Winning the Premier League title in England is one of the hardest things to accomplish as a footballer. A punishing schedule, a number of teams vying for the title every year, a title race that almost always goes on until May – a number of factors make it a very challenging task.
Of course, there are a number of players who have won it multiple times – all thanks to a manager who built a squad that got used to winning titles. But a select few have managed to win the league title with two different teams.
Note: Mark Schwarzer is not included even though he was in the Chelsea and Leicester City squads that won the title in 2014/15 and 2015/16 because he didn’t play a single game.
1) N’Golo Kante
When the 2015/16 season got underway, almost nobody knew who N’golo Kante was. Here was a French midfielder who had been signed by Leicester City – a club that miraculously survived relegation the season before – for a paltry sum of £5.6m.
But when he stepped foot on the pitch and covered every blade of grass to make interceptions and win tackles, the Foxes knew they had a special player in their ranks. And the rest of the league also sat up and took notice. By the end of the season, his tireless running had seen him top the interception and tackles charts in the league as Leicester won the title.
Although many expected him to repeat his heroics, this time in the league and in Europe, Kante suddenly made the switch to Chelsea who paid a handsome £32m fee. The club had sold Ramires to the Chinese Super League and they replaced him with a player of significantly better quality.
What followed was a Conte-Kante master class as Chelsea trotted to the Premier League title while Kante picked up both the PFA Player of the Year and FWA Player of the Year. No other player in Premier League history has been involved in the entire campaign in back-to-back title wins with two different clubs.
2) Nicolas Anelka
Before Arsene Wenger signed Thierry Henry at Arsenal, there was another young French striker who was making headlines. Signed as a teenager for just £500,000 from Paris Saint-Germain, Anelka took his time to get a look-in but an injury to Ian Wright saw him grab his chance with both hands.
The 1997/98 campaign saw Arsenal clinch Wenger’s first double – winning the Premier League and the FA Cup. And Anelka played a big role making 26 appearances – quite a lot for a player who had still not turned 20 years old. His next season would be even better but his attitude soon saw him lose admirers and he made the switch to Real Madrid.
It was a transfer he would regret as he soon became a footballing nomad, moving from club to club (PSG, Liverpool, Manchester City, Bolton Wanderers) before Chelsea decided to take a punt on him with a £15m bid.
It proved to be worthwhile transfer as Anelka stepped into Didier Drogba’s shoes when he suffered an injury. The Frenchman went on to win the Golden Boot in 2008/09 with 19 goals and became an integral part of the title-winning team in 2009/10 with 11 goals even though he was pushed to the wing.
3) Kolo Toure
Kolo Toure almost lost his chance to become a Premier League legend. When he was on trial at Arsenal, his physicality and enthusiasm in a light training session led to him tackling both Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp, leading to minor injuries to both. To top it off, he even took out Arsene Wenger with a tackle and was reduced to tears thinking he’d missed out on the opportunity.
But Wenger liked his desire and signed him up immediately. Toure would go on to become one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League and partnered with Sol Campbell to form a solid defensive partnership that laid the foundation for the Invincibles campaign that saw Arsenal win the title without losing a single game.
However, in 2009 Manchester City came in with a £14m bid as they looked to build a squad worthy of competing for the title. He soon switched sides and helped the side finish in the top four, even taking on the captain’s armband.
By 2011/12, City had signed many more world class players (including Toure’s brother Kolo) and they won the title in dramatic fashion in stoppage time on the final day of the season. Toure was more of a squad player in that campaign but he did make 14 appearances to receive a winner’s medal.
4) Ashley Cole
Yet another member of the Invincibles campaign at Arsenal was Ashley Cole. A promising left-back who came through the club’s academy, Cole seized the chance to seal a spot in the Gunners squad when an injury to Sylvinho saw him step up and make the position his own.
Cole was a left-back who loved to attack and it was that desire to be involved at the other end of the pitch that made him a force to be reckoned with. Wenger encouraged his attacking instincts because he was still disciplined enough to track back. He was one of the key members in the undefeated run, playing 32 games in the league that season.
However, while everything was working perfectly on the pitch, all was not well off it. His wages became a big issue and soon Chelsea came calling with a sizeable offer. Cole’s head was turned but not before he and the Blues were fined because they had tapped up the player without including Arsenal in their talks.
But Cole put it behind him and soon became Chelsea’s key player over the next eight seasons, winning every trophy available. He won the league title with the Blues only once in 2009/10 but he became a serial winner of FA Cups – winning seven in all with both London clubs.
5) Henning Berg
The Norwegian defender was the first player ever to win the Premier League title with two different clubs – Blackburn Rovers (1994/95) and Manchester United (1998/99 and 1999/2000).
In truth, Kenny Dalglish was actually scouting another Norwegian defender Tore Pedersen before he signed Berg. When England and Norway played at Wembley, Dalglish was impressed by Berg’s performance when he came on to replace the injured Pedersen. £400,000 saw him move to Blackburn in 1993.
Back then, the league had 22 teams which saw them play 42 games in a season. Berg played all 42 games in the Rovers’ title triumph – the club’s first top division league title in 81 years.
With the ability to play at right-back and centre-back, Berg caught the eye of Manchester United and they signed him for £5m – a British record for a defender back then. Sir Alex Ferguson admitted that he was an admirer long before his move to Blackburn but work permit issues saw Berg miss out on a move to Old Trafford.
He would play a limited role in the 1999 treble-winning team with Jaap Stam but his 16 appearances in the league saw him take home a Premier League winner’s medal.
6) Carlos Tevez
The Argentine striker came to the Premier League in a storm of agent fees and confusion over third-party ownership rules that his transfer eventually saw FIFA and the Premier League change their rules.
But after some inspiring performances with West Ham that eventually saw the relegation-threatened Hammers stay up, Sir Alex Ferguson brought him to Manchester United on loan to team him up with Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Tevez played 63 times for the Red Devils over two seasons, helping them to league titles in both campaigns. But off the field, there were problems as he wasn’t given a permanent deal at the club. Although there were a number of negotiations due to the unique nature of his situation, Tevez opted to leave and signed with cross-town rivals Manchester City.
His versatility to play as a centre-forward or out wide, Roberto Mancini played him across the front line and tasked him with pressing opponents to win the ball back. Before his behaviour became erratic, his persistence was a key factor in City’s success and though he missed a few games in the 2011/12 campaign, he played 13 times to receive a medal.
7) Robert Huth
It’s hard to imagine that 32-year-old Robert Huth actually started his senior career in the 2001/02 season. He was only 17 years old when Claudio Ranieri gave him a debut at Chelsea. But he would slowly start playing more games with the senior squad.
Then came Roman Abramovich followed by Jose Mourinho. With players such as John Terry, Ricardo Carvalho and William Gallas above him in the pecking order, Huth was reduced to a bit-part player. And even though he won a Premier League winner’s medal in 2004/05 and 2005/06, he had only made 10 and 13 appearances respectively.
After long stints at Middlesbrough and Stoke City, he soon made the switch to Leicester City where he would be reunited with Ranieri. This time, there was no stopping him from making the starting lineup as he played 35 games in the title-winning campaign – missing out on the other three only because of a retrospective ban.
Huth had even scored three goals – two of which came in the crucial 3-1 win over Manchester City that set them on their way to the title.
8) Gael Clichy
Not many will remember that Gael Clichy was actually a part of the Arsenal Invincibles squad. The left-back made 12 appearances in the league even though he was second choice behind Ashley Cole. But an injury to Cole in mid-season had seen Clichy step up and make starts too.
When Arsenal won the league unbeaten, an 18-year-old Clichy was at the time the youngest player to receive a Premier League medal. Clichy then became a permanent fixture in the lineup following Cole’s departure to Chelsea and spent a good eight seasons at the club.
Manchester City then started poaching Premier League players to match their ambition, Clichy was identified as the perfect left-back and a £7m bid ensured Wenger did not stand in his way.
While a couple of players who left Arsenal for City were considered mercenaries, Clichy’s decision was respected among the Arsenal faithful.
In six seasons at City, he and Aleksandar Kolarov competed for the left-back spot but it was Clichy who made more appearances in the title-winning campaigns as Kolarov was sometimes pushed into a centre-back role. In all, he has won three Premier League titles (one with Arsenal and two with City).
