15 Footballers Who Were Better For Country Than Club

Key Takeaways

• Harry Maguire’s performances for England have been impressive despite his struggles at Manchester United.
• It’s not uncommon for players to excel internationally but underperform at the club level. International breaks can be beneficial for some players who use them to find form or have a strong affinity for the international game.
• The article highlights several examples of players who thrived for their country but struggled at the club level, including Sergio Romero, Asamoah Gyan and Hal Robson-Kanu.

There are a host of footballers – both past and present – who have struggled to replicate their excellent international form domestically. There are a number of reasons why this could be the case. Some are more suited to international football and adapt better to that environment, with club football often too strenuous due to the tightly-packed schedules and relentless nature of it all.

With the international game much less frequent, but also reliant on tournament-style formats rather than drawn-out seasons, it’s difficult for managers to implement various different styles of football. Often, those who can get along with their players and keep things simple will thrive.

The likes of Harry Maguire spring to mind – but the status quo for major countries and big players is often that international breaks can be a hindrance to their domestic season, but there are actually just as many players who relish those international breaks and camps, be it as an escape to find form, or simply because they live for the international game.

Perhaps one of the strangest quirks in football is seeing a player frequently star on the international stage but consistently amount to very little when club football comes back around. Therefore, GIVEMESPORT have picked out 15 of the best examples of players who thrived only for their country.

Harry Maguire

England

At points in his career, Maguire has played more minutes for England than he did for Manchester United. Indeed, there was a stage when Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez cemented themselves as Erik ten Hag’s preferred duo and while he was struggling for club form, Gareth Southgate continued to select and start the much-maligned centre-back for the Three Lions.

Despite his club troubles, Maguire has over 60 caps to his name. He also has seven goals, which is more than any England defender in history and is always at the top of his game when donning international colours. For his nation, he was named in the Team of the Tournament for both Euro 2020 and the 2022 World Cup. Injury ruled him out of Euro 2024 where he no doubt would have been a starter too.

Sergio Romero

Argentina

Before his stint as Manchester United’s number two behind David de Gea, Sergio Romero’s club football highlights weren’t all that special. He’d floated from AZ Alkmaar to Sampdoria without amounting to much but was always the man between the sticks for Argentina, where he would suddenly look world-class – even earning Man of the Match in the 2014 World Cup semi-final.

He currently sits on 96 caps but is unlikely to reach the 100 mark, with Aston Villa’s Yashin Trophy-winning Emiliano Martinez the main man in net. Romero now plies his trade in his native Argentina for Boca Juniors – but will always be remembered fondly by fans of the Old Trafford outfit for stepping up in De Gea’s absence.

Asamoah Gyan

Ghana

Remembered by most Premier League fans for his spell with Sunderland, Asamoah Gyan was very much a ‘streets won’t forget’ calibre of forward. Despite his career for the Black Cats being overshadowed by that penalty miss at the 2010 World Cup after Luis Suarez’s handball, it was on the international stage where Gyan consistently looked like a talisman.

Having scored 49 goals in 107 games for Ghana and notably scoring twice at the 2014 World Cup, Gyan certified himself in his nation’s folklore, though – by that point – the striker had assumed journeyman status at club level, plying his trade for the likes of Stade Rennais and Udinese.

Hal Robson-Kanu

Wales

Failing to break through at Premier League giants Arsenal as a youngster, settling for Reading was as good as it got for Hal Robson-Kanu, and when he was released in 2016, you would’ve been forgiven for not batting an eyelid.

In the same summer, he became a free agent, was included in the Wales squad for Euro 2016 and proved instrumental by scoring against Slovakia and Belgium in their historic run to the semi-finals. His goal against the latter is enshrined in football mythology forever as he sent three defenders before slotting past Thibaut Courtois. The striker remained a regular for Wales but would remain a relatively quiet man at club level.

Wout Weghorst

Netherlands

Fans in England will remember Wout Weghorst as the Burnley striker who somehow secured a loan move to Manchester United in January 2023. His time with the Red Devils didn’t go well, as he scored just twice in 31 games – which is the same number of goals he has with the Clarets.

That said, he’s a different best when it comes to the international game. Often called upon as a super sub, the large striker’s most memorable moment came in the 2022 Qatar World Cup as he struck twice of the bench vs Argentina, helping his team come from behind to take the match to penalties. He then stepped up once more as a substitute at the opening game of Euro 2024, netting the winner vs Poland.

Xherdan Shaqiri

Switzerland

Xherdan Shaqiri is one of those players who has always caught the eye. With his stocky frame and muscular calves, power is what springs to mind whenever he takes to the football pitch – especially in terms of striking the ball with that left foot of his.

His club career has been a relative success, winning league titles with FC Basel, Bayern Munich and Liverpool – but he was often a bit-part player in Germany and England. With the Swiss international team, however, it’s a completely different story. A hat-trick vs Honduras at the 2014 World Cup was a high point, but he’s also netted for Switzerland at Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022, as well as at Euro 2016, Euro 2020 and – most recently – Euro 2024.

Eduardo Vargas

Chile

Eduardo Vargas finished as the tournament top scorer when Chile secured the Copa America in 2015 and had gone on a record-breaking run of scoring in six consecutive games for his country two years prior to that. Adding to that, the striker repeated the same achievement and became the Copa America’s top scorer twice in 2016, too. Goals were his forte on the big stage.

At club level, though, Vargas struggled to show the same ruthlessness that people expected of him with failed stints at Valencia and Hoffenheim – to name a couple. Napoli also shipped him off on loan several times, the final of which was a loan to QPR, where again he failed to impress in the Premier League.

Joan Capdevila

Spain

Winning 60 caps for Spain in one of the greatest-ever iterations of the national team, you’d have thought just about everyone in that Spain setup from 2008 to 2012 was a superstar. And before the emergence of Jordi Alba, Joan Capdevila was the go-to guy for La Roja on the left-hand side of the defence.

Capdevila certainly played like one for his country, having won a World Cup, European Championship and Olympic silver medal, but he couldn’t replicate it at club level. While not a bad player, Capdevila was merely an average La Liga full-back; a far cry from what he looked like when he played for Spain.

Keisuke Honda

Japan

Keisuke Honda had one of the strangest careers you can imagine. He earned cult hero status for his long-shots and set-piece abilities, but aside from a spell with CSKA Moscow, was underwhelming at club level and endured a forgettable spell with AC Milan.

He then became a complete journeyman and balanced playing in the Lithuanian top flight with Cambodia managerial duties. At international level, however, it was a totally different story between 2008 and 2018. He registered 60 goal contributions (37 goals and 23 assists) from 98 caps and will go down as a Japanese legend. Honda was key in three World Cups and became an Asian Cup winner in 2011.

Angelos Charisteas

Greece

A haul of 25 goals and two assists in 88 caps for Greece was a fine return for striker Angelos Charisteas, who famously scored the winner in the final of Euro 2004 against Portugal, a tournament in which he starred.

But while a legend for the national team and a continually reliable forward in the tournaments, Charisteas failed to make it count at club level. He moved around Europe after a tumultuous spell with Werder Bremen, but for someone who made such a name for themselves in an international final, you would’ve assumed at least one top side would’ve taken a gamble on him at some point.

Ali Daei

Iran

The man responsible for keeping Cristiano Ronaldo off the top of the international scoring records for as long as possible, Ali Daei racked up an unbelievable 109 goals for Iran from 1992 to 2006 – but has now been usurped by the Portuguese icon.

His club career started strongly in Asia, but upon moving to Germany in 1997 with Armenia Bielefeld and then Bayern Munich a year later, he immediately struggled at the upper echelons of club action. Daei was in the UAE by 2002, and never made a noise in Europe again. Astonishing considering how much of a different beast he was at international level.

Breel Embolo

Switzerland

Another Swiss star, Breel Embolo seems to come out from hibernation just in time for every international tournament. In 2016, he was ranked second out of 50 of the most talented youngsters in the world but injuries have prevented him from consistently performing at club level.

Spells at Basel, Schalke 04, Borussia Monchengladbach, and Monaco have yielded mixed results but he always looks much more assured wearing the red kit of his nation. After netting off the bench in the first Switzerland game of Euro 2024, he has now scored or assisted for his country in the past four major international tournaments, dating back to Russia 2018.

Lukas Podolski

Germany

The man with one of the most vicious left foots in all football, Lukas Podolski turned into an animal when it was time to pull on the Germany shirt. Albeit not a total failure for either Bayern Munich or Arsenal, he’s viewed as royalty in the city of Cologne – but it’s not unfair to suggest that he never met the expectations laid before him at club level.

Failing to break in at Bayern Munich during his earlier days, the winger’s most memorable club spell was with Arsenal from 2012 to 2015, where he was liked, but never really hit the heights expected. Considering he’s Die Mannschaft’s third-most capped player and third-highest scorer, having also been instrumental at the 2014 World Cup, it’s strange to think he wasn’t also world-class domestically.

Anders Svensson

Sweden

Assuming Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the most capped Swedish player of all time would be a fair guess, but an incorrect one. In fact, that crown belongs to Anders Svensson, who captained the side on many occasions throughout his 148 caps and looked every bit a star.

The playmaking midfielder is actually one of the top-10 capped European players in history, which would surely suggest that he was among the best in Europe in the club game too, right? Alas, no. Aside from a rather average four years with Southampton from 2001 to 2005, Svensson played his entire career with IF Elfsborg in his native Sweden.

Miroslav Klose

Germany

Rounding off the list, it just had to be Miroslav Klose – a former marksman who joins esteemed company as one of the few players to score at four different World Cups. A rather unassuming striker at club level, the guy was a cheat code when called up to national team duties.

Germany’s all-time leading scorer, the national team never lost a game in which Klose has scored, which equates to 71 times in total. He’s scored the most goals at World Cup tournaments and has won Olympic bronze, silver and gold. Klose was always somewhat reliable for a goal at club level but struggled to reach the top level and was merely an inoffensive servant to Lazio at his best.

All statistics per Transfermarkt – correct as of 17/11/24