With Wayne Rooney now having no longer a Manchester United player, the English superstar's move back to his childhood club Everton doesn't come as too much of a surprise. Rooney had made it clear in the past that he would like to return to Merseyside someday and it seems as if its one of those things that was meant to be.
The 31-year-old, who spent 13 years at Old Trafford and rose to become the highest goalscorer for club and country, has hardly become a figure who is liked by all. He divides opinions, but he isn't the only Red Devil to have donned the famed Blue of Everton after a spell at Old Trafford. Everton are obviously based in Liverpool, a city known to be a direct rival of the city of Manchester, but that hasn't stopped players from moving too and fro in recent years.
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We run the rule over players who joined Everton from Manchester United, before Rooney sealed a switch back to the Goodison Park yesterday.
#1 Phil Neville
The younger Neville is a lesser known part of the Class of 92 and it would be fair to say that the older Neville- Gary, is known more for his contributions at Manchester United. He plied his trade with the Red Devils throughout his career, but things were a wee different for Phil, who joined Everton in 2005.
Also read: Wayne Rooney's Manchester United timeline
After failing to establish himself as a regular member of the first-team, Neville went onto make over 200 appearances for the Merseysiders. He made a good number of appearances for England during his time at Everton and was soon handed the captain's armband in 2007 by the then Toffees boss David Moyes.
He hung up his boots in 2013 and it would be fair to say that he did manage to carve out a very good footballing career after leaving Manchester United.
#2 Andrei Kanchelskis
Andrei Kanchelskis happens to be one of those graceful wingers that weren't as well known as the others under Sir Alex Ferguson. Someone who wore the famed Number 7 kit for a brief time, Kanchelskis made 123 appearances for Manchester United over a period of four years from 1991 to 1995.
After having fallen out with Sir Alex in 1995 though, Kanchelskis' United career came to an end. A bid from Middlesbrough was rejected, but a move to Everton followed.
The Russian became Everton's record signing and stayed at Goodison Park for two seasons. He scored as many as 20 times in 52 appearances during his stay and a drop in quality saw a move to Fiorentina in Italy come about.
#3 Jesper Blomqvist
For those who don't know or have forgotten, Jesper Blomqvist started the 1999 European Cup final against Bayern Munich for Manchester United. The Swede was an important part of Sir Alex's side and often acted as a very good backup for Ryan Giggs, after having joined from Serie A outfit Parma in 1998.
He suffered a serious knee injury during the fag end of his United career and it petered out after that. Sir Alex arranged for a move to Everton in 2001 and Blomqvist plied his trade at Goodison Park for a season and recovered his fitness well enough to gain a move to Charlton.
While Blomqvist never blossomed after that injury, the fact that he made THAT appearance in THAT thrilling 2-1 win over the Bavarians has immortalised him in the United history books.
#4 Morgan Schneiderlin
When Morgan Schneiderlin joined Manchester United from Southampton in 2015, many expected him to soon act as a heir to the ageing Michael Carrick at the Theatre of Dreams. His arrival date coincided with that of Bastian Schweinsteiger's and the duo endured similar fates when Louis van Gaal was replaced by Jose Mourinho at the helm of affairs.
This past season, the elegant Frenchman could never break into the first team and played for only 11 minutes in the Premier League. The capture of compatriot Paul Pogba made it tough for him to come close to becoming a regular and a move to Goodison Park followed. The Toffees shelled out £20 million for the former Saints midfielder and he came up with vital performances for them in the second half of the campaign, scoring in a 3-0 win over West Bromwich Albion.
One way or another, Schneiderlin will go down as one of the worst signings that Manchester United have made in recent memory.
#5 Tim Howard
Tim Howard's capture from MLS outfit Metrostars was slightly shocking back in 2003. The Red Devils shelled out $4 million for the American, who replaced Fabien Barthez and later acted as a second-fiddle to Edwin van der Sar on the Dutchman's arrival from Fulham.
After falling down the pecking order due to a series of bad performances in 2006, Howard was sent on loan to Everton, where he appeared 25 times in the 2006-07 campaign. A permanent move to Merseyside followed and Howard went onto play as many as nine seasons for the Toffees and is often referred to as a legend by many.
A move to Colorado Rapids back home to the United States followed and the former Toffees skipper is still going strong there.
