Hungary: Premier League Nations
The next destination of our alphabetical world tour is Hungary. A former giant of world football, Hungary have qualified for just one major tournament since 1986. According to the Premier League website, 10 players have represented Hungary in the Premier League.
First Player – István Kozma (Liverpool; 1992-93)
Players with just one Premier League appearance are seldom remembered by anyone but the most hardcore fans of a club, but sometimes a player is so bad that they become the stuff of legend.
It is harsh to describe any professional footballer as bad, especially since he won 40 caps for his country, but Kozma has the ignominious honour of being voted as Liverpool’s worst ever central midfielder.
Liverpool fans will most likely not recall Kozma’s 10-minute cameo against Wimbledon in 1992 but will feel anguish when they hear Graeme Souness’s account of turning down the opportunity to sign Eric Cantona in the same transfer window that he brought Kozma to Merseyside.
Records
- Most appearances – Zoltán Gera (172)
- First appearance – István Kozma (LIVERPOOL 2-3 Wimbledon, September 26th 1992)
- Most goals – Zoltán Gera (17)
- First goal – Zoltán Gera (WEST BROM 1-1 Spurs, August 24th 2004)
Current/Most Recent Players
No Hungarian has played in the Premier League since 2015/16 when backup goalkeeper Ádám Bogdán made two appearances for Liverpool. Bogdán remained with the Reds until 2019 but made no further appearances.
Ákos Buszáky, Zoltán Gera and the late Márton Fülöp also appeared in the 2010s, with every other Hungarian making their Premier League appearances during the 2000s.
Trivia
- Only three of the 10 Hungarian Premier League players have scored a Premier League goal. Of every nation to have had 10 or more Premier League players, only Poland has a lower percentage of players to have scored (18%).
- Former Crystal Palace and Aston Villa goalkeeper Gábor Király is the joint most capped Hungarian of all time.
- Four of the 10 players to represent Hungary in the Premier League were goalkeepers.