12 Players Who Played For Both Arsenal And Manchester City
Arsenal and Manchester City have had numerous connections over the past 30 years, especially with a number of recent high-profile transfers between the two clubs. Some of these players were involved in direct transfers while some took an indirect route. Let us have a look at such 12 players who played for both Arsenal and Manchester City.
Here is the list of players who played for both Arsenal and Manchester City.
12. Oleksandr Zinchenko
Man City – 2016-2022 (128 apps)
Arsenal – 2022- (42 apps)
Zinchenko joined Manchester City from the Russian club Ufa in 2016. It took a while for the Ukrainian to establish himself as a first-team player. He also spent time on loan at PSV before getting first-team action at Manchester City. He overall made 128 appearances for Machester City, winning four Premier League titles before leaving the club in 2022 for Arsenal. In his first season with Arsenal, he finished second in the Premier League.
11. Samir Nasri
Arsenal – 2008-2011 (125 apps)
Man City – 2011-2017 (176 apps)
Arsene Wenger used his extensive French contacts to pluck a young Nasri from the country. He was compared to Zinedine Zidane on arrival.
Samir Nasri flourished under Arsene Wenger’s guidance and had three productive years with the club before joining City in 2011 for £25 million. He played 125 times for Arsene Wenger’s side and was nominated for both the PFA Players’ Player of the Year and the PFA Young Player of the Year awards after his breakthrough season in 2010/11.
In his debut season, Nasri helped City win their first-ever Premier League title and then added another one to the trophy cabinet in 2014. He has also won the Community Shield and a League Cup there.
10. Gael Clichy
Arsenal – 2003-2011 (264 apps)
Man City – 2011-2017 (203 apps)
Wenger personally went to Clichy’s family household in Tournefeuille, France, to convince him to sign for Arsenal in 2003. In his first season, he was largely back-up to Ashely Cole but played enough to become the youngest player, at 18 years and 10 months, to win the Premier League in Arsenal’s undefeated campaign.
Clichy become Arsenal’s first-choice left-back for 4 seasons after the departure of Ashley Cole in August 2006. The Frenchman had arguably the best season of his career in 2007/08 appearing in a career-high and team-best 49 matches and was the only player in the team to appear in all 38 league matches.
He joined City in 2011 having made 264 appearances for the Gunners. Like Nasri, he found silverware after his move to City. The left-back twice won the Premier League – helping the club to their first-ever title – and also the League Cup and Community Shield.
9. Gabriel Jesus
Man City – 2017-2022 (236 apps)
Arsenal – 2022- (41 apps)
Jesus joined Manchester City from Palmeiras as a youngster in 2017. He made an immediate impact on the club scoring 7 goals in the first 10 Premier League games towards the end of the 2016-17 season. Overall, he scored 95 goals in all competitions over the years, winning the Premier League four times among a host of other trophies.
He made a move to Premier League rivals Arsenal before the start of the 2022-23 season, in order to secure enough match time. In his first season with the club, he finished second in the Premier League.
8. Kolo Toure
Arsenal – 2001-2009 (326 apps)
Man City – 2009-2013 (102 apps)
A member of Arsenal’s ‘Invincibles team, Toure spent seven seasons with the Gunners and made more than 300 appearances during his time at the club. Toure was also one of the defenders who helped the Arsenal team reach the 2006 UEFA Champions League final after keeping 10 consecutive clean sheets. The Ivory Coast international joined City in 2009 for £14 million.
Toure was appointed club captain by Mark Hughes but had the armband taken away from him at the start of the 2010/11 season when Roberto Mancini took over. He was still a part of Mancini’s first-team plans and would go on to win a Premier League title, FA Cup and Community Shield.