#4 John Charles
John Charles, a Welsh striker, transferred to Juventus from Leeds United for £65000, which was then the British record for a transfer. As one of the few British players to ever venture out of the island, Charles was expected to have a tough time initially in Serie A, but he defied all odds and scored 28 goals en route to the Serie A title and was declared the Serie A Player of the Season.
As one of the most complete players in football history, Charles was equally effective at both the centre forward and the centre back positions. His immense 6’ 2” build allowed him to leap high and win balls in the air, and perfect the art of the headed goal, defeating most defenders in aerial duels.
Besides his aerial prowess, Charles’ sense of positioning, tackling and pure ability to use his body well made him a nightmare of a player for opposition teams to deal with. He was a technically perfect player as well, with the ability to find the right gaps in defences while passing, or carrying the ball forward in a mazy dribble.
In his 5-year spell at Juve, Charles was outright the best player to set foot on Italian soil. He led them to 3 Serie A titles and 2 Coppa Italias.
Apart from being an incredible goal scorer and team player, John Charles was a complete gentleman both on and off the pitch. He was never yellow-carded in his entire career, and his non-combative style of play endeared him to Juve fans even more.
