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Diego Maradona played for a club not many expected to see him in
Some legendary footballers are iconically attached to a particular football club. While there are someone club legends like Manchester United's Ryan Giggs or AC Milan's Paolo Maldini, there are some legends who, despite having been known to have played for one club, have played for some peculiar clubs that you may not know of.
We cover some of the true greats of the game ranging from a defender to an attacking midfielder, from a German World Cup-winning captain/manager to arguably the greatest player of all time.
Only legends get away by playing for some rival teams and here are 5 legends, who despite being successful for one club, tried their hands at other clubs that one does not usually associate them with!
#5 Franz Beckenbauer - Hamburg SV
We start the list with Franz Beckenbauer. Der Kaiser is, without doubt, Germany's most successful player having captained Germany to victory in the 1972 Euros and the 1974 World Cup and later managed them to victory in the 1990 World Cup.
The club Beckenbauer is most associated with is Bayern Munich. Der Kaiser joined the Bavarian club in 1964 and represented them for more than 500 games. Most notably, he guided the club to three consecutive European Cups from 1974 to 1976.
However, during the later stages of his career, Beckenbauer joined Bayern Munich's German rivals Hamburg SV. Beckenbauer joined the Die Rothosen in 1980 and spent a total of 2 seasons with them.
Those two seasons were plagued by injuries and Beckenbauer could only manage 37 appearances. However, he did manage to win one Bundesliga title with the club in 1982.
However, this part of his illustrious career is hardly known to many and thus Franz Beckenbauer will always be considered as a Bayern Munich legend and not remembered for his 2-season stay at Hamburg.
#4 Socrates - Fiorentina
One of the greatest Brazilians never to win the World Cup was undoubtedly Socrates. The Brazilian legend played for some of the biggest clubs in his native country which included the likes of Botafogo, Corinthians, Flamengo and Santos.
However, Dr Socrates had just one season away from his native Brazil and that was bizarrely at Serie A side Fiorentina during the 1984-85 season. Overall, he had a decent outing in this only season in Europe. He made 29 appearances for the Viola and scored 9 goals in all competitions.
The great Brazilian was overshadowed by the diminutive Argentinian in Diego Maradona. Socrates was only able to guide Fiorentina to a 9th place finish. The attacking midfielder could only score 6 goals in Serie A, and would leave the club after just one season which went trophyless.
Socrates soon felt homesick and returned back to his native Brazil, joining Flamengo first and then signing for Santos a year later.
The great Socrates returned to Botafogo in 1989 and retired from football that very year without playing a single game for them.
#3 Fernando Hierro - Bolton Wanderers
Fernando Hierro means Real Madrid and vice versa! The former Spanish manager who led his nation this World Cup is a true Los Blancos legend, having arrived from Real Valladolid for a mere £900K, he went on to represent Real Madrid for a grand total of 601 games, a career spanning 14 years. He also managed to score more than 120 goals for the club.
During the twilight years of his career, Hierro moved to Al Rayyan SC in Qatar but would make a move back to Europe a year later.
Following the advice of former Real Madrid teammate Steve McManaman, Fernando Hierro joined the English Premiership side Bolton Wanderers, teaming up with former Real player Ivan Campo.
He was a massive cult hero at the Reebok Stadium. The Spaniard managed to play 29 out of 38 games in the league during the 04-05 season and also scored one goal which game against Norwich City, though in a losing cause.
Having been a true fan favourite, then Bolton manager Sam Allardyce tried to persuade the Spaniard to sign a contract extension for one more year but Hierro decided against it and announced his retirement at the end of the season.
Having seen a Spanish legend at a small club in Greater Manchester was truly something spectacular!
#2 Johan Cruyff - Levante UD
If someone asks who has contributed the most to the evolution of modern football, the answer would 9 times out of 10 be the great Dutchman, Johan Cruyff.
The Dutch legend is widely regarded as the pioneer of total football during his times at Ajax and also with the Dutch national team. The total football revolution by Cruyff helped Ajax win 3 consecutive European Cups from 1971 to 1973, and also helped Netherlands reach 2 World Cup finals during the 1970s.
Cruyff then went on to join FC Barcelona from Ajax where he spent 5 seasons and won one La Liga and one Copa Del Rey trophy.
Cruyff later spent 3 seasons in the USA with Los Angeles Aztecs and Washington Diplomats. In a bizarre move in 1981, Cruyff decided to come back to Spain but with the second division side Levante UD.
But his spell in Levante wasn't as fruitful as it was with his other clubs. There were constant disagreement with the Levante board and Cruyff also had to battle many injuries during his time with the Granotas.
Johan Cruyff only managed to play 10 games for Levante in the Segunda Division, scoring 2 goals. Having failed to secure promotion with the club, the contract negotiations fell through and Cruyff moved back to his beloved Ajax, having stayed at Levante for a mere 8 months.
#1 Diego Maradona - Sevilla
Finally to top it we have the greatest footballer to play the beautiful game, Diego Maradona!
El Diego has played for some of the biggest clubs in Europe and South America which include the likes of Boca Juniors, Barcelona and Napoli. The Argentine is more famously known for his 7 season stay at Napoli where he transformed the city of Naples and made Napoli a title contender. He won a lot of trophies in Italy including Serie A and UEFA Cup.
Maradona was a hero on the pitch but a villain off it. His problems with drugs and cocaine were increasing day by day. In 1991, El Diego failed a drug test and was handed a 15-month ban from all football-related activities.
In 1992 when his ban was uplifted, Maradona decided to rejoin La Liga with Sevilla even though there was strong interest from bigger clubs like Real Madrid and Marseille.
Maradona played just a solitary season for the Seville based club. The Argentine managed to play 29 games for the club and only managed to score 8 goals for them. Unsurprisingly, his only season with Sevilla ended trophyless.
After an unsuccessful period with Sevilla, Maradona returned to his native Argentina first with Newell's Old Boys and later rejoined his boyhood club Boca Juniors for the second time.
