Loads of journeymen English pros have played for Finnish teams over the years.

If you go back and look at the old records, there was a period in the late 1970s/early 1980s where Liverpool seemed to get drawn against a side from Finland every single season, and without fail the Finnish outfit's line-up would contain at least one English name, sometimes two or three.

Steve Guppy at DC United

I've just thought of another blindingly obvious one I missed (and who came back improved from his continental wanderings):

John Collins at Monaco.

Danny Dichio, Sampdoria and Toronto. (not sure about the improved bit)

Seems the 1990 limit I set has not been broken so much as mangled there, not to worry, the pre-1990 lot includes some good examples.
Part of the point of this, no it wasn't merely a collection of names, was to have a look at the number of players upping sticks and playing in an entirely different environment over a sustained period of time, to that end I'm not sure moves to Australia (has Yorke been mentioned?) or the US really count, nor brief loan spells. Still, I don't want to curtail the growing list, because it's useful regardless, just thought I'd make clearer what I thought it was supposed to be about!

If I have time I might look up the seasons players were abroad and put together a timeline and a few stats. No promises.

AFC Wimbledon semi-legend Daniel Webb - Marsaxlokk

Marsaxlokk. By gum. Where is Pawlu's Maltese League thread?

Mark Robins - Panionios
Dalian Atkinson - Fenerbahce

Jon Challinor - Kalamazoo Kingdom

Tony Cottee - Selangor

Purves Grundy wrote:

QUOTE:
AFC Wimbledon semi-legend Daniel Webb - Marsaxlokk

Isn't that where Chris Bart-Williams went too?

If I have time I might look up the seasons players were abroad and put together a timeline and a few stats

After remembering John Collins, it occurred to me that he was at Monaco at the same time as Lambert was at Dortmund. It further occurred to me that during this time (96-97) those two along with Gary McAllister formed the midfield core of the Scotland team during our most comfortable qualifying campaign in living memory (we strolled to the 1998 World Cup, with a 2-1 defeat in Stockholm our only reverse). I strongly suspect that the two are linked.

Came in the 1980s, played in the 1990s, stayed on:

- Peter Hobday (Frankfurt, Bielefeld and loads of others; now runs a soccer school in Paderborn.)

- Neale Marmon (Osnabrück, Homburg; used to coach in the lower divisions, maybe still does.)

Vinnie Samways, at Algeciras now.

Mark Hughes - Barca and Bayern. Have we mentioned Steve Archibald yet?

You'd have thought more English players would have ventured abroad, Lambert-style, especially if they can't get a first-team gig. But why would they? They'd have to go abroad and be culturally sensitive, learn a language, step outside their comfort zone, not be near their mates.

I wonder whether the fact that English players have a football monoculutre is a root cause of the national team's failure. Not only do you have players who've never had to dig deep as individuals and grow as people, you also have players who only know one way of playing. But since everyone they meet has people who play in England, that isn't new, or difficult to confound. The only advantage they have - the style of football - thus neutralised, you fall back on raw skill and talent, which is where they're also wanting.

Kevin Campbell - Fenerbache

Ones in Germany are fairly rare;

Danny Sonner played for Erzgebirge Aue and Viktoria/Preussen Koln
Mark Farrington played for Hertha BSC as well as in Holland and Belgium
Dynamo Dresden had a player called Ben Galliers, who had been playing for someone like Bath City. They also had a coach called Colin Bell, but not that one.