Top 10 players to play for both Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool

All the names in this list have proven their mettle for either of the clubs.

Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool are both iconic teams in the Premier League. The White Hart Lane and Anfield stadiums yield two of the most vibrant atmospheres in football. Despite their rivalry against each other, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur have something in common. Well, a good number of players have plied their trade for both these clubs.

On that note, let's take a look at the top 10 players to play for both Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool.

10. Neil Ruddock

Neil "Razor" Ruddock is a centre-back who has played for an impressive 17 years. In this span, Ruddock has featured for both Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool FC. Notably, he was voted as the 17th Hardest Footballer of All Time.

Ruddock started out his career with Tottenham Hotspur in 1986 but failed to impress after an injury (broke his leg). He made only 11 appearances for Spurs and then re-joined Millwall in 1988. After playing for Southampton, Neil returned to Tottenham Hotspur and played there for a season. Neil featured in 38 games for Tottenham Hotspur, scoring three goals. After 38 games, he signed for Liverpool. At Liverpool, Neil was famously involved in an argument with Eric Cantona. He played quite well for Liverpool amassing 115 appearances.

9. Ray Clemence

Clemence is a legend for both Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool. He started his professional career with Scunthorpe United. He kept a clean sheet on his debut against Swansea in the League Cup. After joining Liverpool, Clemence became a regular goalkeeper for the club. He shone in his first FA Cup final however Arsenal bagged the win. Nonetheless, two seasons later, Ray Clemence won both the League Cup and UEFA Cup with Liverpool. Overall, he amassed 665 appearances for The Reds. Many even regard Ray Clemence as the finest goalkeeper Liverpool has ever had.

Clemence left Liverpool in 1981 to join Tottenham Hotspur. He spent quite some time injury bound at the Spurs. He did not achieve the same heights of glory like he did at Liverpool. Clemence did reach his fifth FA Cup final with Spurs in 1987. This record made him a part of select group of players to have appeared in five FA Cup finals.

8. Christian Ziege

Ziege was one of the best left-backs in Europe back in the day. He joined Liverpool from Middlesbrough in 2000. The full-back was a Scudetto winner with AC Milan before joining Middlesbrough. However, Ziege's performance wasn't up to the mark at Liverpool. At the same time, Jamie Carragher started performing better and eventually replaced Ziege in the line-up.

This persuaded the German international to join Tottenham Hotspur. At Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur, he managed 32 and 48 appearances, respectively. Persistent injuries held him back which eventually led to Spurs terminating his contract.

7. Jamie Redknapp

Sir Kenny Dalglish signed Jamie Redknapp before his unexpected resignation on 22nd February, 1991. The signing came to be fruitful as Redknapp became one of the most popular, talented midfielders in Liverpool's history. Jamie made his first appearance under manager Graeme Souness. He helped Liverpool win the League Cup in 1995. Overall Redknapp played 308 games for Liverpool and netted 41 goals.

After his successful run with Liverpool, the midfielder joined Tottenham Hotspur on a free transfer. Redknapp played 49 games in over two and a half years for Spurs.

6. Robbie Keane

Keane is more of a Tottenham Hotspur legend than a Liverpool one. Robbie started out his career with Wolverhampton Wanderers and then joined Tottenham. At Spurs, he played for seven years over two spells amassing 306 appearances and scoring 122 goals.

He had left Spurs on a loan spell to join Liverpool. He admired Liverpool since his childhood but unfortunately failed to perform there. Robbie Keane only managed to make 28 appearances for Liverpool scoring seven goals. Keane then returned to Tottenham Hotspur after just six months with Liverpool in 2008.

The 2007-08 season was his best season. Keane scored 23 goals that season setting a career record. He also won his first senior title with Tottenham Hotspur (League Cup) in the same season.

5. Graeme Souness

Many often criticise Graeme Souness for his harsh comments about players. However, Souness is undoubtedly a Liverpool legend. The talented midfielder had a great first touch and helped Liverpool win 15 major trophies. To date, he still remains one of the four captains in Liverpool's history to lift the European Cup. Graeme played in 359 matches for The Reds scoring 55 goals.

Souness was Liverpool's boon but apparently a bane for Tottenham Hotspur. Graeme only made one appearance for Spurs and left them in search for regular game time. After leaving Spurs, he joined Middlesbrough and then eventually signed for Liverpool.

4. Steven Caulker

Caulker was quite the talented athlete since his childhood. He played his early days of football in his local club. Steven then earned trials at various Premier League clubs and finally chose to play for Tottenham's youth team. He finally broke through the first team for Tottenham Hotspur in 2009. After this, he spent three years on loan spells. Steven returned to Tottenham Hotspurs in 2012 where he signed a new four-year contract.

Caulker then cancelled a loan move to Southampton to join Liverpool in 2016 until the end of the season. The centre-back played a vital role for Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool at a time when the team was going through an injury crisis. He was even deployed as a striker in some matches.

3. Peter Crouch

Peter Crouch started his career with Tottenham Hotspur. He had already played for their youth team at the time and was willing to show his worth. However, he spent much of his time on loan spells at various other clubs. After two years of loan spells and a handful of first team appearances, Crouch moved to QPR. He impressed at QPR scoring 10 league goals. After impressive stints with Portsmouth, Aston Villa and Southampton, the forward finally joined Liverpool.

It is at Liverpool where Crouch enjoyed the prime years of his career. The start of his Liverpool career was quite terrible because of intense media pressure. Even the Liverpool fans insulted him calling him various names because of his height (6"7). Crouch was unable to score for 19 matches. He scored his first goal against Wigan Athletic. After this goal, there was no turning back as he became consistent in front of goal and proved everyone wrong.

Overall, Crouch has played 134 matches for Liverpool scoring 42 goals. One of his most iconic moments include the "perfect hat-trick" against Arsenal. In that fixture, Peter scored one goal each with both his feet and netted a header too.

2. Nick Barmby

Just like Peter Crouch, Nick Barmby also emerged from the Spur's youth team. Nick made it to the senior team and formed a great attacking bravado alongside Jurgen Klinsmann, Teddy Sheringham, Darren Anderton and Dimitrescu. He made 100 appearances for Spurs scoring 27 goals across all competitions. Nick had also appeared in two FA Cup semi-finals for Tottenham Hotspur. He joined Middlesbrough in 1995 becoming their most expensive signing at the time.

Nick Barmby made his name with Liverpool. He scored eight important goals for the The Reds. He netted four in the UEFA Cup, one in the League Cup and FA Cup each and two in the Premier League. Barmby is one of the nine players alongside Robbie Keane to score for six different Premier League teams.

1. Danny Murphy

Danny Murphy was one of the most tactically aware and sound players for Liverpool. He played as a central midfielder or out wide due to the presence of Steven Gerrard. He made 249 appearances for Liverpool scoring 44 goals. Murphy had a great individual run in the 2002-03 season scoring 12 goals.

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Danny Murphy produced many iconic moments for Liverpool. The most iconic of them were "Super Dan's" three winning goals against Manchester United across four seasons. His free-kick goal against the Red Devils in the 2000-01 season meant Liverpool's first win in 10 years at the Old Trafford.

Danny moved to Tottenham Hotspur in 2006 in a last gasp move. He made 29 appearances for the club and scored only one goal.