Every player to play for both Manchester United and Liverpool – Man United News And Transfer News

1

Manchester United and Liverpool is one of the fiercest rivalries in world sport, never mind just football.

Its roots lie in the construction of the Manchester Ship Canal, which funnelled trade away from the Liverpool docks and into the neighbouring city. But its bitterness deepened and darkened over more than 100 years of blood, sweat and tears at Old Trafford and at Anfield, the two clubs rising to the very pinnacle of the beautiful game to create a contest all of their own.

Liverpool entered the 90s on top with 18 league titles, but by the time of his retirement Sir Alex Ferguson had made good on his promise to knock the Scousers off their perch with the Red Devils sitting pretty on 20.

The Merseyside outfit equalled that feat in Arne Slot’s debut season, and while United are staring down the barrel of falling behind in the greatest of races with their greatest of enemies the fires of the rivalry will only burn hotter.

With all of this in mind, it’s no surprise that only a handful of players have been brave enough to represent both teams – those players are as follows:

1. Tom Chorlton – Liverpool 1904-1912, United 1912-1915

Full-back Tom Chorlton only played four times for United, but those came after an eventful career at Liverpool. He joined in 1904, and after recovering from a blood-poisoned foot and typhoid fever started to cement a place in Tom Watson’s side. In the 1909-10 season, the club’s penalty-taker-in-chief was the only player not to miss a single game.

He is one of few players to make a direct switch to United, but he struggled for games and eventually departed for Stalybridge Celtic.

2. John Sheldon – United 1910-1913, Liverpool 1913-1921

John Sheldon played on the wing for United for three seasons, making 26 appearances and scoring one goal after arriving from Nuneaton FC. He then departed straight to Liverpool, where he got 20 goals in 147 matches.

3. Tom Miller – Liverpool 1912-1920, United 1920-1921

Tom Miller was part of the same Liverpool squad as Sheldon and bagged a decent 56 goals in 146 games before his career was interrupted by the First World War. The prolific Scottish striker returned to Liverpool after the war then moved straight to United for a season, notching eight goals in 27 appearances.

4. Fred Hopkin – United 1919-1921, Liverpool 1921-1929

Another winger to move between the two clubs, Fred Hopkin had a decent stint on both sides of the divide. He arrived at Old Trafford from Darlington in a deal which landed United in hot water for paying him above the maximum wage and offering him part of his own transfer fee. He scored eight goals in 74 games, but he enjoyed a glorious time at Liverpool where over the course of a decade he helped the Scousers secure two league titles and racked up 360 appearances with 12 goals.

5. Ted Savage – Liverpool 1931-1937, United 1937-1938

After an impressive spell at Lincoln City, Liverpool’s signing of Ted Savage was something of a coup. The wing-back scored the only two goals of his Anfield career on his debut, and went on to play 105 times in an otherwise underwhelming six-year spell.

His mid-season move to United barely registered, with just five appearances before a move to Wrexham AFC kicked off an itinerant career around the football leagues.

6. Allenby Chilton – Liverpool 1938-1939, United 1939-1955

Matt Busby’s enforcer Allenby Chilton only makes this list on a technicality, having started his career at Liverpool but never making a senior appearance for them. His illustrious time at United couldn’t have been more different, as the formidable centre-half played 392 times and was an anchor to a team brimming with attacking talent.

His debut came the day before the Second World War broke out, and his second appearance was nearly seven years later, two weeks short of his 28th birthday. That he went on to enjoy a nine-season tenure in United’s backline speaks to his iron will, and not for nothing is he seen as one of the most dominant players in the club’s history.

7. Phil Chisnall – United 1959-1964, Liverpool 1964-1967

Manchester-born inside-forward Phil Chisnall had his work cut out breaking into a United team blessed with the likes of George Best, Denis Law and Bobby Charlton, and when offered a fresh start in Liverpool by Bill Shankly duly accepted the offer. Chisnall left Old Trafford with 10 goals in 47 matches and remains the last man to have made the switch direct from United to Liverpool.

His first training session on Merseyside was something of a rude awakening for a 22-year-old used to operating under Matt Busby, whose methods tended towards encouraging the natural talent at his disposal. He was aware of Liverpool’s notoriously strenuous training sessions and, having loosened up then gone for a long run, felt it was nothing he couldn’t handle. He expressed as much to the player next to him, who simply told him they hadn’t even started yet.

Chisnall would later recall that while playing for United he would have breakfast before going to work, but he never did in all his time with Liverpool as he would never have kept it down. He only turned out nine times for Liverpool and scored twice, before moving to Southend United and Stockport County.

Chisnall is also the only man to have played under Busby, Shankly and Alf Ramsey, who having managed him for the national team described him as possibly the best passer of the ball in England.

8. Peter Beardsley – United 1982-1983, Liverpool 1987-1991

English forward Peter Beardsley’s brief time at United remains one of the great what ifs. As a promising youngster he was snapped up from Vancouver Whitecaps, but despite impressing in training he only made one first-team appearance, in a Milk Cup tie against Bournemouth.

United at the time had Frank Stapleton in full swing, Norman Whiteside on the up and Mark Hughes making waves in the reserves so there was no desperate need for extra attacking talent, although Beardsley’s onward career shows what could have been.

After a quick return to Canada, he was brought back to England by Newcastle United where he became a legend across two productive spells at St James’ Park. In between were an impressive few years at Liverpool, where he scored 59 goals in 173 games followed by the bold decision to move straight to Merseyside rivals Everton.

For good measure, Beardsley also played six games for Manchester City, on loan from Bolton Wanderers.

9. Paul Ince – United 1989-1995, Liverpool 1997-1999

The effervescent Paul Ince was a crucial part of the United side which laid down a marker for the Premier League era, winning the competition in its first two seasons. Stepping up as the legendary Bryan Robson was slowing down, Ince bossed the midfield with pace, power and a smattering of goals, including an acrobatic overhead kick away to Queens Park Rangers.

His arrival at Old Trafford as a 21-year-old signed from West Ham United was somewhat chaotic, with Ince posing for the press in red long before a deal was completed, but his performances once established there were such that he was temporarily named England captain.

After 281 games for United Ince departed for Inter Milan but was brought back to England by Liverpool in 1997 where he would play 81 matches and become captain. He never regained his United heights, then fell out with manager Gerard Houllier and signed for Middlesbrough.

10. Michael Owen – Liverpool 1996-2004, United 2009-2012

After coming up through the youth ranks at Liverpool, Michael Owen crashed into the Premier League consciousness with a goal on his debut aged just 17. He quickly established himself as one of the most lethal strikers in Europe and was idolised at Anfield where he picked up more than one Golden Boot award and won the Ballon d’Or after helping the club to a cup treble.

The Englishman scored 158 goals in 297 games for Liverpool before spending an uninspiring year in Spain with Real Madrid. Newcastle United brought him back to England, then with his form and fitness flagging the Red Devils swooped in with a surprise deal, signing the player on a pay-as-you-play deal.

Despite being handed the iconic number 7 shirt his three-year spell at Old Trafford was largely unremarkable, with 17 goals from 52 appearances made mostly from the bench. He did, however, produce an unforgettable moment of derby magic, securing a 4-3 win over Manchester City with an injury-time strike at Old Trafford in 2009, and there is a certain poetry to the fact that one of Liverpool’s best ever strikers lifted his one Premier League trophy in United red.

Owen’s time with United came to an unassuming end in 2012, and after one year with Stoke City he retired from playing.

Honorary mention – Sir Matt Busby

Despite never kicking a ball for them, few figures have had such a profound effect on Manchester United as legendary manager Sir Matt Busby. But it’s a good thing the club didn’t hold a grudge as the Scot played 125 games for Liverpool, operating as a constructive wing-half.

Busby guided United to five league titles and a European Cup, marshalling the club through the devastation of the Munich Air Disaster to rebuild a formidable side around survivors such as Bobby Charlton and Bill Foulkes and young talents like Shay Brennan.

Featured image Shaun Botterill via Getty Images

The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social