Ivan Juric’s Southampton travel to Anfield on Saturday for what will be the clubs 49th meeting in Premier League history, both clubs have a remarkable history of players playing for both clubs over the years.
Here is a list of top players who have played for both clubs in their career!
Virgil Van Dijk
Arguably the most decorated player to have played for both clubs is Virgil Van Dijk. The dutchman signed for Saints in 2015 from Celtic for a fee of around £15 million, with several Premier League clubs after his signature at the time.
(Image from Liverpool FC website)
Van Dijk soon became an integral part of both Ronald Koeman and Claude Puel’s defence and would go on to make 80 appearances for the south coast side, scoring seven goals in that time.
In the 2018 January transfer window Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool registered interest in Van Dijk following his good performances on the south coast and a transfer would eventually be completed for a then world record fee for a defender of £75 million.
Van Dijk has since go onto win both the Premier League and Champions League with Liverpool becoming arguably the worlds best centre-back during that time.
Kevin Keegan
In February 1980, then Southampton manager Lawrie McMenemy called a surprise press conference at the Potters Heron Hotel in Ampfield in which journalists from across the country were in attendance.
To the surprise of everybody at the press conference, McMenemy announced that Southampton would be signing England legend Kevin Keegan from German side Hamburg. The news caused surprise throughout the world of football and within the City of Southampton.
Keegan would make 80 appearances for Saints, scoring 42 goals during that time between 1980-82. The English forward played for Liverpool for six years between 1971-77 making 230 appearances for the club and is now regarded as a legend within English football.
Sadio Mane
Senegal winger Sadio Mane was somewhat of an unknown commodity when he arrived in England in 2014 from Austrian side RB Salzburg for a fee of £11.8 million. By the time he left Southampton to join Liverpool in 2016 he was already regarded as one of the most talented players in the League.
Mane made 75 appearances during his time with Saints and scored 25 goals for the club, which included the fastest hat-trick in Premier League history against Aston Villa in two minutes and 56 seconds.
Liverpool signed Mane from Saints for a fee of around £34 million, eventually becoming a legend of the club after being a vital part of both their Premier League title winning campaign in 2019-20 and Champions League winning side in 2019.
Jamie Redknapp
Jamie Redknapp finished his playing career on the south coast when he signed for Saints in 2005. The English midfielder spent the majority of his career at Liverpool between the years of 1991-2002 making over 200 appearances at the club.
Redknapp signed for Southampton during a difficult spell for the reds which saw them relegated from the Premier League in 2005 after 27 successive seasons in the top flight. His playing time at Saints was hampered hugely due to injury, his only goal for the club came in a 3-1 victory against Northampton Town in round three of the FA Cup.
Rickie Lambert
Southampton legend Rickie Lambert was an integral part of the promotion winning sides between 2010-12 which saw the reds seal back to back promotions from League 1 to the Premier League.
Lambert made 235 appearances for Saints and scored 117 goals which puts him amongst the clubs greatest ever players and fourth in Southampton’s all time top scorers.
The English forward achieved his “dream” of playing for Liverpool when he resigned for the club in 2014 after previously being released from the club as a teenager. Lambert only played for Liverpool for one year and scored just three goals before leaving to sign for West Brom the following season.
Peter Crouch
Peter Crouch scored a combined total of 58 goals for both Liverpool and Southampton. The English striker renowned for his tall frame and aerial ability, signed for Saints in 2004 from Aston Villa after a brief loan spell at Norwich City.
Initially signing as a backup option to strikers James Beattie and Kevin Phillips, Crouch quickly became the main attacking outlet for Saints scoring important goals in the clubs relegation battle. He earned himself a move to then European champions Liverpool in the summer of 2005 and would go onto play an important role in Liverpools FA Cup win in 2006, as well as picking up a runners up medal in the 2007 Champions League final.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Former England international Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was a product of the Southampton academy and became the second youngest player to play for the club in 2010 behind only Theo Walcott.
Chamberlain played for Saints for one year during the clubs promotion winning campaign in 2010-11 before signing for Arsenal in a deal worth around £15 million.
The versatile midfielder who played centrally and as a wide player in the early stages of his career attracted interest from Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool in 2017. He would go onto to become a European champion with the Reds in 2019 and make 103 appearances for the club.
Dejan Lovren
Croatian defender Dejan Lovren signed for Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool in 2014 after an impressive opening season in England with Saints. He became the third Southampton player that window to sign for Liverpool after Rickie Lambert and Adam Lallana.
Lovren’s first Southampton goal came against Liverpool in 2013 during a 1-0 win at Ampfield. The defender made 31 apperances during his one season with Saints before completing a £20 million move to Liverpool.
Adam Lallana
Another Southampton academy graduate who would go on to play for Liverpool is Adam Lallana. The midfielder enjoyed a successful career with Southampton after helping his boyhood club gain back to back promotions into the Premier League.
Lallana quickly impressed during his time in the Premier League with Southampton earning himself a call up to the 2014 England World Cup Squad.
Renowned for his creative ability and impressive dribbling skills, Lallana became an important player for Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool helping the team gain Champions League qualification in 2017.
