The best players to have played for both Man City & Man United

Following their meeting in the 2024 FA Community Shield, Ladbrokes looks at the best players to have played for both Man City and Man United.

There's a lot of bad blood between the fans of Man City and Man United, with the two sides arguably being the most dominant in England in the 21st century.

However, they have a bit more in common than you'd think, so Ladbrokes looks at the seven best players to have played for both Man City and Man United.

There are actually 14 players who have played for both Man City and Man United, including the likes of Brian Kidd, John Gidman, Peter Barnes, Peter Beardsley, Mark Robins, Sammy McIlroy, Andrei Kanchelskis, Terry Cooke and Wyn Davies, who narrowly miss out on a spot in our list.

Jadon Sancho could have been included, but the ex-Dortmund may never actually played a senior game for City, despite coming through their academy.

So, Ladbrokes takes you through the five best players who shocked the footballing world by playing for both Manchester clubs.

The first name to feature on our list is Owen Hargreaves, with the England international being someone that many fans may have even forgotten ever played for Man City.

Known much better for his time with the Red Devils, Hargreaves played 39 times during his four years with Man United, winning both the Premier League and Champions League in 2008.

Injuries seriously limited the amount of games Hargreaves could play for United, but he was a trusted member of Sir Alex Ferguson's squad and often started in midfield when fit and avaliable.

He left United as a free agent in 2011, but remained in Manchester by joining Man City that summer. playing just four games for the club during his one year there, which was also majorly plagued by injuries.

Ultimately, Hargreaves is a bit of a 'what if' story. The ex-Bayern Munich midfield was undeniably talented, but failed to make a real name for himself due to his glaring injury issues. Despite that, his ability still makes him one of the better players to have played for both Man City and Man United.

Next up on our list is Carlos Tevez, who managed to not only play for both Man City and Man United, but actually won the Premier League with both Manchester clubs, a truly remarkable feat.

Joining on a two-year loan deal from West Ham, Tevez played 99 times for United, scoring 34 goals and winning five trophies, including the Premier League in 2008 and 2009, and the Champions League in 2008, being part of the side who beat Chelsea in the final in Moscow.

After winning the 2008/09 Premier League with United, Tevez joined arch rivals Man City, going on to play 125 times for the club, scoring 74 goals in the process.

In his four years playing for the blue half of Manchester, Tevez was part of the side who won the Premier League in dramatic fashion for the first time in 2012, as well as getting his hands on the FA Cup the year prior.

The amount of trophies that Tevez won with both clubs, as well as the sheer amount of goals he scored, means that he's easily regarded as one of the best players to have played for both Man City, and Man United.

From one top striker to another, the third-best player to have played for both Man City and Man United according to Ladbrokes' team of football experts is Andy Cole.

Cole joined Man United in 1995 and only failed to win the Premier League in one of his one of his six full seasons at the club. The ex-Newcastle man was also part of the side who won the historic treble in 1999.

Four years after leaving United, as he was wrapping up his playing career, Cole joined Man City at the beginning of the 2005/06 season. He didn't last long playing on the blue half of Manchester, only managing 23 appearances, but he did produce a healthy goal return, finding the back of the net ten times.

Cole may not have had the most memorable City career, but given how successful his time at Man United was, you simply have to have the England international right near the top of this list.

Denis Law had a really interesting career, playing for Man City between 1960 and 1961, before moving to Torino for a year in Italy.

However, Law returned to England pretty quickly, but moved to Man United, where he played for the club for over a decade between 1962 and 1973, scoring 237 goals across his 365 games.

Law left the Red Devils in 1973, but that wasn't the end of his time in Manchester, as he returned to Man City for a year, playing a further 29 games and scoring 12 goals, taking his total to 28 goals in 59 games for the Cityzens.

The Scot has two statues outside Old Trafford and was known as one of the best players of his time, winning four trophies during his time at Man United and being fondly remembered as a truly significant historical figure.

Law may not be known to fans of the modern game, but don't let that take away from the fact that he was one of the best players of his time, and has to be on the list of the best players to have played for both Man City and Man United.

Regarded by many as the best goalkeeper to ever play in the Premier League, we also deem Schmeichel to be the best player to have played for both Man City and Man United.

Like many of the other names on this list, the Danish shotstopper is known best for his time at Old Trafford, having played 395 games during his eight years at United, keeping 180 clean sheets and winning 11 trophies in the process, including the Premier League and Champions League.

Schmeichel then joined Sporting in Portugal in 1999, but returned to the Premier League after two years to play for Aston Villa. This wasn't the end of his playing career though, as he actually wrapped things up playing for Man City between 2002 and 2003, starring 31 times and keeping nine clean sheets.

Schmeichel didn't have a memorable time at City, but given that he was one of the best Man United players during their most dominant spell in English football, he can't be anything other than the best player to have played for both Manchester clubs.

Man City and Man United have already shared the pitch this season in London at Wembley Stadium on August 10 in the FA Community Shield, the curtain raiser before the 2024/25 Premier League season kicks off.

The game ended with Man City lifting the trophy, winning the game on penalties following goals from Bernardo Silva and Alejandro Garnacho.

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All odds and markets are correct as of the date of publication.