Although many people think that Manchester City has just gained massive amount of popularity after being taken over by rich investor from United Arab Emirates, actually the club has long history in English football. They won their first English League championship in 1937 and was recognized as one of the strongest English club in Europe in the period of 1970s.
Who is the best player ever to play for Manchester City? This is the question that will be answered by reading this article. Here, I present a list of fifteen greatest Manchester City players from time to time. Be sure to vote for your favorite in the poll module at the end of this article.
15. Carlos Tevez
Carlos Tevez played for Manchester City for four seasons, from 2009 to 2013. Although he created a lot of problems on and off the pitch, Tevez managed to prove that he is a figure of striker who can be relied upon. He played a major role in helping City win the English League in the 2011-12 season and claimed an FA Cup trophy in 2011. In total, he played in 147 matches and scored 73 goals.
14. Bert Trautmann
Bert Trautmann is one of the best German goalkeepers in the history. He played for Manchester City for 15 years in the period 1949-1964. At first, Trautmann was a prisoner of war in World War II. After the war ended, he was given the opportunity to work as a professional footballer. Trautmann was one of the most instrumental player that helped Manchester City win the FA Cup in 1956. In the final match, Trautmann showed a magnificent performance, playing in the full-90 minutes match although his neck bones were broken in the last ten minutes of the match.
13. Niall Quinn
Niall Quinn is one of the greatest Manchester City striker when the club was still regarded as one of the bottom-half Premier League club. He is an Ireland striker who scored a lot of goals with a header. During six years playing for Manchester City, Quinn scored 77 goals from 244 appearances. Although he did not win trophies with City, he is still greatly loved by the fans because of his great individual performance.
12. Alan Oakes
With a total of 671 caps, Alan Oakes is the player who holds the record of highest number of appearances of all time for Manchester City. The England midfielder played for City for 17 years from 1959 to 1976. This player is a true patriot who fought along City in the periods of ups and downs, ranging from relegated to Division Two to finally winning the English League title, FA Cup, and even Winners' Cup.
11. Shaun Wright-Phillips
Until now, Shaun Wright-Phillips still holds the record as the most expensive player ever sold by Manchester City. This British winger was transferred to Chelsea in 2005 for a fee of 21 million pounds. Wright-Phillips was raised by Manchester City Youth Academy and in total he played for this club for nine years. He is known as a fast winger with great dribbling skills and often scores important goals.
10. Billy Meredith
Billy Meredith was one of the few players who became legends in the two rival clubs, Manchester City and Manchester United. He played for those two clubs in the period 1894-1924. This player became the oldest player ever to play for Manchester City, with the age of 49 years. During his active period as a footballer, Meredith was known as a fast and powerful right midfielder. He was also very rarely injured although he exhibited aggressive playing style.
9. Joe Hart
Joe Hart is one of the players whose talents was developed by Manchester City. At first, he was just an unknown goalkeeper from a small club, Shrewsbury Town. Hart was signed from the club by Manchester City in 2006 and polished by City until recently gained status as a number one goalie in England. In addition to helping City winning the Premier League in the 2011-12 season, Hart was also three times in a row selected as the best goalkeeper of England from 2011 to 2013.
8. Richard Dunne
Dunne is an Irish central defender who played for Manchester City from 2000 to 2009. He played a major role in claiming the promotion from the Championship League to the Premier League in the 2000-01 season. Despite not winning even a single trophy, Dunne is one of the most beloved players of City fans. Evidently, he won the annual title as the best player of Manchester City in four consecutive years, from 2005 to 2008.
7. David Silva
David Silva is one of the best purchases of all time ever made by Manchester City. The Spanish midfielder was signed from Valencia with quite an expensive transfer fee, 24 million pounds. However, the value was paid by Silva by showing extraordinary performances. He played a major role in helping City win the Premier League in the 2011-2012 season. Silva was nicknamed as "Merlin" by the club's fans because he often creates miracles during a match.
6. Joe Corrigan
To become the number one Manchester City's goalkeeper of all time, Joe Hart still have to go beyond the figure of the legendary Joe Corrigan. This player played for City for 17 years in the period 1967-1983. In addition to three times awarded the title as Manchester City's Player of the Year, Corrigan also won a Premier League title and an FA Cup trophy. In total, he played in 604 games for Manchester City.
5. Yaya Toure
Considering the technical skills as a footballer, it is compulsory to include Yaya Toure in the list of Manchester City's best player of all time. The Ivorian central midfielder has a complete skill of a footballer. He can defend and attack equally well, reliable in executing the set-pieces, and scores frequently. Have been playing for City since 2010, Yaya Toure was twice awarded the annual award as Africa's best player.
4. Vincent Kompany
The Belgian center back has become the main foundation of the Manchester City defense since 2008. Currently, he is a player who is trusted to be a captain, leading a team full of football superstars. Kompany was signed from German club Hamburger SV in 2008. At that time, he was still quite young, but he did not need much time to adapt to English football. His solid performances as a center back made him Kompany was named as the Premier League Player of the Season in 2012.
3. Sergio Aguero
Since joining from Atletico Madrid in 2011, Aguero has shown world-class performances with Manchester City. His first season at the club was marked with a Premier League trophy and 30 goals in all competitions. He even managed to take over Carlos Tevez's position as the main striker, a position that had been occupied by Tevez for more than five years. Considering that he is still relatively young, I believe Aguero still has tremendous potential to win more achievements with Manchester City.
2. Eric Brook
With a total of 178 goals that scored during the 11 years of playing for Manchester City, Brook holds the record as the club's top scorer of all time. He was an English striker who was famous as a very strong, athletic, and has excellent penalty-taking ability. Brook led his teammates at Manchester City win the Premier League 1936-1937 season and also claimed an FA Cup trophy in 1934.
1. Colin Bell
Colin Bell was an energetic British midfielder who won the most trophies at Manchester City. In the period 1966-1979, Bell helped the club win a Division One League title, an FA Cup trophy, two League Cup trophies, and a Winners's Cup trophy. Bell also received the title of "Hero of Manchester City of All Time" from BBC TV station. Not only that, he was also awarded the honorary knighthood title, MBE, because of his outstanding contribution to the world of British football.
