The Top 10 Americans who played in the English Premier League

There’s only one place on earth where the word “football” means something other than 11 v 11 kicking a speherical ball around a field, and yet the USA has supplied some memorable players to the world’s top domestic league. Many played for Fulham, or course, and there are a lot of goalkeepers, but in our opinion, these are the ten best.

10: Roy Wegerle One for the older generation. Losing your place in the Blackburn Rovers side is no disgrace when the person that’s taken that spot is future EPL record goalscorer Alan Shearer. Wegerle made three 1-million pound transfers back in the day that moving for £1m was a (literally) a big deal. He finished the 1990–91 season in third place on the First Division scorer’s list and won Goal of the Season.

Even if his impact in the official Premier League (1992 onwards) might be limited due to injury, you should never forget your first. The standard bearer in the modern era for Americans in English football. Could this "trailblazer" spot have been given to John Harkes’? Yep. Harkes’ highlight package would be more impressive, but his impact doesn't match Wegerle's. 9: Kasey Keller Still on the trailblazer bus, and kicking off both a recurring theme of Americans who’ve either been goalkeepers or Fulham players. Keller was both. 16 years between his first and last appearances in English football. A League Cup win, appearances in European Competition, a sterling record that saw Fulham escape what looked a relegation certainty. The sort of keeper that made big saves at big moments, a strong communicator and defensive organiser. The first in a long line of US goalkeeping imports.

8: Christian Pulisic Cue the screams of terror from the under-25s at seeing him so far down the list. You’ll not find the usual recency bias here. The most expensive North American player of all time. The first American player to win the Champions League. FIFA World Club Cup winner. Yes to all. But also inconsistent, injury-prone, never held down a first team spot for long and was sold for around one-third of the price Chelsea paid for him. Excellent for Dortmund before his move to England. Excellent for AC Milan after he left England. In the Premier League, he was... decent, but he never lived up to the £58million pricetag.

7: Antonee Robinson Higher than Pulisic? Yep. Think of it in England terms; You can question how often Christian Pulisic would have made the England squad, but Robinson would be a regular in the first-team, let alone getting squad call-ups. Leadership qualities, the ability to marshal the EPL’s best wingers, and one of the top assist providers show why he's shining so brightly in the Premier League.

6: Brad Guzan Noted as a tremendous shot stopper, 170 appearances for EPL clubs, and Aston Villa’s player of the season in 2013 – a the year they would have been relegated but for Guzan’s heroics. His impact in the EPL would have been greater if Villa hadn't signed two American goalkeepers named Brad in the same closed season (more on the other Brad later), which limited Guzan's impact in his early days in the Premier League, but 10 years in England was more than enough time to build up a reputation as a reliable and dependable keeper, which is exactly what he was.

5: Tim Howard Another ‘keeper who built a reputation as a natural shot-stopper, Howard was also a defensive organiser and built a fierce reputation as a penalty saving expert. Reasonable at Manchester United, but excelled at Everton. 350 appearances over 10 years at Goodison Park, and became the undisputed first choice for almost all his tenure. He was vice-captain, a recognised changing room leader, and was key in making Everton into European contenders every season, with a string of Top-6 finishes.

4: Brian McBride With 4 goals in his first 8 games at Everton, it looked like the Premier League had found a new goal-scoring legend. His goals narrowly kept them up, but it was at (surprise surprise) Fulham where he really made his mark. A goal in every 3.5 games for a club that’s fighting relegation every season is an exceptional record. Their captain, their leading scorer in most of his seasons at Craven Cottage, and an extraordinary work rate for a traditional target man. He’s considered a club legend (after he left they named a bar after him). Unlike many Americans before him, McBride came direct to the EPL from playing in the States. It’s credit to his success that future EPL managers would start to look seriously to the US recruitment in the future.

Before we get to the Top 3, here are some HONOURABLE MENTIONS (or "Honorable Mentions" if you're American):

Tim Ream: It’s hard to understate how much better Fulham looked defensively after Tim Ream’s arrival. Got the club promoted 3 times to the Premier League, but most of his best performances came as he helped to get them promoted to to the top tier. His performances in England’s top flight were less memorable.

Cobi Jones: All-time appearance record holder for the USA. Internationally a legend. Legacy in the EPL? Played one season at Coventry. Doesn’t make the cut here.

Claudio Reyna: Brilliant during his time in Scotland at Rangers, but injuries and inconsistencies plagued his time at Sunderland and Man City. A lot of people would put him in their top ten. Not us.

Tyler Adams: Maybe one day. Not yet. Definitely not yet.

Carlos Bocanegra: A 2-time MLS defender of the year, and earned a place in the hearts of fans at (you guessed it) Fulham, but more for his surprise goalscoring exploits as a defender than for standout performances. Bocanegra brought versatility, leadership and consistency to a Fulham team without most of those traits, but not exactly a standout player in a Fulham side that was consistently bottom half in his 5 seasons there, at the end of which he was released.

THE TOP THREE: 3: Landon Donovan Only played 22 games in the EPL, but still deserves his place in on the podium here. Initially came on a 10-week loan and yet shone against Chelsea, Everton and Manchester United; Player of the Month, 2 goals and 3 assists in 13 appearances turned Everton’s fortunes around at the time, but Everton couldn’t turn the loan into anything more permanent. Two years later, Donovan was back, with 6 assists In 9 appearances, during which time Everton went unbeaten. Arguably the biggest impact of any short-term loanee – of any nationality - in EPL history.

2: Clint Dempsey The fourth and final Fulham mention on this list, and it's only fitting that the man who proclaims himself “Deuce” comes in at Number 2. A record 50 goals for an American at EPL clubs, the goalscorer against Liverpool who saved Fulham from relegation in 2007, and scored the chip against Juventus that took them to the Europa League final two years later. Did well after he moved to Spurs as well – the winning goal that ended their long losing streak at Old Trafford springs to mind – but with internal competition for places from Gareth Bale, Emmanuel Adebayor and Jermaine Defoe – and a young Harry Kane coming through – his time in England was shorter than his talent and impact merited.

1: Brad Friedel The coveted top spot goes to Dempsey’s former Spurs teammate, and the 4th Goalkeeper on this list. The record holder for consecutive EPL appearances (at the time of writing) of 310 games . He spent 17 seasons in the EPL (1997-2015) with Liverpool, Blackburn Rovers, Aston Villa, and Tottenham Hotspur. He was in the EPL Team of the Year in 2002, kept 15 clean sheets as Blackburn qualified for Europe in 2006, helped Villa consistently qualify for Europe, and then became the oldest active retiree in the EPL at the age of 44 while at Tottenham. When else have you been able to argue that an American player is among the best in his position at an elite European level? How many Americans have played for so many of the Premier League's top clubs? That’s why Friedel takes our Number One spot.