Featuring former Manchester United, Aston Villa, West Brom, Leeds United, Hull City and Arsenal players who’ve dropped down to non-league football.
From Jamie Vardy and Charlie Austin to Michail Antonio and Chris Smalling, the players who have made the enormous leap from non-league football to the Premier League have been well-documented, whilst those who have made the same journey but in the opposite direction often receive rather less attention.
We have created a Premier League to non-league XI featuring some of the best known players to have played top flight football that are now plying their trade in an English division below that of League Two.
The starting XI features players who made in excess of 250 Premier League appearances, Champions League winners and former England internationals, as well as one or two with slightly less pedigree. Here is our Premier League to non-league XI:
Manchester United duo Jonathan Greening and Wes Brown
Goalkeeper: Jimmy Walker
It’s slim pickings between the sticks, with only a couple of viable options. Former West Brom and Derby ‘keeper Russell Houlte would have been a good shout, but he appears to only be a coach at Quorn now, despite making 5 appearances in 2015. It is Jimmy Walker who gets the nod then. The ex-Tottenham and West Ham man made 3 Premier League appearances for the Hammers and is now playing in the National League for Lincoln City.
Right-Back: Craig Eastmond
Predominantly a defensive midfielder, Craig Eastmond is also capable of playing as a right-back. The former Arsenal trainee made 4 Premier League appearances for the Gunners, all in the 2009/10 season, before being released in 2013. Following a couple of years at Colchester and a brief stint at Yeovil, Eastmond has now settled in at Sutton United, where he won the National League South title last season.
Centre-Back: Stephen Jordan
From two players with limited Premier League experience to one with plenty, Stephen Jordan made 78 top flight appearances with Manchester City and Burnley, keeping 6 clean sheets in those games and laying on one assist. Recently of Fleetwood Town, the 34-year-old now plays for historic National League North oufit Chorley FC.
Centre-Back: Ibrahima Sonko
Ibrahima Sonko made 62 Premier League appearances over the course of 4 years, coming at Reading, Stoke City and Hull City. An excellent defender during his first two seasons at Reading, Sonko picked up a nasty injury at Reading, and despite Stoke paying £2 million for his services, he looked a shadow of his former self, really struggling at both Stoke and Hull. Following three years in Turkey, Sonko joined current club Harlow Town, of the Isthmian League (level 7), in 2015.
Left-Back: Nicky Shorey
Nicky Shorey in action for Aston Villa against Ajax
Twice capped by England, against Brazil and Spain no less, Nicky Shorey was a very dependable top flight left-back in his prime. The full-back made 176 Premier League appearances with Reading, Aston Villa, Fulham and West Brom, making 21 assists and keeping 34 clean sheets. After a brief spell in India with Pune City in 2015, the 35-year-old now stars for Hungerford Town, who were recently promoted to the National League South.
Central Midfield: Darren Carter
Former England youth international Darren Carter played all his Premier League football for the Second City rivals Aston Villa and Birmingham City. He scored just 3 goals in 52 Premier League games, although his tremendous volley against Arsenal lives long in the memory. Carter’s cumulative transfer fees add up to in excess of £3.5 million, and he now plays for Forest Green Rovers, who finished second in the National League last season.
Central Midfield: James Harper
A very good midfield player for almost a decade at Reading, James Harper later had a torrid time at Hull City. A product of Arsenal’s youth academy, Harper made 76 Premier League appearances for the Royals, scoring 9 goals. Now aged 35, Harper has been playing non-league football since 2014, having had spells at Barnet, Basingstoke, Hayes & Heading and current club Hungerford Town.
Central Midfield: Jonathan Greening
A young Jonathan Greening whilst at Manchester United
A Champions League winner at Manchester United in 1999 and a League Cup winner at Middlesbrough in 2004, Jonathan Greening has had a long and successful playing career. The midfielder started life at Old Trafford, but made most of his top flight appearances for Boro and West Brom.
Greening has more Premier League apps than any other player in this XI, with 252 in total. Now aged 37, the former England under-21 international plays his club football at seventh tier Tadcaster Albion.
Centre-Forward: Jamie Cureton
Aged 41 and still going strong, Jamie Cureton has scored somewhere in the region of 300 career goals in more than 850 games. A prolific scorer, particularly in the third tier with the likes of Bristol Rovers and Reading, Cureton played 17 Premier League games, all with Norwich, scoring 4 goals in 17 outings. Now in his 23rd year as a professional footballer, Cureton plays for Eastleigh in the National League.
Centre-Forward: Lee Hughes
A controversial figure, having been jailed for causing death by dangerous driving in 2004 and having been charged of assault in 2012, Lee Hughes played 23 Premier League games without scoring a goal, but both those figures would likely be much higher had he stayed out of jail.
Hughes scored 86 goals in 177 games during his first spell at West Brom, but only made 3 appearances above League One level following his release in 2007. Now aged 40, the powerful forward is playing in the National League North for Worcester City.
Centre-Forward: Richard Cresswell
The most experienced forward in terms of Premier League football in this XI, Richard Cresswell made 67 top flight appearances for Sheffield Wednesday, Leicester City and Stoke City, scoring 2 goals.
More prolific outside the Premier League with the likes of Preston North End and Leeds United, Cresswell has scored 142 goals in 653 games to date, and currently plays alongside Jonathan Greening at Tadcaster Albion.
Richard Cresswell celebrates scoring in a penalty shoot out for Leeds United at Elland Road
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