5 players who returned to their boyhood clubs

4. Andriy Shevchenko

Andriy Shevchenko headed back to Dynamo Kyiv after struggling at Chelsea

Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko initially made his name with his boyhood club Dynamo Kyiv, debuting for them at the age of just 16, and it was at Dynamo that he emerged in the late 1990s as one of Europe’s deadliest strikers. Shevchenko won 5 Ukrainian league titles with the club, and scored some memorable Champions League goals against Europe’s giants, including a hat-trick against Barcelona.

The Ukrainian made a move to AC Milan in 1999 and it was there that he rose to his greatest fame, winning the Champions League in 2002/03 and then lifting the Scudetto in the following season. Shevchenko was a literal goal machine during his time in Italy, hitting a total of 172 goals across his 7 seasons at the San Siro. A move to Chelsea didn’t work out for the striker though, and so in 2009, at the age of 32, he made the move back to Dynamo.

The return to his boyhood club clearly suited Shevchenko, as he was able to score 8 goals in all competitions in his return season – and then doubled that total with 16 in 2010/11, making it his most productive season since he initially left Milan.

Shevchenko eventually retired from football in 2012 – and is now the manager of the Ukraine national side, and has led them to next summer’s Euro 2020 tournament, proving that for this striker, there’s no place like home.