Colombian football has a reputation for producing skillful and flamboyant players. They may not be the most successful country on the world stage, but they are certainly entertaining.
A good selection of Colombian internationals have made their mark on the English Premier League, and here are the best of them.
How many Colombians have won the Premier League?
At the end of the 2022/23 English domestic season, only one Colombian player had won the English Premier League. Juan Cuadrado joined Chelsea from Fiorentina in 2015, and the winger was part of the squad that won the league at the end of the 2014/15 campaign.
Greatest Colombian Players in the EPL History
Luis Díaz
Winger Luis Diaz signed for Liverpool from Porto in 2022, and he has become an important figure in the Reds’ squad. The Colombian international has skill and pace in abundance, and he also scores his fair share of goals.
Diaz provided an assist in his first game for the Reds and has continued to contribute positively, supporting the front players. His brief time at Anfield has already been rewarded with silverware. He’s won three trophies, including the FA Cup in 2022, and Luis Diaz will be aiming to become the next Colombian player to win the Premier League.
Juan Pablo Angel
An attacking player with great flair, Juan Pablo Angel gave exceptional service to Aston Villa over six years. The Colombian was signed from River Plate in 2001, and spent the next six seasons at Villa Park.
Angel’s scoring ratio at River Plate dipped during his time in England, but he made important scoring contributions as Aston Villa maintained their Premier League status. In fact, his 62 games across all competitions make Juan Pablo Angel, Villa’s third highest scorer of the EPL era.
Davinson Sanchez
Tottenham Hotspur broke their transfer record when they signed centre half Davinson Sanchez from Ajax in 2017. It took the player a little while to establish himself in the first team, but he developed into a pacy defender who was calm on the ball.
Sanchez was part of an entertaining Spurs side under Mauricio Pochettino that didn’t earn the trophies they deserved. With the club signing new centre backs in 2023, Davinson Sanchez left for Galatasaray, but there’s still time for an EPL return.
Faustino Asprilla
An exciting attacker, Faustino Asprilla was arguably the most entertaining Colombian player to cross into English football. He was signed by Newcastle United from Parma in 1996, and became part of a Magpies side that challenged for major honours.
Asprilla made an assist on his Newcastle debut, and scored vital goals, but his inconsistency meant that he often started games from the substitutes’ bench. He returned to Parma in 1998 after two memorable and eventful campaigns in the Premier League.
Yerry Mina
As part of an international defensive pairing with Davinson Sanchez, Yerry Mina was scouted by English clubs, and Everton secured the player’s signature from Barcelona in 2018. He slotted in at centre back, and could be a reliable figure who scored useful goals from set pieces.
Over five seasons at Goodison Park, Yerry Mina was another Colombian player who struggled with inconsistency, and he was sold to Fiorentina in 2023.
Hámilton Ricard
A journeyman striker who featured for 16 clubs across a long career, Hamilton Ricard played in the Premier League for Middlesbrough. Like Faustino Asprilla, he had immense talent, but couldn’t always deliver the consistency to back it up.
Ricard stayed at Middlesbrough for five seasons. He played in 115 games, scoring 33 goals.
Hugo Rodallega
Colombian international winger Hugo Rodallega played for two English clubs in his career. He arrived at Wigan Athletic from Necaxa in 2009, and appeared regularly for the first team for the next four seasons.
He was a gifted attacking player with an eye for goal, and his displays alerted Fulham who signed Rodallega in 2012. In his seven years in English football, Hugo Rodallega played 205 games, scoring 44 goals.
Jefferson Lerma
Along with Luis Diaz, Jefferson Lerma is another Colombian player still active in the Premier League at the start of 2024. He initially played in England with Bournemouth, after joining the Cherries from Levante in 2018.
A solid central midfielder, Lerma stayed loyal to Bournemouth after they dropped out of the Premier League, and he was part of the squad that won promotion back to the top flight in 2022. He’s since been transferred to Crystal Palace, where fans look forward to seeing this talented Colombian progress.
Luis Sinisterra
Taking over from Jefferson Lerma at Bournemouth is his fellow Colombian Luis Sinisterra. The attacking midfielder is currently on loan at the Cherries after joining on a temporary deal from Leeds United in 2023.
The attacking midfielder joined Leeds from Feyenoord in 2022. He enjoyed a solid first season in English football, scoring five league goals, but he couldn’t prevent his side from being relegated. A player of Luis Sinisterra’s talent deserves to be playing in the top flight, and it will be fascinating to see his career develop at Bournemouth.
James Rodriguez
Everton pulled off a major transfer coup when they signed attacking midfielder James Rodriguez from Real Madrid in 2020. With the Colombian national team, he’d won the Golden Boot at the 2014 World Cup as the tournament’s leading scorer.
Rodriguez subsequently won major honours with Real, and he’s arguably the best Colombian player to have featured in the EPL. Sadly, his stay in England was brief, as James Rodriguez played just 23 games for Everton before moving to Qatar.
Final Thoughts
While Juan Cuadrado is the only Colombian player to have won the Premier League so far, his contributions were minimal, so we didn’t include him on this list. Instead, we’ve covered some of the best that the country has produced since the start of the Premier League era.
There are always questions to answer, and we wonder who will be the next Colombian player to win the Premier League. Even when they don’t win honours, these players entertain us, and we wait to see who will be next to join the EPL.
