They say you should never fall in love with a loan player as a fan, but sometimes that’s simply impossible.
In theory the most temporary of signings, a good loanee can have a profound impact on your team’s fortunes (and even lead to a change in the rules…).
Here, we take a look at some of the most memorable loan spells from the past 30 years.
Alex – Chelsea to PSV (2004-2007)
The Brazilian centre-back with the turbo-charged free-kick, Alex joined Chelsea from Santos in 2004 but was initially unable to obtain a work permit.
He ended up spending three seasons on loan at PSV – winning the Eredivisie title in every one of them and reaching the 2004/05 Champions League semi-finals – before finally making his Chelsea debut at the start of the 2007/08 campaign.
Gareth Bale – Real Madrid to Tottenham (2020-2021)
Gareth Bale’s loan return to Tottenham in 2020 represented the homecoming of a club legend, seven years after his world-record move to Real Madrid.
The Welsh wing wizard scored 16 goals in 34 appearances during his second Spurs spell, including a hat-trick in a 4-0 Premier League win over Sheffield United. It was just a shame for fans that this loan stint came with stands empty amid COVID restrictions.
Kevin Campbell – Trabzonspor to Everton (1999)
The late Kevin Campbell went on to play more than 150 games for Everton, but he would have been a Goodison Park icon if his eight outings on loan had been the extent of the striker’s stay on Merseyside.
Having controversially left Nottingham Forest for Turkish side Trabzonspor at the end of the 1997/98 season, ‘Super Kev’ returned to England in March 1999 and scored nine goals to fire Everton to Premier League safety.
Thibaut Courtois – Chelsea to Atletico Madrid (2011-2014)
Like Alex before him, Thibaut Courtois spent the first three years of his Chelsea career away on loan.
Signed by the Blues from Genk as a 19-year-old in 2011, the giant Belgian goalkeeper racked up 154 loan appearances for Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid, winning the 2011/12 Europa League, 2012/13 Copa del Rey and 2013/14 LaLiga title – before helping Chelsea to Premier League glory in his first season actually playing for the club.
Hernan Crespo – Chelsea to Milan (2004-2005)
Surplus to requirements at Chelsea following Didier Drogba’s arrival, Hernan Crespo joined Milan on loan for the 2004/05 season – having previously played for their arch-rivals Inter (who he would later return to).
The free-scoring Argentine frontman netted 17 times in all competitions for Carlo Ancelotti’s Rossoneri, including a brace to put them 3-0 up at half-time in the Champions League final against Liverpool in Istanbul – before that comeback happened.
Edgar Davids – Juventus to Barcelona (2004)
One of the outstanding midfielders of his generation, Edgar Davids made 20 appearances for Barcelona on loan from Juventus during the second half of the 2003/04 campaign.
And the dreadlocked Dutch icon, playing under compatriot Frank Rijkaard, was instrumental in helping then mid-table Barca recover to finish as LaLiga runners-up, setting the stage for them to dominate Spanish and European football over the coming years.
Jimmy Glass – Swindon Town to Carlisle United (1999)
Unlike everyone else on this list, Jimmy Glass did not play at the highest level, but there was just no way we could leave out one of the game’s most heroic goalkeepers.
Drafted in on loan from Swindon late in the 1998/99 season, Glass scored the last-gasp goal against Plymouth Argyle which kept Carlisle in the Football League on the final day. A truly iconic moment in English football.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic – Barcelona to Milan (2010-2011)
Zlatan Ibrahimovic would later have two permanent spells at Milan, but he started out on loan, arriving from Barcelona in the summer of 2010 after falling out with Pep Guardiola.
The super Swede – who had previously banged in the goals for Inter – made a big impact on the Rossoneri, notching 21 times in all competitions over the course of the 2010/11 campaign, helping Milan end a seven-year Serie A title drought.
Jurgen Klinsmann – Sampdoria to Tottenham (1997-1998)
Jurgen Klinsmann had two short but goal-laden spells at Tottenham. The first was a permanent one in 1994/95, during which he found the net 29 times in all competitions.
The second was a loan stint from Sampdoria right at the end of his career, and the World Cup- and Euros-winning German star signed off with nine goals to help Spurs stave off relegation at the end of the 1997/98 campaign, including four in a 6-2 thrashing of Wimbledon.
Henrik Larsson – Helsingborg to Manchester United (2007)
Lasting just two-and-a-half months and 13 appearances, Henrik Larsson’s loan to Manchester United was a short one – coinciding with the off-season in Sweden, where he was playing for Helsingborg – but the veteran striker made quite an impression at Old Trafford.
“He’s been fantastic for us,” enthused Sir Alex Ferguson, who insisted that he “would have done anything to keep” the ex-Celtic and Barcelona man, who scored on his United debut against Aston Villa in the FA Cup – then against Watford in the Premier League and Lille in the Champions League.
Jesse Lingard – Manchester United to West Ham (2021)
Jesse Lingard teamed up with his former Manchester United boss David Moyes upon joining West Ham in January 2021, and the forward enjoyed one of the most blistering loan spells in recent Premier League history.
Lingard bagged a match-winning brace on his debut against Aston Villa, notching nine goals in 16 Hammers outings altogether and claiming the April Premier League Player of the Month award.
Lomana LuaLua – Newcastle to Portsmouth (2004)
Newcastle loaned Lomana LuaLua to Portsmouth in February 2004 – and their decision quickly came back to bite them.
The back-flipping Congolese striker scored a late equaliser for Pompey against Newcastle, prompting a change in legislation by the FA to prevent a loan player from playing against their parent club. LuaLua made his move to Fratton Park permanent at the end of the 2004/05 season.
Romelu Lukaku – Chelsea to West Brom (2012-2013)
Romelu Lukaku was loaned out twice in each of his two stints at Chelsea, beginning with a move to West Brom for the 2012/13 season.
The big Belgian frontman banged in 17 Premier League goals for the Baggies at an average of almost one every other game – which somehow wasn’t enough for him to become part of the picture at Chelsea, who sent him out on loan again, this time to Everton.
Fernando Morientes – Real Madrid to Monaco (2003-2004)
Fernando Morientes had helped Real Madrid win the Champions League three times – and he very nearly repeated the trick after they loaned him to Monaco in 2003/04.
The Spanish striker, once the trusty foil of Raul, even scored against his parent club en route to that season’s Champions League final, one of 22 goals he managed in total for the Ligue 1 side.
Juan Roman Riquelme – Barcelona to Villarreal (2003-2005)
Argentine icon Juan Roman Riquelme’s most successful period in European football came at Villarreal, who he initially joined on loan from Barcelona in 2003.
The great enganche was nominated for the 2005 Ballon d’Or for his string-pulling midfield performances, having made his switch to the Yellow Submarine permanent midway through that year.
Carlos Tevez – West Ham to Manchester United (2007-2009)
Manchester United never managed to sign Carlos Tevez permanently, but they were thankful for the two seasons of loan service they got out of the relentless Argentine frontman.
Arriving from West Ham in the summer of 2007, Tevez scored 19 goals to help United to the 2007/08 Premier League title and Champions League, before netting 15 times as Sir Alex Ferguson’s team retained their domestic title and won the League Cup the following campaign.
