5 West Ham stars who were more successful after leaving | OneFootball

West Ham United have been a stalwart in the English top flight for much of their history, with the east London outfit one of the most-loved teams in the country.

As a result, West Ham fans have been able to witness plenty of top players call Upton Park and then most recently the London Stadium their home.

Few have had a bigger impact than Declan Rice, who was sold to fellow capital club Arsenal during the 2023 summer transfer window.

£105 million for his signature.

Tipped as a future England captain, Rice looks destined for a stellar career in English and European football, but he isn't the first West Ham player to have gone on and achieve bigger things after leaving the club.

In recognition of that, here are five more players who have bettered their careers following a stint with West Ham.

Rio Ferdinand might've only spent five years in the West Ham first-team, with one of those out on loan at Bournemouth, but the central defender still managed to rack up 150 appearances in claret and blue. A product of the West Ham academy, Ferdinand made his debut for the club in May 1996 and would feature regularly up until his departure in the winter of 2000.

First making the move to Leeds United, Ferdinand became the most expensive defender in world football when he joined the West Yorkshire outfit, with West Ham also pocketing what was at the time a British transfer record. The defender cost Leeds a whopping £18 million, which was £3 million more than the £15 million paid for Alan Shearer and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.

The London-born star would spend just two years at Elland Road before moving on, this time joining Manchester United for what was once again another British transfer record. Costing £30 million in the summer of 2002, Ferdinand would end up establishing himself as one of the best defenders of all time, playing over 450 times for United, winning six league titles and starring for the Red Devils in their 2008 Champions League win.

4 Javier Mascherano

Fast forwarding a few years now, Javier Mascherano joined West Ham in the summer of 2006 and while he may go down as one of the best players to ever play for the club, he will also be considered as one of the most controversial transfers of all time.

After stints with South American giants River Plate and Corinthians, Mascherano would make his long-awaited move to Europe by signing for West Ham, with the Argentine failing to endear himself to the Hammers faithful. Playing just seven times for the east London outfit, the former River Plate starlet would be allowed to leave for Liverpool just months after signing for West Ham.

However, while on loan at the Merseyside outfit, it would become clear that the transfer involving Mascherano and his at-the-time Corinthians teammate Carlos Tevez (more on him later) broke Premier League rules regarding third-party ownership. The club would be fined a record £5.5 million sum for the infringement, but by this point Mascherano had left West Ham behind.

While he did enjoy a successful spell with Liverpool, making over 130 appearances across his three-year stint, it would be during his eight years at Barcelona the Argentine truly made a name for himself. Featuring 334 times for the Catalan club, Mascherano became a favourite of the Blaugrana faithful, winning two Champions League medals among a whole host of trophies during his close to decade-long stay.

3 Carlos Tevez

The second half of the infamous transfer involving Mascherano, Tevez joined at the same time as his Argentine counterpart, in what turned out to be a deal that would rock English football.

Tevez ended up scoring seven goals for West Ham during the 29 games he played and his contributions would aid the Hammers' survival bid at the back-end of the 2006/07 Premier League table. Sheffield United were the side that suffered relegation as a result and following the verdict from the Premier League that the deal to bring Mascherano and Tevez to England shouldn't have taken place, the South Yorkshire outfit decided to sue West Ham, earning a reported £20 million as part of an out-of-court settlement.

Back on the pitch, Tevez would leave on loan to Man United at the start of the 2007/08 campaign, sticking around at Old Trafford for two years, winning two Premier League titles, a League Cup and the Champions League during his stay. Ever the one to attract controversy, Tevez's next move would involve him crossing the Manchester divide, as he signed for Manchester City in the summer of 2009, with the Blues paying the player's advisors £25 million to secure his services.

All in all, Tevez enjoyed an illustrious career in European and South American football, with the striker netting over 250 goals during an impressive 20-year-long innings.

2 Frank Lampard

Another one of West Ham's academy graduates now, Frank Lampard burst onto the scene as a fresh-faced teen during the 1995/96 campaign, making his debut for the club in January of that season. Owing plenty to his time at West Ham, the tenacious midfielder would rack up over 150 senior appearances for the capital club and will be remembered as one of their best-ever academy products.

Of course, one of his most memorable moments at West Ham didn't even come on the pitch, instead happening at a fan's forum, when uncle and first-team manager Harry Redknapp publically backed Lampard to go on and enjoy a wonderful career. Having been dubbed not good enough for the West Ham starting-11 by a fan, Redknapp responded by claiming his nephew 'is good enough and he definitely will be good enough'.

Redknapp would have the last laugh in this altercation, as Lampard joined Chelsea in the summer of 2001 for around £11m according to The Guardian, and went on to establish himself as the club's all-time record goalscorer. With 211 goals to his name, Lampard achieved this phenomenal feat from midfield and was even named Premier League Player of the Season in 2004/05.

Lampard won the first of three Premier League titles with the west Londoners during that season, before going on to be a part of the Chelsea side that won the Champions League for the first time in 2011/12.

1 Dimitri Payet

Finally then, perhaps the player whose departure from the London Stadium stung the most, Dimitri Payet takes the final spot on this list.

Unlike the other players to have featured, Payet differed in some capacities, as he joined West Ham already in the peak of his career. Aged 28 years old when he put pen to paper on a move to the club, Payet joined as part of a £10 million move from Olympique de Marseille.

The Frenchman may have spent just two years at West Ham, but he did manage to capture the imaginations of the supporters during that time. Payet registered 38 G/A contributions during the 60 matches he played for West Ham, meaning he averaged a goal involvement once every other match.

His performances would see him shortlisted for the PFA Players' Player of the Year award at the end of the 2015/16 campaign, while he also picked up the West Ham Player of the Year award the same season. However, just a matter of months later, Payet would force his way out of the club, leaving behind plenty of fond memories from his stay.

A return to Marseille would follow, where Payet managed to keep up his strong showings and was crucial for the Ligue 1 outfit as they reached the Europa League final in 2017/18. Despite being named in the Team of the Tournament, Payet would only manage a runners-up medal, as Marseille lost 3-0 to Atletico Madrid in the final.