Top 5 Foreign players to play for Liverpool in the Premier League

Liverpool were the first English club to pay over 1 million for a non-British player when they signed Israeli striker Ronny Rosenthal from Standard Lige for a fee of 1.1 million. The formation of the English Premier League in 1992 saw a significant increase in the number of non-British players being signed by English clubs. Foreign managers Gerard Houllier and Rafael Benitez often looked at their homelands and other European leagues for purchasing talent.Here we present a list of top 5 foreign players to have played for Liverpool in the Premier League.

#5 Dietmar Hamann

The German holding midfielder signed for Liverpool in July 1999 from Newcastle for a fee of £8 million and spent seven years at the club. He anchored the midfield with his solid and no-nonsense approach and won 9 trophies during his stint with the Reds.

Hamann was a prominent member in the team that won the treble in 2000-2001 season, scored penalties in the shootouts of the 2005 Champions League Final against AC Milan and 2006 FA Cup Final against West Ham, both of which Liverpool went on to win.

#4 Fernando Torres

Fernando Torres was signed in July 2007 for a then-Liverpool record fee of £20 million from Atlético Madrid. The striker made an instant impact at the club and scored his first league goal on his Anfield debut in a 1-1 draw against Chelsea. He went to score 33 goals in all competitions in his debut season at Liverpool. In doing so, he became the first Liverpool player since Robbie Fowler to score more than 20 goals in the league in a season.

He formed a formidable partnership with Steven Gerrard as Liverpool finished second in the league in the following season. Torres scored 81 goals from 142 appearances for Liverpool before leaving for Chelsea for a British transfer record fee of £50 million.

#3 Xabi Alonso

One of the first players signed by Rafa Benitez after he took charge at the club, Alonso proved to be a bargain purchase at £10.7 million. Rated as one of the most technically gifted footballers in the world, Alonso served Liverpool very well for five seasons with his range of passing, vision and ability to read & control the game.

He scored the equalizing goal in Liverpool’s comeback in the 2005 Champions League Final and also featured in the victorious FA Cup campaign in the following season. Despite having left for Real Madrid for £30 million in 2009, the Spaniard remains a firm favourite among the Anfield faithful.

#2 Sami Hyppi

Probably the best purchase made by Gerard Houllier, the Finnish defender was signed from Dutch club Willem II for a measly £2.6 million. He played for the club in 464 games over 10 seasons and established himself as one of the best Liverpool players in the Premier League era.

Hyppiä formed reliable central defensive partnerships, first with Stéphane Henchoz and later Jamie Carragher and was integral to the team’s success in the 2000-2001 treble and the 2005 Champions League. Apart from being a solid defender, he also had a knack of scoring valuable goals especially in the European competitions.

#1 Luis Suarez

The Uruguayan arrived at Anfield from Ajax in January 2011 for £22.8 million and instantly took over the mantle of club’s strike spearhead which had been vacated by Fernando Torres. Though Suarez has been surrounded by controversies almost throughout his time at Anfield, his contributions on the pitch can’t be disputed.

After scoring 30 goals in the 2012-13 season, Suarez is enjoying another rich goal-scoring spell in the current season. At present he is the top-scorer in all European leagues with 25 goals and he has also formed a potent strike partnership with Daniel Sturridge to lead Liverpool’s quest for a position in the top 4 of the Premier League.