Ranking the 10 best British players overseas this season so far

Not too long ago, it was rare for British players to swap home soil for foreign turf. The majority of Brits opted to ply their trade in the Premier League or the Scottish Premiership, refraining from potential adventures abroad.

However, in recent times, we’ve witnessed an increase in the number of footballers willing to reside on the continent, in the hope of discovering greener pastures. Not feeling it would be a barrier to being selected for their national teams, the likes of Jadon Sancho, Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham have all taken the leap successfully.

Many others have followed suit, settling in Italy, Germany, Spain and elsewhere, all continuing their development away from the bright lights of the Premier League. With an established core of British footballing expats now excelling overseas, here are the top 10 performing players in this category based on this season so far.

10 Tammy Abraham

AC Milan

This isn’t Tammy Abraham’s first rodeo abroad, or even in Italy. The Chelsea academy graduate swapped the posh streets of west London for the ruins of Rome in 2021, joining AS Roma in a £34 million deal. An exceptional debut campaign in Serie A saw him net 27 goals in all competitions for the Yellow and Reds, but he has since been hampered by injury, prompting a move this summer.

Related

9 Best Chelsea Players to Wear the Number 9 Shirt (Ranked)

Including Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Gianluca Vialli, we have ranked the nine best players to wear the number nine shirt at Chelsea.

AC Milan, eager to find a replacement for veteran Olivier Giroud, opted to grant Abraham what is surely a final opportunity to prove himself at a big club, signing him on loan for the duration of this season. Thus far, sharing minutes with Alvaro Morata, the 27-year-old has started the new campaign in mixed fashion, scoring just once in six league appearances. Still getting to grips with Paulo Fonseca’s system, the lanky number nine has the potential to explode back into life under the Portuguese manager.

9 Billy Gilmour

Napoli

In a surprise late move in the summer transfer window, Billy Gilmour put pen to paper on a long-term deal at Napoli, who opted to splash £12 million, plus a potential £4 million in add-ons, on Brighton’s midfield metronome. Expressing his technical quality and expert passing range in the Premier League, the Scotsman perhaps lacked the physicality required to flourish in English football.

Subsequently, a switch to the less intense and physically demanding Italian top flight should, in theory, suit Gilmour. Antonio Conte has so far used the 23-year-old sporadically, favouring the likes of Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, Stanislav Lobotka and Scott McTominay, with the ex-Chelsea man starting just one Serie A game up to this point. It appears likely Gilmour will be utilised as a rotational squad player, although his ability to progress the ball effectively could make him the preferred solution in certain games.

8 Fikayo Tomori

AC Milan

Another Chelsea academy graduate who is now plying his trade in Italy, Fikayo Tomori, was the trailblazer in this regard, making the switch in January 2021. After a successful loan spell at the San Siro, Milan triggered their £25 million purchase option, and Tomori has gone on to establish himself as a staple figure at the heart of the Rossoneri’s backline.

Making over 150 appearances for Milan, the 26-year-old led the club to their first Serie A title for 11 years back in 2022, safeguarding an exceptional team under the stewardship of Stefano Pioli. New boss Fonseca appears to be as fond of Tomori as his predecessor was, starting him in six out of seven league games this season, with the Englishman enjoying an impressive beginning to the new campaign.

7 Ruben Loftus-Cheek

AC Milan

Yet another Cobham graduate who now plays his football in Serie A, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, decided to take the fresh start AC Milan offered him in the summer of 2023, appealed by the change of scenery after struggling with injuries for several years at Stamford Bridge. The change has served him well, as he managed his most prolific campaign since the 2018/19 season, in his debut year in Northern Italy, netting ten times across 40 appearances in all competitions.

Related

What Happened to England’s 11 Best Teenagers From 2016

Dele Alli and Ben Chilwell were included in The Telegraph’s team of players who were predicted to have big careers with England in 2016.

However, his standing under new boss Fonseca appears slightly less certain than it did under Pioli. Starting four out of seven league games so far this season, the Milan head coach has deployed Loftus-Cheek in a number of different roles and positions, and he’s subsequently failed to find the back of the net. Afforded the opportunity to regularly play as a number 10 last season, the 28-year-old is perhaps disorientated by the constant chopping and changing of his responsibilities, despite his versatile set of attributes.

6 Angel Gomes

Lille

A Brit abroad who has potentially gone under the radar until his recent England call-ups, Angel Gomes has been at Lille since the summer of 2021 and has developed into one of Ligue 1’s most accomplished central midfielders. Leaving boyhood club Manchester United for more game time, the diminutive deep-lying playmaker had been a number 10 but was transitioned into a deeper midfielder by former Lille boss Jocelyn Gourvennec, who recognised that his slight frame, elusive movement and exceptional passing lent itself to operating as a number eight or six.

Making over 100 appearances for Les Douges now, Gomes has begun the new season on fire, starting six out of seven Ligue 1 games. His recent caps for the Three Lions under Lee Carsley have attracted the attention of the English national media, while Tottenham are said to be eyeing a move for the 24-year-old.

5 Jamie Bynoe-Gittens

Borussia Dortmund

Unlike most on this list, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens took the unconventional route for a British player, by leaving his home nation at a very young age, before he’d even made a professional appearance. Following Sancho’s lead, the Reading-born man swapped Manchester for Western Germany in 2020, leaving Man City for Borussia Dortmund.

Related

Why Borussia Dortmund Talent Jamie Gittens Changed the Name on His Shirt

Gittens is quickly becoming the next exciting English talent

It’s taken the winger some time to work his way into the Dortmund team, mostly operating on the periphery of Die Schwarzgelben’s squad over recent years, but it would appear that the 20-year-old is finally enjoying something of a breakout season. With the aforementioned Sancho not returning to BVB for a third spell, a position has opened up within the Dortmund side, and Bynoe-Gittens has taken it, appearing in all seven Bundesliga games so far this campaign, netting twice and providing two assists.

4 Conor Gallagher

Atlético Madrid

After being frozen out by new Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca, despite captaining the Blues last season, Conor Gallagher was forced to make the tough decision and depart west London, becoming the latest Chelsea-produced British expat this summer. Thankfully for the 24-year-old, he was presented with the perfect match, as Diego Simeone swooped in to sign a workmanlike and dogged box-to-box midfielder, who would perfectly suit Atletico Madrid’s industrious style of play.

Given the Spanish media’s glowing reviews of Gallagher’s performances so far, it would appear that the match has indeed proved to be ideal. The hard-working number eight has thrived at the Riyadh Air Metroplitano, starting six of seven La Liga games so far, scoring twice.

3 Scott McTominay

Napoli

Another agricultural midfielder who has an eye for goal, who chose to leave his boyhood club for a move abroad this summer, after being told he was surplus to requirements, Scott McTominay signed for Napoli in a £25.7 million deal.

Related

Why Italian Media Have Nicknamed Scott McTominay ‘Jolly’

McTominay has made an impressive start to life in Naples

Joining compatriot Gilmour at the Diego Armando Maradona stadium, the former Man United star has settled quickly in Italy, starting each of Napoli’s last four games, as Conte’s men have asserted themselves at the top of Serie A. Netting twice already, the 27-year-old has already been dubbed Napoli’s ‘best player by a distance’, such is the nature of the positive impact he’s made.

2 Jude Bellingham

Real Madrid

Similarly to Bynoe-Gittens, Jude Bellingham left England at an early age, reportedly turning down Man United to join Borussia Dortmund at just 17. Last season, making the seismic step-up to Real Madrid in a €103 million deal, the charismatic midfielder set the world alight, scoring 23 goals in all competitions, leading Los Blancos to La Liga glory and the Champions League.

Experiencing a slower start to the new season, the 21-year-old is yet to find the back of the net but is continuing to function effectively in an immensely talented team that is yet to lose a league game. Starting every match since he’s been available, the goals are bound to start flowing again soon.

1 Harry Kane

Bayern Munich

After failing to win a trophy with boyhood club Tottenham, Kane took the plunge and departed north London for Munich last summer, joining Bayern in a deal worth €110 million. Despite ultimately not attaining that elusive piece of silverware during his debut campaign in Germany, Kane enjoyed a spectacular individual season, scoring 44 goals in all competitions, the best return of his illustrious career.

Related

11 Best British Players in Serie A History (Ranked)

Including David Beckham and Jimmy Greaves, the best British players to play in the Serie A have been revealed.

Enduring a disappointing summer with England, many expressed concerns that the 31-year-old is beyond the peak of his powers, but a ridiculously productive start to the new season, which has seen him net 14 times in 11 games, would suggest otherwise.

All Statistics via FBRef – correct as of 24/10/2024.