West Ham United have a history full of pride and pain. The Hammers have produced many of England’s most talented footballers over the decades.
In the 1960s, Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters formed the backbone of the England team that won the 1966 World Cup at Wembley.
This is one of the most remarkable achievements in the history of the British game.
For 16 years, Trevor Brooking graced the midfield with a grace that belied his era. Rio Ferdinand and Joe Cole came out of the academy to become two of the best players of their generation.
Most recently, Declan Rice developed through the Irons’ academy after joining from Chelsea and is now a Premier League champion, becoming one of the most complete midfielders in world football before Arsenal paid more than £100m to bring him to north London.
Time and time again, West Ham have found talent, nurtured it and watched it go.
Perhaps no player in the Premier League has reached the personal heights of Frank Lampard, the division’s seventh-highest scorer of all time.
This is the most of any midfielder, which is why Sir Alex Ferguson wanted to sign him before leaving East London.
Sir Alex Ferguson regrets not signing Frank Lampard
Before the 2013 match between Manchester United and Chelsea, manager Ferguson praised Lampard for scoring over 200 goals in all competitions for Chelsea.
“Lampard is amazing, unbelievable. I don’t think any midfielder will ever reach 200 goals again. It’s phenomenal. We watched him at West Ham when he was young and I think now you regret not achieving it. Where else could you reach 200 goals?”
Ferguson likened Lampard’s ability to reach into the box and end chances to United’s legendary midfielder Bryan Robson, and the numbers alone bear that out.
His goalscoring record from midfield may never be broken. He won three league titles, four FA Cups and one Champions League.
He became Chelsea’s all-time top scorer with 211 goals, surpassing the previous record since 1971. He scored double-digit goals in 10 consecutive seasons in the Premier League, an almost incomprehensible feat for a central midfielder.
Best midfielder in Premier League history, ranked by AI | ||
|---|---|---|
rank | player | clubs played |
1 | Steven Gerrard | liverpool |
2 | frank lampard | west ham, chelsea, man city |
3 | kevin de bruyne | chelsea, man city |
4 | roy keene | manchester united nottingham forest |
5 | ryan giggs | manchester united |
6 | Patrick Vieira | arsenal, man city |
7 | Paul Scholes | manchester united |
8 | Bruno Fernandes | manchester united |
9 | david silva | man city |
10 | yaya toure | man city |
John Terry, who played alongside some of the greatest players to ever wear a Chelsea shirt, declared: “You’re talking about Zoras and the best players to have played for the club, but for me he’s the best.”
Of course, Ferguson never laid a hand on him. West Ham held on and in the end Chelsea took a gamble and the rest was history.
But the fact that the greatest manager of all time still looks back on Lampard as the man who got away says everything about the kind of player he was, who remains one of the greatest midfielders in Premier League history.
Ranking of the 20 best midfielders in Premier League history
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