10 player homecomings that lived up to the hype

Successful homecomings

"The romance of the story is definitely not lost on me," said Tim Cahill when he was offered the chance to re-sign for Millwall in January 2018. The Australia international spent seven formative seasons at The Den, making 249 appearances in all competitions and helping the Lions reach the 2004 FA Cup Final.

Cahill departed for Everton that summer, but he’s on the verge of returning to the south London club over 13 years later. They say you should never go back, but the 10 players covered in this slideshow all had reason to celebrate their second chances with former clubs that they had a strong attachment to.

10. Andriy Shevchenko (Dynamo Kiev)

Years between departure and return: 10

Shevchenko made an ever bigger name for himself once he moved to Milan, but he'd been scoring at will for Dynamo Kiev between 1994 and 1999, netting 60 goals in league 117 outings. Over a decade later, following two spells at Milan either side of an unsuccessful one at Chelsea, the striker returned to his native Ukraine.

Shevchenko promptly proved there was more to the move than mere sentiment, netting a penalty on his second debut, then scoring 16 goals in 32 games the following season. He retired in 2012 to become a politician, although his party claimed just 1.58% of the votes in that year's parliamentary election. The centre-forward always was better at putting the ball in the net than a cross in the box.

9. Thierry Henry (Arsenal)

Years between departure and return: 5

Henry’s place in the Arsenal history books was assured long before his second spell at the club in 2012. The Gunners’ record scorer notched 226 goals between 1999 and 2007, helping Arsene Wenger’s side win two Premier League titles and two FA Cups.

The Frenchman later added a pair of La Liga crowns and a Champions League winner’s medal to his mantelpiece at Barcelona, before joining MLS side New York Red Bulls in 2010. Two years later Henry returned to Arsenal for a brief loan move, with a goal against Leeds on his second debut sparking jubilant celebrations at the Emirates Stadium. Henry only scored once more before returning to the Big Apple, but his exploits in north London will never be forgotten.

8. Wayne Rooney (Everton)

Years between departure and return: 13

Many saw this as a signing motivated by sentimentality – and publicity – but Rooney has proved he still has plenty to offer in the Premier League since returning to Everton in summer 2017.

The striker burst onto the scene in 2002, with a match-winning goal against Arsenal marking him out as a special talent. That was one of 17 goals he scored in his first spell at Goodison Park, before Rooeny handed in a transfer request to push through a move to Manchester United in 2004.

After winning 11 major trophies at Old Trafford and becoming United’s all-time record scorer, the former England captain moved back to his boyhood club ahead of the 2017/18 campaign. As of late January, he’s scored 10 goals in 17 league games.

7. Martin Keown (Arsenal)

Years between departure and return: 7

Keown made his debut for Arsenal in November 1985, helping his side keep a clean sheet in a goalless draw with West Brom. The defender only played 22 league games for the Gunners before being sold to Aston Villa, after which followed a spell at Everton.

Yet Keown was re-signed by Arsenal in 1993 and the centre-back went on to enjoy the best years of his career at Highbury, winning three league titles, three FA Cups and one European Cup Winners' Cup. He was also part of Arsene Wenger's Invincibles squad in 2003/04, before exiting for Leicester at the end of that historic campaign.

6. Carlos Tevez (Boca Juniors)

Years between departure and return: 11 

The former West Ham, Manchester United and Manchester City forward is well known for his erratic off-field behaviour, but thankfully for his various employers he's usually just as lively in front of goal. Tevez, who first played for the club between 2001 and 2004, returned to Boca Juniors 11 years after his departure, scoring nine times in 15 matches as the Buenos Aires-based giants scooped the Argentine Primera Division title and the Copa Argentina.

He was on the move again in December 2016, joining Chinese Shanghai Shenhua to become the world's most highly paid player. Yet after just four goals and £29m of earnings, Tevez once again headed back to Boca, describing his seven-month stint in Asia as a “holiday”. Nice work if you can get it.

5. Jose Antonio Reyes (Sevilla)

Years between departure and return: 8

A rising star of Spanish football, Reyes left Sevilla for Arsenal in 2004, making a bright start to his career in north London before his form faltered. Despite being in the considerable shadow of Thierry Henry, the winger still netted 23 times in 110 games for the Gunners, while winning the Premier League and FA Cup.

He would later return to the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan after spells with Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Benfica, playing a part in Sevilla's hat-trick of Europa League triumphs from 2014 to 2016. On his quest to play for every side in Spain, Reyes is currently on the books at Espanyol.

4. Stanley Matthews (Stoke)

Years between departure and return: 14

Matthews spent 15 years at Stoke the first time around, before joining Blackpool when the league returned after the Second World War in 1946. Having made more than 200 appearances in his first spell with the Potters, Matthews went on to play in more than 300 matches for the Tangerines.

At the ripe old age of 46, most footballers would have packed it all in - particularly if they'd also gone through a war. Yet Matthews opted to re-sign for Stoke in 1962 and immediately set about silencing those who thought he was past it.

The winger won the FWA Footballer of the Year award in his first season back in the Potteries, and was soon knighted for his services to football. He went on playing until the age of 50, becoming the oldest player to ever appear in England's top tier.

3. Juan Sebastian Veron (Estudiantes)

Years between departure and return: 10

The Argentinian playmaker struggled at Manchester United and Chelsea during a six-year stay in the Premier League, which was preceded by a much more successful spell in Italy with Parma and Lazio. Before all that, though, his career began in the mid-1990s at Estudiantes, whom he helped return to the top flight before joining Boca Juniors.

Veron returned to his first club in 2007 and, after leaving again in 2012, embarked on a third spell a year later. The midfielder won the Apertura tournament in 2006 and 2010, as well as the 2009 Copa Libertadores, before making yet another comeback at the grand old age of 42 in 2017.

2. Johan Cruyff (Ajax)

Years between departure and return: 7

Ajax legend Cruyff burst onto the scene at the age of 17 and casually collected six Eredivisie titles, five KNVB Cups and three consecutive European Cups during his first spell in Amsterdam. Barcelona came calling in 1973 and Cruyff won La Liga in his first season; after leaving Camp Nou (and following a short-lived retirement), he spent time in the USA with Los Angeles Aztecs and Washington Diplomats, before returning to Spain for a brief stint with Levante.

His heralded return to Ajax in 1981 was successful, as Cruyff added two more Eredivisie winner's medals to his collection. It seemed inevitable that the Dutchman would end his career at his boyhood club, but Cruyff was inexplicably allowed to join arch-rivals Feyenoord for his final season as a professional in 1983/84. Feyenoord went on to win the league and cup, obviously.

1. Dirk Kuyt (Feyenoord)

Years between departure and return: 9

One man may not be able to change a club’s fortunes, but Kuyt came pretty close on his return to Feyenoord in 2015.

A return of 81 goals in 124 games in his first spell at De Kuip between 2003 and 2006 earned the forward a move to Liverpool, where he soon won over supporters with his work rate and never-say-die attitude. The Dutchman helped the Reds reach the Champions League Final in 2007, where they were defeated by Milan; five years later he was part of the team who won the League Cup under Kenny Dalglish.

On his homecoming to Feyenoord in 2015/16, Kuyt scored 23 goals in 38 appearances. He found the net only 15 times the following campaign, but three of those strikes came on the final weekend of the season to bring the title back to Rotterdam after an 18-year absence.