The English Abroad 3 - More than One at a Club [1] Quiz

Answer: Real Madrid

David Beckham had been a significant part of Manchester United's first team since his debut in 1995, winning six Premier League titles, two FA Cups and the UEFA Champions League during his time at the club. However, by the summer of 2003 his relationship with the manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, had deteriorated, and he elected to leave, joining Real Madrid as the latest in a series of so-called "galacticos", extremely high-profile players recruited for large transfer fees. Despite the apparent quality of the side, in Beckham's first season at Real, the team finished fourth in the league, were runners-up in the Copa del Rey, and were knocked out of the Champions League in the quarter-final.

Beckham ultimately stayed at Real Madrid for four years, a period of significant disappointment for the club, as they were outmatched by their fierce rivals Barcelona, who won two La Liga titles and the Champions League. In January 2007, it was announced that he had agreed a deal to leave Real Madrid at the end of the season to join LA Galaxy in the United States. Despite it initially seeming that he would be dropped, he was restored to the first team, and eventually helped them to win their first league title since 2003, the only major trophy he won during his time in Spain. Beckham ultimately played 155 times for Real Madrid in all competitions, scoring 20 goals.

Answer: Real Madrid

Steve McManaman had formed an integral part of Liverpool's first team throughout the 1990s, having made his debut in 1991 at the age of 19. His time at Liverpool saw him regularly challenging for honours, although the only trophies he won were the FA Cup in 1992, and the League Cup in 1995. By 1998, McManaman had declared his desire to play abroad and refused contract offers from Liverpool, electing instead to sign an agreement with Real Madrid in January 1999 to join the club the following July. In his first season, he proved an instant hit with fans, and led ultimately to the club's eighth European Cup / Champions League, which they won at the end of the season in Paris, making McManaman the first English player to win the competition with a foreign club.

Despite his popularity, Real Madrid were ready to sacrifice McManaman following the signing of Luis Figo in 2001, declaring him surplus to requirements. Despite this, McManaman refused all offers to leave, electing to stay and fight for his place in the team. Ultimately successful, McManaman developed a partnership with full-back Roberto Carlos that helped the club to the league title in 2001 and 2003, and another Champions League title in 2002. However, over time, he fell down the pecking order at the club, and was ultimately released at the end of his contract in 2003, eventually returning to England with Manchester City. McManaman played a total of 154 games for Real Madrid in all competitions, scoring 14 times.

Answer: Real Madrid

Michael Owen signed his first professional contract with Liverpool on his 17th birthday in December 1996, and was handed his first-team debut five months later, scoring in the game against Wimbledon. Owen's impact led to his becoming a first-team regular from the following season, in which he was the Premier League top scorer, a feat he repeated the year after. His goals helped Liverpool regain trophy winning momentum starting in 2001, when they won a cup treble, and led to interest appearing from European rivals. By 2004 however, his place in Liverpool's team was coming under threat as a result of regular hamstring injuries, and in August that year the club accepted a bid from Real Madrid which saw Owen move to Spain.

Owen joined Real during the so-called "galacticos" era, which saw many high profile players join. As a result, he had a slow start to his time at the club, often starting as a substitute, before scoring his first goal in October 2004. This kick-started his form, and led to his showing a similar eye for goal as had made him Liverpool's top scorer for the previous five seasons, and included scoring in the "Clasico" against Barcelona. But, despite his prowess, which brought him 16 goals in 45 games that season, at its close he was offered for sale and returned to the Premier League to join Newcastle United.

Answer: Real Madrid

Lawrie Cunningham made his professional debut for Leyton Orient in 1974 before moving to West Bromwich Albion three years later, where he played alongside Cyrille Regis and Brendon Batson. This made Albion only the second English top-flight club to field three black players in their first-team. Cunningham proved a success at the club, becoming the first non-white player to represent England at any level when he was selected for the under-21s in 1977, and winning his first full cap two years later. It was in the same year that he attracted the attention of Real Madrid, who eventually signed him in the summer of 1979, making him the first British player to join the club.

Cunningham's first season in Spain was a major success, as he helped them to a league and cup double (having scored twice on his debut), as well as reaching the semi-finals of the European Cup. The following season saw him continue in the same vein, until he broke a toe that required surgery. Although he returned in time to play in the 1981 European Cup Final, a thigh injury during the following summer impacted the next season, and, with Real signing other players, he spent time first on loan at Manchester United in 1983, and then the 1983-84 season at Sporting Gijon. He eventually left Madrid permanently in 1984 to join Marseille, having played a total of 66 games and scoring 20 times in the Spanish capital.

Answer: Monaco

By 1987, Glenn Hoddle, who was regarded as one of England's most naturally gifted footballers of the time, had been a mainstay in Tottenham Hotspur's first-team for more than a decade. However, the prevailing attitude in English football at the time tended to overlook players comfortable with the ball at their feet like Hoddle. This, combined with the ban on English clubs from European competition following the Heysel Stadium disaster, led to Hoddle looking to potentially move on from Tottenham to a club in Europe, where players of his type would be more appreciated. In 1987, he announced that at the end of the 1986-87 season, he would leave Tottenham to join French club AS Monaco.

Hoddle joined Monaco alongside his fellow England international Mark Hateley. In his first season at the club, he played a major role in them winning their first league title in six years, while the following season he proved inspirational in helping Monaco reach the quarter-finals of the European Cup, the furthest they had reached in any European competition. This success led to Hoddle being voted as the top foreign player in French football. However, at the start of his third season with the club, he suffered a bad knee injury that curtailed his career there. In November 1990, having gone through treatment, the club and Hoddle came to a mutual agreement to terminate his contract, and he left to return to England, eventually being appointed as the player-manager of Swindon Town in March 1991. Hoddle played a total of 87 games for Monaco, scoring 30 goals .

Answer: Monaco

Although Mark Hateley's career began in the English First Division in 1979 with Coventry City, in the mid-1980s he became one of what was, at the time, a handful of English players plying their trade overseas, having joined AC Milan in 1984. However, despite being a fan-favourite in Italy, not least owing to his winning goal in his first derby again Inter in October 1984, by 1987 he was on the fringes of Milan's first-team and sought to move elsewhere. Despite interest from clubs in the UK, not least of which were Scottish champions Rangers, he elected to move instead to French club AS Monaco, becoming the first signing by their new coach, Arsene Wenger.

During Hateley's first season, the club won their first league title for six years, inspired by Hateley's fellow England international, Glenn Hoddle, with Hateley contributing 14 goals. However, the following season, in the club's European Cup quarter-final, he suffered a double dislocation of his ankle, a bad injury that required significant treatment and rehab. As a result, Hateley's place in the first-team was taken by new signing George Weah. Although he was able to regain his fitness, he was not able to regain his regular first-team spot and, at the end of his third season at Monaco, he was sold to Rangers. Hateley's time at Monaco saw him play a total of 68 times, scoring 24 goals.

Answer: Bari

Gordon Cowans had been a part of the Aston Villa team that won the Football League title in 1981, following it up with victory in the European Cup in 1982, when he was initially approached with a view to joining Napoli. While that move fell through, in 1985 an offer came from Italian side Bari, who had just achieved promotion to Serie A. Suffering a broken leg in pre-season, Cowans was unable to make his debut until October, when he played in the local derby against Lecce, which saw Bari win 2-0. However, this proved to be one of only five games the club won that season, which led to an immediate return to Serie B.

Up to the point that he joined Bari, Cowans had made a total of seven appearances for the England team, all in 1983. His form following his return from injury for Bari led to his winning a recall to the national side in January 1986 for a friendly against Egypt, in which he scored. This saw him retained for the next friendly game against the Soviet Union in March, in which he and fellow midfielder Steve Hodge were seen as vying for a place in the squad for the 1986 World Cup. Ultimately, Cowans was not selected, and played just once more for England. Cowans' time at Bari ended in 1988 when he returned to Aston Villa, having played 106 times for the Italians, scoring four goals.

Answer: Bari

Although David Platt was building a significant reputation for himself as part of Aston Villa's first team, it was the role he played during the England team's run to the semi-final of the 1990 World Cup that burst him onto the international stage. This led to his being linked with a move away from the club throughout the 1990-91 season, not least of which from a number of clubs in Italy. However, as a result of previous experiences by English players with some of Italy's bigger clubs, he instead looked to Serie A's lesser lights to facilitate an introduction into Italian football and, in the summer of 1991, transferred to AS Bari; and was immediately named as the team's captain.

Platt made his debut for the club at home to Torino, scoring in a 1-1 draw. His first season in Italy proved to be a personal success, with a total of 11 goals from midfield. However, it proved to be less successful for the club overall - they did not win a league game until January, beating Cagliari 1-0, and ended the season with a total of just 6 league wins, finishing in 15th place and relegated to Serie B. Platt's 11 goals proved to be almost half of the club's total in the league, and led to a number of Italian sides vying to sign him following Bari's relegation. Ultimately, in the summer of 1992 after just 12 months, he left the club to join Juventus. His time at Bari saw him play a total 35 games and score 15 times.

Answer: Inter

Gerry Hitchens had played senior football for several years before, in 1955, he finally joined the professional ranks when he joined Cardiff City. Having spent two years in Wales, he returned to England in 1957 when he joined Aston Villa, for whom he scored on his debut. His time at the club was prolific, and saw him attract the attention of the England selectors, making his international debut in 1961. In just his second international, against Italy in Rome, he scored twice, which led to a number of Italian clubs becoming interested in him. Despite the fact that this would almost certainly mean the end of his England career, Hitchens elected to take the opportunity offered when he signed for Inter in the summer of 1961.

As he had done for previous clubs, Hitchens scored twice on his debut for Inter, a 6-0 win against Atalanta, and continued in the same vein throughout his first season at the club, eventually ending as the top scorer with 16 league goals as Inter finished second to their local rivals AC Milan. His form, combined with domestically based strikers being unavailable, saw Hitchens selected for the England squad and go to the 1962 World Cup. However, in November 1962, having played five league games and scored once for Inter in the league, he was abruptly sold to Torino. Despite this, the club gave him a special medal at the end of the season to commemorate his role in their winning that season's league title. Hitchens' year at Inter saw him play a total of 43 games and score 20 goals.

Answer: Inter

Paul Ince had been a staple in Manchester United's first team since 1989, and had been a major figure in their winning their first league title in more than a quarter of a century, which was followed by the start of their domination of the Premier League. However, by the mid 1990s, Ince was one of a number of experienced players that the club were looking to move on to allow their burgeoning group of young players to come through. As a result, in the summer of 1995, following the first season in which the club had failed to win a trophy since 1989, Ince was sold to Italian club Inter.

Although Inter had a relatively poor season in Ince's first year at the club, only finishing seventh in Serie A, and going out of the Coppa Italia at the quarter-final stage to Lazio, Ince had a successful season personally, playing in all but four of the club's games and scoring three times. The following season proved even more successful, with Ince playing a major role not just in the club's third place finish in the league, but their run to the final of the UEFA Cup, where the club ultimately lost on penalties. Ince's personal success led to the club seeking to offer him an improved contract, but ultimately he sought a return to England, and was sold to Liverpool in the summer of 1997. In his time at Inter, Ince played 73 games for the club, and scored 13 goals.