West Ham United and Manchester City are two clubs with similarities. Obviously, City have the financial backing from Abu Dhabi, which has catapulted them to tremendous success in the last 15 years. However, the two clubs are historically not the most successful in their own cities.
Both clubs also moved into new stadiums following a major sporting event in the country. City moved to the City of Manchester Stadium, which is now known as the Etihad Stadium. This ground was built for the 2002 Commonwealth Games. As for West Ham, they moved to the London Stadium in 2016, which was the ground built for the 2012 Olympic Games.
City has made its home into a soccer stadium, while West Ham has not. Due to the London Stadium being built for athletics, it has a running track, whilst it is covered up, supporters are still far away from the action. This has led to very poor atmospheres at the ground, as supporters miss the days of Upton Park.
West Ham and City have also had many notable players represent both teams. Here are the top five.
The top five West Ham and Man City players
5. Stuart Pearce
Stuart Pearce won Hammer of the Year at West Ham at the age of 39 years old. He would play 48 times for the Hammers before finishing his playing career with Man City. With City, he won the 2001/02 First Division.
After retiring, Pearce worked in management, which included a spell in charge of City. He also worked as David Moyes' assistant at West Ham. Pearce is now a popular voice on talkSPORT.
4. Trevor Sinclair
Trevor Sinclair will always be remembered at West Ham for putting in the cross that led to Paolo Di Canio's scissor-kick goal against Wimbledon. He helped the Hammers finish eighth in the Premier League during the 1997/98 season. Sinclair was also instrumental during the 1999 Intertoto Cup victory, where he scored in the final against Metz.
When West Ham were relegated at the end of the 2002/03 season, Sinclair moved to Man City. He would play 98 times for City before playing for Cardiff City, Lancaster City, and Squires Gate. Sinclair also coached Lancaster. He worked in the media after retiring, but has featured just once on talkSPORT since a controversial post on social media following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
3. Pablo Zabaleta
Pablo Zabaleta was a player who oversaw their rise to the top of English soccer. He joined the club from Espanyol just one day before the Abu Dhabi United Group took over. The right-back helped City win their first ever Premier League title, where he scored on that dramatic final day of the 2011/12 season against Queens Park Rangers.
Zabaleta went on to play 333 times for City, won two Premier League titles, two EFL Cups, and the FA Cup. He then joined West Ham, where he was reunited with his former boss at City, Manuel Pellegrini. He would play 80 times for the Hammers before retiring. The Argentine is now the assistant to Sylvinho with Albania.
2. Frank Lampard
Frank Lampard is, of course, most remembered for his time with Chelsea. However, he started his career at West Ham, which was the team his father played for. Frank Lampard Snr was also a coach alongside the player's uncle, Harry Redknapp, when he broke into the Hammers lineup. This led to accusations of nepotism.
Lampard helped West Ham win the Intertoto Cup, where he also scored in the final against Metz. He would play 187 times for the Hammers before having tremendous success with Chelsea. After leaving Stamford Bridge, he had a year with City, where he even scored against Chelsea. He then played for New York City FC before going into management. Lampard is on course to guide Coventry City back to the Premier League.
1. Carlos Tevez
West Ham needs a player like Carlos Tevez in their current predicament. The Argentine was influential in guiding the Hammers to safety during the 2006/07 season. He scored seven goals with four assists in 29 games for West Ham. This included a dramatic final-day winner against Manchester United to keep the Hammers in the Premier League.
Tevez then joined United before a controversial move to their local rivals, Man City. He helped City win the 2011/12 Premier League title despite a mid-season strike after a fall-out with Roberto Mancini. In total for City, he found the back of the net 73 times, with 33 assists in 148 matches.
The striker would later play for Juventus, Shanghai Shenhua, and Boca Juniors. After retiring, he surprisingly went into management. He has coached back in Argentina with Rosario Central and Independiente; he is now in charge of Talleres.