Champions League journeymen – Which players have played for & scored for most clubs in UCL?

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One player played for 7 clubs 

©TM/IMAGO

The Champions League is now coming to the real exciting stage, with the last eight now confirmed. In the quarter-finals next month, PSG will face Aston Villa, Arsenal will take on last season’s champions Real Madrid, Barcelona play Borussia Dortmund, and Bayern Munich will go head-to-head with Inter Milan. There was plenty of drama in the round of 16, and there’s sure to be more twists and turns before the final in Munich this May.

Some players have had a huge impact on Europe’s top club competition over the past few decades but which stars have travelled about the most in the Champions League? At Transfermarkt, we have calculated both the players to have played for the most clubs in the Champions League, and the players to have scored for the most clubs in the Champions League, to determine the ultimate journeymen in Europe. The data focuses on matches since the 1992/93 season when the competition was re-formatted. Players who have played for or scored for the same amount of clubs are then ranked by Champions League appearances, and Champions League goals respectively.

Which players have played for the most clubs in the Champions League?

Leading the way is none other than legendary striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Despite never actually winning the Champions League, the Swede has played for seven different clubs in the Champions League, making 124 appearances. He has represented Ajax, Barcelona, Inter Milan, Juventus, AC Milan, PSG, and Manchester United. Two players have then played for six clubs. Former French forward Nicolas Anelka played 68 Champions League games for Arsenal, Chelsea, Fenerbahce, Juventus, PSG, and Real Madrid. Former Argentine striker Javier Saviola represented Monaco, Barcelona, Málaga, Olympiacos, Real Madrid, and Benfica, playing 56 games.

As many as 17 players have played for five clubs in the Champions League. Making the top 10 on the number of appearances they have made in the competition are Álvaro Morata (93 games), Fernando Morientes (89 games), Axel Witsel (85 games), Miralem Pjanić (83 games), Samuel Eto’o (78 games), Alexis Sánchez (77 games), and Hernán Crespo (65 games). But which players have actually scored for the most clubs in the Champions League in the modern era?

Which players have scored for the most clubs in the Champions League?

Unsurprisingly, Ibrahimovic is once again top for the players to have scored for the most clubs in the Champions League. He has scored for six of the seven clubs he has played for in the competition, scoring a total of 48 goals, and only failing to score for Manchester United. Morata and Crespo are the only players to score for five separate clubs, scoring 29 and 28 Champions League goals respectively. 15 players have managed to score for four clubs in Europe’s top competition since 1992/93.

Making the top 10 due to the number of Champions League goals they scored are Morientes (33 goals), Arjen Robben (31 goals), Eto’o (30 goals), Edin Džeko (29 goals), Anelka (20 goals), Saviola (18 goals), and Sánchez (17 goals). Whilst some players become one club icons, others prove their worth at a number of sides across Europe, and some may even argue it enhances a player’s reputation being able to do it for a number of different teams.