him as a legend of the club.

11 Samuel Eto'o

Despite having played a significant role in the two Champions League finals Barcelona won in 2006 and 2009, Eto'o left the club too early to become a club legend.

Eto'o moved to Inter Milan in 2009, scoring 33 goals in 67 league appearances for the Italian giants, as well as helping the sihis early departure from Barca meant he missed the chance to become a club legend.

10 Frank Lampard

Without a doubt, Frank Lampard is one of Chelsea's best-ever players and biggest-ever legends, but had things worked out differently, we would be sat here calling him a West Ham great.

Starting his career with The Hammers, the highly-rated Lampard joined Chelsea in 2001, going on to play over 500 games for The Blues, including captaining the side in the Champions League final in 2012.

No one blames Lampard for leaving his boyhood club for Chelsea at the time in his career that he did, but due to the limited time he played for the club, he cannot be called a West Ham legend.

9 Luis Suarez

Suarez might just be one of the best players to ever play for Liverpool, scoring 69 goals in 110 league games for the club, but he didn't play at Anfield long enough to be considered a legend.

Fresh off a 2nd place finish in the 2013/14 Premier League season, Liverpool sold Suarez, at this request, to Barcelona for £75 million.

He went on to win the Champions League with the Spanish giants, forming an incredible partnership with Lionel Messi and Neymar, but that came at the expense of being able to be considered a Liverpool legend.

8 Robin van Persie

Robin van Persie broke the hearts of Arsenal fans in 2012 when he quit the club and joined Manchester United, all in the name of winning trophies.

The move paid off for the lethal Dutchman who, in his first season at Old Trafford, won the Premier League for the first time in his career.

While he may not be able to call himself a Premier League winner, RVP's controversial departure from Arsenal means that fans of The Gunners don't consider him to be a club legend.

7 Gareth Bale

In order to bring him to Spain in 2013, Real Madrid had to smash the world transfer record for Tottenham winger Gareth Bale.

Bale, while he might not have won any trophies at Spurs, did help the club reach the top four several times, with some truly incredible performances in the Premier League.

Due to the success he achieved in Madrid, where he scored some truly clutch goals, Spurs fans will probably argue that Bale isn't as iconic of a figure around the club as some other greats, and cannot be considered a true legend.

6 Fernando Torres

While undeniably a fantastic Liverpool striker, Fernando Torres left Anfield too early to be considered a club legend.

The Spanish striker was at Anfield for just shy of four years, and while he scored a plethora of big goals, his departure to Chelsea left a sour taste in the mouths of Liverpool fans.

5 Zlatan Ibrahimovic

=

Zlatan's move from Inter to Barcelona in 2009, after scoring 57 goals in 88 appearances for the Italian side, was seen as a step up for the Swedish international, but that isn't how things worked out.

Inter Milan, having worked out a deal to take Samuel Eto'o from Barcelona in return for Ibrahimovic and cash, ended up winning the Champions League the following year, showing how great the deal was on their end.

While Zlatan scored some big goals for Inter, the success the club experienced after his departure, the fact he wasn't there for very long, and his move to AC Milan that would come years later, mean Inter fans do not consider him to be a club legend.

4 Yaya Toure

Despite having one of the best individual seasons the Premier League has ever seen, it can be argued that Yaya Toure's departure from Man City in 2018 means that he isn't able to be considered a full-on club legend.

Leaving just before City's dominant spell started, Yaya's departure from the club left a sense of unfulfilled potential. Had he stayed longer, or even left on slightly better terms, Toure could have cemented his place as a legendary figure at the club had he stayed just a few years longer.

3 Luis Figo

It isn't just the fact he wasn't at the club for too long that means Figo can't be considered a Barcelona legend, but his controversial move to Real Madrid made him an outright villain in the eyes of the fans of the Spanish giants.

Figo went on to achieve greatness with Real Madrid, including winning the Champions League in 2002, but that all came at the expense of being able to be considered a legend of Barcelona.

2 Rio Ferdinand

Similarly to Frank Lampard, had Rio Ferdinand stayed West Ham in 2000 instead of signing for Leeds in 2000, we could well be talking about one of the best players to ever play for The Hammers.

Ferdinand made 127 appearances for West Ham, and his move to Leeds allowed him to transition into one of the best defenders in the world at Manchester United a few years later, but his premature exit means he can't be considered a West Ham legend.

1 Neymar

Neymar's departure from Barcelona in 2017, after scoring 105 goals in 186 appearances, was a seismic event in football, with the fee being the most paid by a club for a player by quite some distance.

His decision to leave the Catalan giants to escape Messi's shadow at PSG meant he left behind the chance to become a club legend, despite having already won the Champions League with the club.