The Footballers Who Have Played For Both Manchester United and Manchester City

A long time ago, it wasn’t unusual to see players represent both sides of Manchester – United and City. Before World War II, there was little rivalry between the two clubs, so switching from one to the other caused few problems for players.

Since the war, however, the number of players to have played for both clubs has declined as the rivalry has intensified. Today, it’s an extremely rare occurrence, with most players keen to avoid the backlash that would come with joining one of their former side’s biggest rivals.

Pre WWII Era

A total of 39 footballers have played for both Manchester United and Manchester City. Of them, 26 played before WWII. It was not an act that was ever frowned upon at the time; in fact, players were often encouraged to help out a fellow Manchester side.

Given how uncontroversial such moves were at the time, here is a simple list of names of the players who played for both clubs in this era. Note that several of these occurred when United were known as Newton Heath, and City as Ardwick.

Player	Man City Career	Man Utd Career
William Douglas	1890–94	1894–96
Bob Milarvie	1891–96	1890–91
Adam Carson	1893–94	1892–93
Alf Edge	1894	1891–92
Billy Meredith	1894–1906, 1921-24	1906–21
Bert Read	1895–1902	1902–08
Fred Williams	1896–1902	1902–03
Stockport Smith	1897–1900	1901–02
Joe Cassidy	1900–01	1893, 1895-1900
Frank Barrett	1901–02	1896–1900
Hugh Morgan	1901–02	1900–01
Daniel Hurst	1901–02	1902–03
John Christie	1904–07	1902–04
Jimmy Bannister	1902–06	1906–09
Sandy Turnbull	1902–06	1906–15
Herbert Burgess	1903–06	1906–10
George Livingstone	1903–06	1909–15
Horace Blew	1906	1906
Herbert Broomfield	1908–10	1907–08
Mickey Hamill	1920–24	1911–14
Wilf Woodcock	1920–22	1912–20
George Albinson	1921–22	1920–21
Len Langford	1930–34	1934–37
Bill Ridding	1930–31	1931–34
Bill Dale	1931–38	1925–31
Harry Rowley	1932–33	1928–32, 1934-37

Post WWII Period

Since the 1950s, the rivalry between City and United has grown, making players think twice before moving between the two. While many transfers have passed without much controversy, a few have certainly left a sour taste.

Dennis Law

• Man City: 1960-61 & 1973-74
• Man United: 1962-73

He may have twice played for City, but Law is firmly a United legend. Sandwiched between two short stints at City was an 11-year stay at Old Trafford. During this time, the British record transfer fee holder helped United win two league titles, an FA Cup and a European Cup. Part of the ‘United Trinity’, you can find a statue of Law, George Best and Bobby Charlton outside Old Trafford.

Brian Kidd

• Man United: 1963-74
• Man City: 1976-79

Kidd made an early impression at United by scoring a goal in the victorious European Cup final win over Benfica on his 19th birthday. He went on to score 52 league goals for the club before moving to Arsenal and then City. Post retirement he took up coaching roles at both Manchester sides, most notably becoming City’s assistant manager from 2009 to 2021.

Wyn Davies

• Man City: 1971-72
• Man United: 1972-73

Better remembered for his lengthy spells at Bolton Wanderers and Newcastle United as Davies spent little time at either Manchester club. He represented City 45 times in the league before moving to United, where he registered 16 appearances.

Sammy McIlroy

• Man United: 1971-82
• Man City: 1985-86

Matt Busby’s final Manchester United signing proved a loyal and reliable servant to the club. He made 419 United appearances, with his first being among the most memorable. On his debut, the 17-year-old scored one and assisted two during a win at Man City’s former home, Maine Road.

Peter Barnes

• Man City: 1974-79 & 1987-88
• Man United: 1985-87

Barnes was named PFA Young Player of the Year for the 1975-76 season, with his goal in the League Cup final win no doubt helping his cause. After staying with City for five years, he then turned into something of a journeyman. He was even loaned to Man Utd while playing at Leeds, to play in their end-of-season tour.

John Gidman

• Man United: 1981-86
• Man City: 1986-88

Once-capped by England, Gidman represented the red side of Manchester 123 times after becoming Ron Atkinson’s first United signing. After this, he moved across the city, suffering relegation with the Citizens in his second and final season there.

Mark Robins

• Man United: 1988-92
• Man City: 1999

Robins enjoyed a bright start when eventually given a chance at United and even played an important role in the 1990 FA Cup win, Alex Ferguson’s first trophy at the club. He fell out of favour soon after, though and several years later had a brief injury-struck stint at City when on loan from Greek club Panionios.

Andrei Kanchelskis

• Man United: 1991-95
• Man City: 2001

The Russian winger made a name for himself at Man United, making 161 appearances across five seasons following a move from Shakhtar Donetsk. He is also well remembered for his spell at Rangers, but many forget his short-lived loan stint at City, in which he made 11 appearances, scoring one goal.

Peter Schmeichel

• Man United: 1991-99
• Man City: 2002-03

Quite the shocking transfer as Schmeichel was a United legend when announcing his move to City. Although he has retained his legendary status, spending a season at City is a blemish on his record. It certainly did not go down well with Gary Neville, who refused to shake his hand in the tunnel. Fascinatingly, the Dane was never on the losing side in a Manchester derby.

Andy Cole

• Man United:1995-2001
• Man City: 2005-06

Scored a lot of goals for United, 121 across competitions to be precise. He was the British record transfer signing at the time but his output made the fee a worthy one. Spent a single season late in his career at City, in which he scored a respectable 10 goals in 23 appearances.

Carlos Tevez

• Man United: 2007-09
• Man City: 2009-13

With his two-year loan move coming to an end, United sought to sign Tevez on a permanent deal. He ended up signing a five-year contract to stay in Manchester, only with City rather than United. His signature was a huge coup for the Citizens, who relished nicking the United target from under their noses. He proved to be a great signing too, scoring 73 times in 148 appearances.

Owen Hargreaves

• Man United:2007-09
• Man City:2011-12

A series of injuries saw Hargreaves fall short of 40 appearances for United despite spending four years at the club. He offered to stay for free when his contract expired, but when declined, he signed for City on a free transfer. Unsurprisingly, the perpetually injured midfielder mustered just four appearances for City.