In brief
Despite his difficulties at Manchester United, Harry Maguire has produced outstanding performances for England.
Players that do well abroad yet poorly at the club level are not unusual. Some players who have a great affinity for the international game or use them to find form may benefit from international breaks.
The article cites a number of players, such as Hal Robson-Kanu, Asamoah Gyan, and Sergio Romero, who excelled for their nation but had difficulties at the club level.
Numerous football players, both current and former, have had difficulty reproducing their stellar international performance at home. There are several possible explanations for this. Club football is frequently too demanding because of the hectic schedules and unrelenting nature of it all, whereas certain people are more suited to and adjust to the milieu of international football.
It’s challenging for managers to apply different football styles because international games are not only significantly less frequent but also depend on tournament-style formats rather than long seasons. Those who can maintain simplicity and get along with their players will frequently succeed.
Harry Maguire and other players come to mind, but the conventional wisdom among major nations and players is that international breaks can interfere with their home season. However, there are equally as many players who enjoy these international camps and breaks, whether it’s as a way to recover or just because they love playing for their country.
Seeing a player who often shines on the international scene but routinely contributes very little when club football returns is maybe one of the oddest peculiarities in football. As a result, talk2soccer has selected 15 of the greatest players who excelled solely for their nation.
Ranking Elements
The disparity between their clubs’ and their country’s performances
Their general calibre
Reliability and durability
Trophies and honours received on a global level 15
Maguire, Harry, England
Maguire has occasionally played more minutes for England than Manchester United during his career. Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez did, in fact, establish themselves as previous manager Erik ten Hag’s favoured pairing at one point, and even though he was having trouble with club form, former England manager Gareth Southgate kept starting and selecting the much-maligned centre-back for the Three Lions.
Maguire has more over 60 caps despite his club issues. In addition to having seven goals—more than any other England defence in history—he consistently performs at his best while playing for his country. He was selected to his country’s Team of the Tournament for the 2022 World Cup and Euro 2020. He would have undoubtedly been a starter in Euro 2024, but injury kept him out. It’s unclear how long Maguire’s international career will go given that Thomas Tuchel is the new manager of the Three Lions.
Harry Maguire, Statistics for England
Looks
64
Date of debut
08/10/2017
Age at debut
3 days, 7 months, and 24 years
Objectives
7.
Helps
2.
Argentina’s Sergio Romero, 14
The highlights of Sergio Romero’s club football career weren’t particularly noteworthy prior to his time as Manchester United’s number two, behind David de Gea. Despite his lacklustre transition from AZ Alkmaar to Sampdoria, he was always the goalie for Argentina, when he would appear to be at the top of his game. In fact, he was named Man of the Match in the 2014 World Cup semifinal.
Emiliano Martinez, the Yashin Trophy winner for Aston Villa, is the main man in goal, thus even though he now has 96 caps, he is unlikely to reach the 100-mark. Romero currently plays for Boca Juniors in his home Argentina, but Old Trafford supporters will always remember him with affection for filling in for De Gea.
Statistics for Argentina by Sergio Romero
Looks
96
Date of debut
October 9, 2009
Age at debut
19 days, 6 months, and 22 years
Goals given up
69
Sheets of cleanliness
47
13 Ghana’s Asamoah Gyan
For his time with Sunderland, Asamoah Gyan is remembered by the majority of Premier League supporters as a forward of’streets won’t forget’ level. Gyan’s penalty miss at the 2010 World Cup following Luis Suarez’s handball overshadowed his Black Cats tenure, but he remained a constant talisman on the international front.
Gyan cemented his place in Ghanaian legend with 49 goals in 107 games, including two in the 2014 World Cup. However, by that time, the striker had become a journeyman at the club level, playing for teams like Stade Rennais and Udinese.
Statistics from Ghana by Asamoah Gyan
Looks
107
Date of debut
November 19, 2003
Age at debut
11 months, 28 days, and 17 years
Objectives
49
Helps
13.
12 Wales’ Hal Robson-Kanu
Hal Robson-Kanu settled for Reading after failing to make an impression at Premier League powerhouse Arsenal as a young player. You might have been forgiven for not paying much attention when he was released in 2016.
He was added to Wales’ Euro 2016 team as a free agent that same summer and played a key role in their historic run to the semi-finals by scoring goals against Slovakia and Belgium. He dispatched three defenders before slipping past Thibaut Courtois to score a goal against the latter that will live on in football legends forever. Although he continued to play regularly for Wales, the striker did not say much at the club level.
🏴 Your country's most iconic EURO goal is…
⚽️ #TBT to Hal Robson-Kanu 🆚 Belgium!#EURO2020 | @Cymru | @RobsonKanu pic.twitter.com/qqQN9Ukeij
— UEFA EURO (@UEFAEURO) February 13, 2020
Wales Stats’ Hal Robson-Kanu
Looks
46
Date of debut
May 23, 2010
Age at debut
21 years and 2 days
Objectives
5.
Helps
2.
11 Weghorst, Wout, Netherlands
Wout Weghorst will be remembered by English fans as the Burnley forward who managed to gain a loan transfer to Manchester United in January 2023. He only scored twice in 31 games during his tenure with the Red Devils, which is the same number of goals he has scored with the Clarets.
But when it comes to the international game, he’s a different best. The big striker, who is frequently used as a super sub, had his most famous performance during the 2022 Qatar World Cup when he helped his team rally from a deficit to force penalties by scoring twice off the bench against Argentina. He subsequently came on again as a substitute in the Euro 2024 first match, scoring the game-winning goal against Poland.
Wout Weghorst, Statistics for the Netherlands
Looks
42
Date of debut
March 23, 2018
Age at debut
One year, seven months, and sixteen days
Objectives
14
Helps
One
10 Xherdan Shaqiri, Belgium
One of those athletes who has consistently drawn attention is Xherdan Shaqiri. Power is what comes to mind everytime he steps onto the football pitch because of his stocky build and muscular calves, particularly when it comes to hitting the ball with his left foot.
Although he won league titles with FC Basel, Bayern Munich, and Liverpool during his somewhat successful club career, he was frequently a bit-part player in Germany and England. But things are entirely different with the Swiss national squad. His 2014 World Cup hat-trick against Honduras was a highlight, but he has also scored goals for Switzerland at Euro 2016, Euro 2020, Russia 2018, Qatar 2022, and most recently, Euro 2024.
Switzerland Statistics’ Xherdan Shaqiri
Looks
125
Date of debut
March 3, 2010
Age at debut
14 months, 21 days, and 18 years
Objectives
32
Helps
34
9 Chile’s Eduardo Vargas
Eduardo Vargas was the tournament’s top scorer as Chile won the Copa America in 2015. He had scored goals in six consecutive games two years prior, setting a record for his nation. Additionally, the striker won the Copa America’s best scorer award in 2016 after doing the same feat twice. He was quite good at scoring goals on the big stage.
Nevertheless, Vargas struggled to exhibit the same brutality that was expected of him at the club level due to his failed stints at Valencia and Hoffenheim, to name a couple. He was been loaned out by Napoli several times, most recently to QPR, where he again struggled in the Premier League.
Chilean statistics by Eduardo Vargas
Looks
109
Date of debut
April 11, 2009
Age at debut
19 years, 11 months, and 15 days
Goals
42
Aids
9.
8. Joan Capdevila of Spain
You would think that every member of the Spain squad from 2008 to 2012 was a superstar after they won 60 caps for Spain in one of the best ever national team lineups. Additionally, Joan Capdevila was La Roja’s go-to player on the left side of defence before to Jordi Alba’s rise to prominence.
Despite winning a World Cup, European Championship, and Olympic silver medal, Capdevila was unable to duplicate his success at the club level. Capdevila wasn’t a horrible player, but he was only a mediocre full-back in La Liga, which was far different from how he looked when he played for Spain.
Statistics for Spain by Joan Capdevila
Looks
60
Date of debut
October 16, 2002
Age at debut
8 months, 13 days, and 24 years
Objectives
4.
Helps
8.
7 Japan’s Keisuke Honda
One of the most bizarre careers you can imagine was that of Keisuke Honda. His long-shots and set-piece skills made him a cult legend, but aside from a stint with CSKA Moscow, he was unimpressive at the club level and had a dismal stint with AC Milan.
He eventually turned into a full-fledged traveler, juggling managerial responsibilities in Cambodia with playing in the top division of Lithuania. However, between 2008 and 2018, the situation was completely different on a global scale. He will be remembered as a Japanese great after recording 60 goal contributions (37 goals and 23 assists) from 98 caps. Honda won the 2011 Asian Cup and played a significant role in three World Cups.
Statistics for Keisuke Honda in Japan
Looks
98
Date of debut
June 22, 2008
Age at debut
Twenty-two years and nine days
Objectives
37
Helps
23
Six Greek Angels Charisteas
Striker Angelos Charisteas, who memorably scored the game-winning goal in the final of Euro 2004 against Portugal, had a stellar return to Greece with 25 goals and two assists in 88 caps.
Despite being a legend for the national team and a consistently dependable attacker in competition, Charisteas was unable to contribute at the club level. After a turbulent time with Werder Bremen, he travelled throughout Europe, but you would think that at least one elite team would have gambled on him at some point given how well-known he was in an international final.
Greece Statistics by Angelos Charisteas
Looks
88
Date of debut
February 28, 2001
Age at debut
21 years, 19 days
Objectives
25
Helps
2.
5. Ali Daei Iran
Ali Daei, who scored an incredible 109 goals for Iran between 1992 and 2006 and was the man who kept Cristiano Ronaldo off the top of the international scoring charts for as long as possible, has now been overtaken by the Portuguese legend.
His professional career got off to a great start in Asia, but he struggled at the top levels of club competition as soon as he moved to Germany in 1997, first with Armenia Bielefeld and then with Bayern Munich a year later. By 2002, Daei had moved to the United Arab Emirates and had stopped making any noise in Europe. It’s astounding to think of how different a beast he was on a global scale.
Iran Statistics, by Ali Daei
Looks
135
Date of debut
November 30, 1992
Age at debut
8 months, 9 days, and 23 years
Objectives
109
Helps
4.
Breel Embolo Switzerland, fourth
Breel Embolo, another Swiss superstar, appears to emerge from retirement right before each international competition. He was ranked second out of 50 of the world’s most gifted young players in 2016, but injuries have kept him from playing regularly at the club level.
Despite the uneven outcomes of his stints at Basel, Schalke 04, Borussia Monchengladbach, and Monaco, he always appears considerably more confident when wearing his country’s red uniform. He has now scored or assisted for his nation in the last four major international tournaments, going back to Russia 2018, after coming off the bench in Switzerland’s opening Euro 2024 match.
Breel Embolo: Statistics for Switzerland
Looks
73
Date of debut
May 31, 2015
Age at debut
18 years, one month, and seventeen days
Objectives
15.
Helps
16
3. Germany’s Lukas Podolski
When it came time to put on the Germany shirt, Lukas Podolski, who has one of the most deadly left feet in all of football, became a savage. Even though he isn’t a complete failure for either Bayern Munich or Arsenal, he is treated like a king or queen in Cologne, therefore it’s fair to say that he never lived up to the club’s expectations.
The winger’s most famous club stint was with Arsenal from 2012 to 2015, where he was liked but never quite reached the heights expected after failing to make an impression at Bayern Munich in his early career. It’s hard to believe he wasn’t also a world-class player at home, given that he is Die Mannschaft’s third-highest scorer and third-most capped player, and that he played a key role in the 2014 World Cup.
Statistics for Germany by Lukas Podolski
Looks
130
Date of debut
June 6, 2004
Age at debut
19 years and 2 days
Objectives
49
Helps
31
2. Sweden’s Anders Svensson
It would be reasonable to assume that Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the Swedish player with the most caps in history, but this is not accurate. That crown actually belongs to Anders Svensson, who looked like a star and captained the team numerous times throughout his 148 caps.
Since the playmaking midfielder has one of the top 10 European caps in history, it stands to reason that he was also one of the finest in Europe’s club league. Unfortunately, no. Svensson played his whole career with IF Elfsborg in his home country of Sweden, with the exception of a mediocre four years with Southampton from 2001 to 2005.
Sweden Statistics’ Anders Svensson
Looks
147
Date of debut
November 27, 1999
Age at debut
10 days, 4 months, and 23 years
Objectives
21
Helps
15.
1 Germany’s Miroslav Klose
Miroslav Klose, a former shooter who enters prestigious company as one of the few players to score at four different World Cups, had to round out the list. When called up to play for the national team, the somewhat humble striker at the club level was a cheat code.
Klose is Germany’s all-time top scorer. In 71 games, the national team has never lost when Klose has scored. He has won gold, silver, and bronze at the Olympics and has the most goals at World Cup competitions. Klose struggled to make it to the top level and was essentially Lazio’s inoffensive servant at his best, but he was always quite dependable for a goal at the club level.
Statistics of Germany by Miroslav Klose
Looks
137
Date of debut
March 24, 2001
Age at debut
9 months, 15 days, and 22 years
Objectives
71
Helps
29
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