Several Premier League players have played for more than a few clubs throughout their careers.
In an era when virtually every major club in the world has access to a large sum of money, it is not uncommon to see players in high demand from a slew of clubs, and for them to represent multiple ones.
We looked into the players who have played for the most Premier League clubs throughout their careers.
7. 18 players – six clubs
As many as 18 players have played for six different English top-flight clubs during their careers.
Scott Sinclair is one of the most notable names, having played for Chelsea, Manchester City, and Aston Villa, among other clubs.
Scott Carson is another well-known journeyman, having spent most of his Premier League career with West Brom.
He has been with City for four years, but he has only appeared in the Premier League once and twice in total.
Jermaine Pennant played for a number of major clubs during his six Premier League seasons, including Arsenal, Leeds, Birmingham, and Liverpool.
6. Tal Ben Haim – seven clubs
Ben Haim played the majority of his Premier League games for Bolton. The defender appeared in 148 English Premier League games, 88 of which were for the Trotters.
The former Israel international later played for Chelsea, Manchester City, Sunderland, Portsmouth, West Ham, and QPR.
He did not play nearly as many games for any of those teams, nor did he reach the Premier League totals of some of those ahead of him on the list, despite playing for the same number of clubs.
5. Craig Bellamy – seven clubs
Bellamy appeared in 294 Premier League games, and despite playing for some big clubs and winning the Community Shield and League Cup, he failed to win the league title.
The winger spent the majority of his career with Newcastle, where he scored ten goals and assisted five others in the 2001/02 Premier League season.
Bellamy’s best season in the top flight was with Blackburn in 2005-06, when he scored 13 goals. He also enjoyed successful seasons with Liverpool and Manchester City.
He also played for Coventry City, West Ham United, and Cardiff in the Premier League.
4. Wayne Routledge – seven clubs
Routledge finished his career with over 300 appearances for Swansea, more than 150 of which came in the Premier League. But before that, the winger played for a variety of clubs.
He made 297 Premier League appearances for seven different clubs. Routledge’s next-highest number of Premier League appearances came with Crystal Palace, where he appeared 38 times.
He had brief stints at Tottenham, Portsmouth, Fulham, Aston Villa, and Newcastle.
3. Andy Cole – seven clubs
Cole won five Premier League titles with Manchester United. He appeared in 195 top-flight games for them, accounting for less than half of the striker’s 415 appearances in total.
Prior to joining United, Cole had a prolific spell at Newcastle, where he scored 34 Premier League goals in a 40-game season.
After his lengthy stay at United, the striker moved on to Blackburn Rovers for a few years before spending one season each with Fulham, Manchester City, Portsmouth, and Sunderland.
Only three players have scored more Premier League goals than Cole, but none have played for nearly as many clubs.
2. Peter Crouch – seven clubs
Crouch essentially followed Harry Redknapp around for the majority of his career, with the manager signing the 6ft 7in striker wherever he went.
Crouch played for seven Premier League clubs, three of which Redknapp managed.
Crouch began his 468-game Premier League career with Aston Villa, but after little success, Redknapp signed him to Southampton.
The striker scored 12 goals for the Saints in a single season, prompting his transfer to Liverpool in 2005.
He spent three years at Anfield before Redknapp signed him again, this time for Portsmouth. Crouch only stayed for a season, and he followed his manager to Tottenham.
Crouch left after two years to join Stoke City, where he played the most games and scored the most goals of his career.
At the end of his career, the striker joined a seventh Premier League club, Burnley, where he retired after six games.
1. Marcus Bent – eight clubs
While he did not have as long a career as some on the list below him, Bent played for more Premier League clubs than anyone else, making 214 appearances for eight different teams.
He played more Premier League games for Everton than for any other club, but he only scored seven goals in 55 games.
Bent joined them midway through his career, having previously played for Ipswich, Leicester, Blackburn, and Crystal Palace in the Premier League.
He later played for Charlton, Wigan, and Wolves, and was named to Birmingham’s Premier League squad, but he never played.
