In the soccer universe, the player’s jersey number is synonymous with the player’s identity. Therefore, each player seeks to take a number and do magical things. Hopefully, the number will be associated with him or even retired in their honor.
Some soccer players with the number 14 have put in work to make the jersey stand out among the famous numbers 9s and 10s. Today, the number 14 in soccer cannot be talked about without referring to some of these players.
In this article, we shall know:
- Who the players are
- Their career history
- Their feats and measures
Buckle up, and let’s take a ride through the number 14 jungle and see who the giants who represented the kit number well are.
Soccer Players Who Wore Number 14
Thierry Henry
The Frenchman, Thierry Henry, is one of the most iconic players to wear number 14 despite wearing number 12 with the French national team. However, he was most influential when he wore the number 14 jersey.
Thierry Daniel Henry was born at Les Ulis in France on 17th August 1977. He is a professional soccer coach and a former player. He also serves as an assistant coach for the Belgium national team.
Thierry is considered one of the best strikers of all time and one of the best players of the Premier League. He made his professional career debut with Monaco in 1994 and later signed for Juventus before moving and signing with an English Premier club, Arsenal, in 1999.
The prolific striker became Arsenal’s all-time scorer having 228 goals in all competitions.
Furthermore, he won the Premier League Golden Boot a record of four times. He won two FA Cups and two Premier League titles with the club, including one during an unbeaten season known as the invincibles.
- In 2003 and 2004, Henry was the runner-up for the FIFA World Player of the Year and runner-up for the Ballon d’Or in the previous year.
- Additionally, he was named PFA Player’s Player of the year twice
- FWA Footballer of the year thrice
- Named in the PFS team of the year a consecutive six times.
Henry was also included in the FIFA FIFPro WORLD XI, not forgetting the UEFA team, where he appeared five consecutive times. In the 2000s, he was the most viable player.
His style of play was spectacular. He could take the ball from the middle of the park, dribble and score a goal that no one in the world could score. He could calmly score one on ones. Thierry remained Arsenal’s main offensive threat as he could also dribble past players at an impeccable pace, skill, and exposure.
He made 258 appearances, 175 goals, and 74 assists and played for Arsenal for eight years. He later transitioned into coaching after his retirement.
Johan Cruyff
Let’s explore the world of Johan Cruyff, who was widely regarded as one of the greatest players in soccer history. Hendrick Johannes Cruijff was born on 25th April 1947 in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
He passed away aged 68 years. He was a Dutch professional soccer player and manager who has donned the number 14 jersey since 1970 except when he played for Barcelona, where he wore number 9, and Feyenoord, where he wore number 10.
- He has won the Ballon D’Or three times, in 1971, 1973, and 1974.
- He also led the Netherlands to the Final of the 1974 World Cup and received the Golden Ball.
- At the 1974 finals, he invented a feint named ‘Cryff Turn’ move widely replicated in today’s soccer.
- In 1999, Cruyff was recognized as the European Soccer Player of the Century by the IFFHS or International Federation of Football History and Statistics.
He was also named runner-up in World Player of the Century behind Pele. Additionally, he was included in the World Team of the 20th century, and in 2004 was named in the FIFA 100 list of the world’s greatest living players.
After retiring from playing in 1984, he began coaching Ajax and later on Barcelona, where, even after his tenure ended, he remained very influential.
Cruyff was philanthropic. He founded non-profit organizations to encourage children to participate in sports and broaden their education. In our Advanced Soccer Moves, you can learn how to replicate his famous turn.
Youri Djorkaeff
Youri Raffi is a former French soccer player who played as an attacking midfielder or forward. He played in France, Italy, Germany, England, and the United States.
He started his professional career with French Club Grenoble. He then moved to RC Strasbourg in 1989. Then AS Monaco in 1990. Finally, in 1995, he moved to Paris Saint Germain. Incredibly, in 1996, he won the UEFA Cup winners’ with PSG.
Progressively in his career, he signed with Inter Milan where, in the first season, he appeared 49 and scored 17 times in all competitions, and 14 goals in 33 Serie A appearances.
In 1999, he moved to Germany and Kaiserslautern, helping them to the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup in 2001. After that, he moved to several clubs where he would always do exemplary work.
- Djorkaeff accumulated 82 caps in his international career and scored 28 goals between 1993 and 2002.
- He won with the national side the 1998 FIFA World Cup and the UEFA Euro 2000.
- In the UEFA Euro 1996 and the 2002 FIFA World Cup, he also played for France.
His style of play was spectacular, to the extent of being nicknamed the ‘snake,’ Djorkaeff was a talented playmaker and played as an attacking midfielder and most featured a wide role on the left flank.
His dribbling skills, positional sense, and intelligent movement of the ball were outstanding. In addition, a hardworking player known for his defensive contribution of the ball could link the defense with the attack or drift it out on a wide area in a free role in midfield.
Claudio Pizarro
Claudio Pizarro Bosio is a Peruvian retired soccer player who played as a striker and is currently an ambassador for Bayern Munich. He donned the number 14 jersey.
His professional debut came in 1966, with Deportivo Pesquero. In 1998, he joined Alianza Lima and won a Peruvian Primera Division, where he was highlighted as the player of the season.
In 1999, he moved to Werder Bremen from the Bundesliga, and incredibly, after a year, he was chosen as the newcomer of the championship and included in the ideal team for the 2000-01 season.
Soon after, he was signed by Bayern Munich and, in the following season, won one Intercontinental Cup, two Bundesliga, four German cups, two German League cups, and the German Super Cup.
In 2007, he signed for Chelsea, scoring on debut and achieving second runner-up in the Premier League. He became the top scorer for the UEFA Championship League.
- Bayern Munich hired him again in 2012.
- He proceeded to win the UEFA Championship League, the FIFA Club World Cup, the European Super Cup, the DFL-Supercup, three Bundesliga, and two DFB Pokal
- He became a foreigner who held many titles in the history of Bayern Munich – 18.
He is a Peruvian football player with the most goals scored and games played in the history of Europe and German soccer. He is the sixth-highest scorer in the Bundesliga, having scored 197 goals.
Incredibly he became one of the oldest footballers to score a goal in the Bundesliga as he was over 40 years old. Pizarro is an iconic figure among his fans, who describe him as a true living legend.
