MX23RW : Friday, April 19 05:13:32| >> :120:16296:16296:

Football's greatest one-club men to mark Sir Tom Finney's birthday

Tom Finney was intrinsically linked with Preston.

The great Sir Tom Finney was born on April 5 in 1922.

Widely acknowledged as one of football's greatest ever, Finney represented Preston for his entire career, becoming the ultimate one-club man as he made 569 first-class appearances.

Here, the PA news agency looks back at others to have forged a deep connection to one club.

Ryan Giggs (Manchester United, 29 years, 963 appearances)

Ryan Giggs is a Manchester United great
Ryan Giggs is a Manchester United great (Dave Thompson/PA)

Perhaps the most famous, Giggs had a 29-year association with Manchester United going from academy player through to caretaker manager.

A brilliant left-footed winger, Giggs made 963 appearances for United between 1990 and 2014, winning 34 honours under Sir Alex Ferguson.

He took over for a short period, when Ferguson's successor David Moyes was sacked, and now manages Wales.

Paolo Maldini (AC Milan, 31 years, 902 appearances)

Paulo Maldini is Mr AC Milan
Paulo Maldini is Mr AC Milan (Martin Rickett/PA)

The Italy international was one of the players of his generation and one of the greatest defenders of all time, operating across the back four with consummate ease. A youth team product who joined as a 10-year-old, he made his first-team debut in 1985 and retired aged 41.

He made a return to AC in a strategic role in 2018 and in the summer of 2019 was made the club's technical director.

Francesco Totti (Roma, 30 years, 786 appearances)

Francesco Totti is Roma's greatest ever scorer
Francesco Totti is Roma's greatest ever scorer (Martin Rickett/PA)

Joined the Roma youth squad in 1989 as a 13-year-old and made his debut in 1993. The attacking midfielder's name has become synonymous with Roma because of the length of his dedication. He scored a club-record 307 goals for Roma and stayed on as a director before resigning in 2018.

Jamie Carragher (Liverpool, 25 years, 737 appearances)

Jamie Carragher is a Liverpool hero
Jamie Carragher is a Liverpool hero (Peter Byrne/PA)

The Everton-supporting youngster joined the Reds' youth set-up in 1988, eventually making his first-team debut nine years later. He went on to become the club's second-highest appearance-maker behind the uncatchable Ian Callaghan before retiring in 2013.

Ted Sagar (Everton, 24 years, 497 appearances)

Ted Sagar was an Everton stalwart
Ted Sagar was an Everton stalwart (Anthony Devlin/PA)

The goalkeeper joined Everton from Thorne Colliery in 1929 and made his debut the following year, eventually retiring in 1953 with a record 463 league game tally which was eventually broken by another goalkeeper, one Neville Southall.

ID:395452: cacheID:395452:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:9746:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Philippe Coutinho celebrates scoring for Brazil on November 19, 2019
Read Next:
Chelsea 'make contact over Philippe Coutinho'
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Manchester CityMan City32227376324473
2Arsenal32225575264971
3Liverpool32218372314171
4Aston Villa33196868491963
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs32186865491660
6Newcastle UnitedNewcastle321551269521750
7Manchester UnitedMan Utd32155124748-150
8West Ham UnitedWest Ham33139115258-648
9Chelsea31138106152947
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton321111105250244
11Wolverhampton WanderersWolves32127134651-543
12Fulham33126154951-242
13Bournemouth32119124757-1042
14Crystal Palace3289153754-1733
15Brentford3388174758-1132
16Everton3298153248-1627
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3379174258-1626
18Luton TownLuton3367204670-2425
19Burnley3348213368-3520
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd3237223084-5416


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!