10 Best Single Seasons by Players at a Club for Only 1 Year
Frank Lampard provided more evidence as to his enduring quality and the wisdom which Manchester City showed in signing him on for the current Premier League season, as he netted the winner against Leicester City on Saturday.
His total time and eventual impact at the club is still to be determined, but so far he has performed more than admirably.
Along with Lampard, we've taken a look at 10 players who spent just a single season or so with a club but had an impact that could be remembered for many years to come.
Frank Lampard, Manchester City
1 of 10
Lampard might be 36, but despite Chelsea not deeming him worthwhile keeping hold of for this year, he has rattled in half a dozen goals for Manchester City even though he's not always a starter.
Many of those strikes have proved pivotal, including the winner on Saturday and his goal against his former club earlier in the season.
It remains to be seen whether Lampard wins anything or indeed sees out the entire year at the Etihad Stadium, but he has certainly been a worthwhile and great value addition to the squad.
Ronaldo, Barcelona
2 of 10
Brazilian striker Ronaldo initially made an impact in Europe with PSV in Netherlands before joining Barcelona in 1996 for a world-record fee. In one season there he scored 47 in 49 games, won the Cup Winners' Cup, the Copa del Rey and the Supercopa and also won the Pichichi Trophy.
Oh, and the European Golden Shoe. And the FIFA World Player of the Year.
He left then for Inter Milan, and perhaps his career never quite hit the same levels, even though he remained one of the game's top strikers.
Jose Antonio Reyes, Real Madrid
3 of 10
Jose Antonio Reyes had a great start at Arsenal before fading badly, but he went on loan to Real Madrid in 2006-07 and had a great year.
Reyes went in and out of the team at times but started well, scoring six goals throughout the season.
His biggest impact came on the final day; he scored twice to help Real win not only the match but also their La Liga title—then he signed permanently for rivals Atletico Madrid over the summer.
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Dani Guiza, Mallorca
4 of 10
Sticking with Spanish strikers, Dani Guiza was a bit of a journeyman forward for most of his career until a move to Mallorca in 2007 ignited his ability in a massive way.
Guiza struck 27 goals over the course of the season to finish as the league's top scorer, the Pichichi—and won himself a place in Spain's Euro 2008 squad in the process, which of course they went on to win.
Guiza headed to Fenerbahce thereafter but never hit the same heights again.
Fernando Morientes, Monaco
5 of 10
Fernando Morientes is something of a Real Madrid icon of course, but when he fell out of favour in 2003 he headed out on loan to Monaco to enjoy a memorable campaign.
The Spanish forward scored 10 in the league to help his side finish third, while he also had a massive impact in Europe—he scored a further nine goals in the Champions League to finish top scorer and guide Monaco through to the final.
He knocked out his parent club along the way, before Porto beat Monaco in the final.
Afonso Alves, Heerenveen
6 of 10
Afonso Alves had slightly longer than one season at Heerenveen, but only barely, so he can still qualify.
The Brazilian forward hit 34 in 31 games in his debut campaign in the Eredivisie, better than a goal a game, including seven in one match against Heracles.
He started the next campaign at the club before sealing a move to Middlesbrough in the Premier League—and never looked anything like that kind of prolific marksman again afterward.
Christian Vieri, Atletico Madrid
7 of 10
Former Italy marksman Christian Vieri had a meandering and varied career at club level, despite being a regular scorer and international star—between 1991 and 1999 he played for nine different clubs.
The best of those spells came in 1997-98 and his single campaign in Spain with Atletico Madrid, where Vieri scored 24 goals in 24 games in La Liga, 29 in 32 in all competitions to win the Pichichi Trophy and seal a big-money move back to Italy with Lazio.
Vieri also won a spot in Italy's World Cup squad in '98 on the back of his year with Atleti.
Carlos Tevez, West Ham United
8 of 10
Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano joining West Ham United from Corinthians is still one of the most bizarre double transfers of all time, but the striker eventually proved a great addition after a slow start.
Tevez found his form late in the campaign after not initially adapting too well, scoring seven goals for the team who were battling at the bottom of the table all year long.
The most important goal of all came on the final day of the season, as Tevez scored the winner to keep the Hammers up.
Gary Lineker, Everton
9 of 10
One from positively ancient times compared to some of the others on the list!
Gary Lineker was already an England international striker when he joined Everton in 1985 but played out just one extremely impressive season with the club before heading off to Barcelona in Spain.
Lineker hit 30 goals in 41 games in the First Division, being top scorer that year with 40 goals in all competitions for his club, including a goal in the FA Cup final that his side suffered defeat in.
Edmundo, Vasco Da Gama
10 of 10
Former Brazilian striker Edmundo actually had five different spells at Vasco da Gama but such was his inability to consistently deliver or stay focused during his career that none of these lasted longer than two years.
His best time with them, and indeed the best of his strange career, was in 1997 where he hit 29 goals to finish as top scorer of the Campeonato Brasileiro and helped Vasco finish top of the table.
He left for Italy and Fiorentina shortly afterward—and many other moves thereafter—but Edmundo never again enjoyed such a prolific season.
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