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Best right backs of all time
The 25 greatest right backs in football history, ranked by a composite of career goals, assists and appearances.
| # | Player | Position | Citizenship | Status | Career goals | Assists | Apps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | James Tavernier | Defender - Right-Back | England | Rangers FC | 142 | 155 | 671 |
| 2 | Dani Alves | Defender - Right-Back | Brazil Spain | Retired | 63 | 188 | 884 |
| 3 | Ashley Young | Defender - Right-Back | England Jamaica | Ipswich Town | 86 | 109 | 755 |
| 4 | Espen Ruud | Defender - Right-Back | Norway | Retired | 79 | 121 | 633 |
| 5 | Ben Davies | Defender - Right-Back | Wales England | Retired | 91 | 96 | 571 |
| 6 | Simon Hedlund | Defender - Right-Back | Sweden | IF Elfsborg | 87 | 95 | 466 |
| 7 | Jesús Navas | Defender - Right-Back | Spain | Retired | 47 | 157 | 888 |
| 8 | Kevin Großkreutz | Defender - Right-Back | Germany | SV Wacker Obercastrop | 90 | 60 | 596 |
| 9 | Johan Larsson | Defender - Right-Back | Sweden | IF Elfsborg | 70 | 95 | 547 |
| 10 | Darijo Srna | Defender - Right-Back | Croatia | Retired | 50 | 133 | 575 |
| 11 | Patrick Göbel | Defender - Right-Back | Germany | Borussia Dortmund II | 63 | 98 | 511 |
| 12 | Jordan Bowery | Defender - Right-Back | St. Kitts & Nevis England | Mansfield Town | 84 | 45 | 616 |
| 13 | Pawel Wszolek | Defender - Right-Back | Poland | Legia Warszawa | 65 | 83 | 461 |
| 14 | Lucas Vázquez | Defender - Right-Back | Spain | Bayer 04 Leverkusen | 57 | 93 | 534 |
| 15 | Christopher Trimmel | Defender - Right-Back | Austria | 1.FC Union Berlin | 49 | 94 | 609 |
| 16 | Mitchell Weiser | Defender - Right-Back | Germany Algeria | SV Werder Bremen | 52 | 92 | 423 |
| 17 | Alessandro Florenzi | Defender - Right-Back | Italy | Retired | 75 | 43 | 525 |
| 18 | Benjamin Boltze | Defender - Right-Back | Germany | Kickers 94 Markkleeberg | 62 | 66 | 528 |
| 19 | Lars Christopher Vilsvik | Defender - Right-Back | Norway Germany | Strømsgodset IF | 51 | 83 | 538 |
| 20 | Lukasz Piszczek | Defender - Right-Back | Poland | LKS Goczalkowice-Zdroj | 50 | 82 | 627 |
| 21 | Sebastian Stolze | Defender - Right-Back | Germany | SSV Jahn Regensburg | 70 | 45 | 407 |
| 22 | Roberto Hilbert | Defender - Right-Back | Germany | Retired | 62 | 59 | 480 |
| 23 | Zoran Kvrzic | Defender - Right-Back | Bosnia-Herzegovina Croatia | FK Borac Banja Luka | 51 | 77 | 507 |
| 24 | Javier Aquino | Defender - Right-Back | Mexico | Tigres UANL | 45 | 84 | 648 |
| 25 | Emil Salomonsson | Defender - Right-Back | Sweden | Retired | 53 | 70 | 541 |
| 26 | Andreas Wiegel | Defender - Right-Back | Germany | Sportfreunde Lotte | 71 | 37 | 419 |
| 27 | Ali Tandoğan | Defender - Right-Back | Türkiye | Retired | 39 | 97 | 503 |
| 28 | Fait-Florian Banser | Defender - Right-Back | Germany | Retired | 77 | 26 | 248 |
| 29 | Brad Potts | Defender - Right-Back | England | Preston North End | 61 | 50 | 521 |
| 30 | Achraf Hakimi | Defender - Right-Back | Morocco Spain | Paris Saint-Germain | 50 | 74 | 358 |
| 31 | Gergő Lovrencsics | Defender - Right-Back | Hungary | Retired | 43 | 85 | 475 |
| 32 | Defender - Right-Back | Norway | FK Sparta Sarpsborg | 68 | 34 | 507 | |
| 33 | Reinhold Ranftl | Defender - Right-Back | Austria | Austria Vienna | 52 | 64 | 583 |
| 34 | Andro Svrljuga | Defender - Right-Back | Croatia | NK Opatija | 43 | 81 | 463 |
| 35 | Daniel Brosinski | Defender - Right-Back | Germany | FV Fortuna Kirchfeld | 52 | 62 | 481 |
| 36 | Andreas Hölzl | Defender - Right-Back | Austria | Retired | 56 | 53 | 449 |
| 37 | Przemyslaw Frankowski | Defender - Right-Back | Poland | Stade Rennais FC | 61 | 43 | 421 |
| 38 | Paul Milde | Defender - Right-Back | Germany | Dynamo Dresden II | 44 | 79 | 328 |
| 39 | Jonathan Clauss | Defender - Right-Back | France | OGC Nice | 45 | 74 | 400 |
| 40 | Felix Passlack | Defender - Right-Back | Germany | VfL Bochum | 54 | 59 | 244 |
| 41 | Branislav Ivanovic | Defender - Right-Back | Serbia | Retired | 55 | 48 | 600 |
| 42 | João Pedro | Defender - Right-Back | Portugal | FC Pampilhosa | 48 | 62 | 556 |
| 43 | Loïc Nego | Defender - Right-Back | Hungary France | Le Havre AC | 49 | 61 | 465 |
| 44 | Christian Panucci | Defender - Right-Back | Italy | Retired | 59 | 36 | 659 |
| 45 | Michael Lang | Defender - Right-Back | Switzerland | Retired | 57 | 42 | 527 |
| 46 | Ahmed Fathi | Defender - Right-Back | Egypt | Retired | 38 | 76 | 592 |
| 47 | Ahmet Cebe | Defender - Right-Back | Germany | Retired | 58 | 38 | 475 |
| 48 | Numa Lavanchy | Defender - Right-Back | Switzerland | FC Sion | 53 | 47 | 490 |
| 49 | Christian Maggio | Defender - Right-Back | Italy | Retired | 49 | 52 | 596 |
| 50 | Óscar de Marcos | Defender - Right-Back | Spain | Retired | 42 | 66 | 594 |
How the ranking works
We rank each player by a composite score: career_goals × 4 + career_assists × 2 + career_matches × 0.05. This rewards finishers, creative players and longevity in equal measure — without depending on subjective awards or trophies. The list filters by position keyword so wingers, full-backs and centre-backs each get their own ranking.
James Tavernier
Dani Alves
Ashley Young
Espen Ruud
Ben Davies
Simon Hedlund
Jesús Navas
Kevin Großkreutz
Johan Larsson
Darijo Srna
Patrick Göbel
Jordan Bowery
Pawel Wszolek
Lucas Vázquez
Christopher Trimmel
Mitchell Weiser
Alessandro Florenzi
Benjamin Boltze
Lars Christopher Vilsvik
Lukasz Piszczek
Sebastian Stolze
Roberto Hilbert
Zoran Kvrzic
Javier Aquino
Emil Salomonsson
Andreas Wiegel
Ali Tandoğan
Fait-Florian Banser
Brad Potts
Achraf Hakimi
Gergő Lovrencsics
Reinhold Ranftl
Andro Svrljuga
Daniel Brosinski
Andreas Hölzl
Przemyslaw Frankowski
Paul Milde
Jonathan Clauss
Felix Passlack
Branislav Ivanovic
João Pedro
Loïc Nego
Christian Panucci
Michael Lang
Ahmed Fathi
Ahmet Cebe
Numa Lavanchy
Christian Maggio
Óscar de Marcos