The international window is over, as Premier League football returns this weekend, but the two-week break had supporters reminiscing.
From 2004 to 2016, Barclays was the Premier League's sponsor.
And in a trend that has taken over social media, "Barclaysmen" have been picked out as players synonymous with that 12-year period.
Here, we take a deep dive into Opta data to find out which players were the actual hallmarks of the Barclays Premier League.
410 - Gareth Barry led the way with 410 matches played for Aston Villa, Manchester City and Everton between 2004 and 2016 – he is, of course, also the Premier League's all-time record holder for appearances too, with a whopping 653 to his name.
James Milner is set to overtake Barry this season, though, and 369 of his 637 matches came in this 12-year span.
178 - Bursting onto the scene as a 16-year-old, Wayne Rooney would go on to become one of the greatest goalscorers the division has ever seen.
Starting his career with Everton, Rooney joined Manchester United in 2004, where he won five league titles during the Barclays era.
In that 12-year span, no player scored more goals than the mercurial forward, who netted 178 times, with his former United club-mate Robin van Persie (144) second, ahead of Chelsea's Frank Lampard (132).
Rooney wasn't just a goalscorer. He also provided 88 assists in this era, taking his total goal contributions tally to 266, 54 more than the next-best, Lampard (212).
1,430 - Naturally, being the top goalscorer from 2004 and 2016, Rooney also tops the rankings for the most shots taken during that period, with 1,430.
Rooney's most prolific season came during the 2011-12 campaign, when he netted 27 Premier League goals, but it wasn't enough to stop rivals Manchester City from lifting their first top-flight title since 1968.
Midfielder Lampard (1,118) is next on the list for shots, with Van Persie (963), Jermain Defoe (939) and Steven Gerrard (919) next.
95 - What about creativity?
When it comes to assists, there were no better in this time span than Cesc Fabregas, who laid on 95 goals across spells at Arsenal and Chelsea.
Interestingly, though, Gerrard (767) led the way for chances created, with Lampard (759) also coming in ahead of Fabregas, though it is worth noting the Spaniard spent time away from the Premier League after leaving Arsenal for Barcelona.
43 - When it comes to headed goals, you won't be surprised to see that six-foot-seven-inch Peter Crouch led the way, with 43.
Crouch represented Aston Villa, Southampton, Liverpool, Portsmouth, Spurs and Stoke during the Barclays era, becoming well-known for his lanky frame and ability in the air.
He 'heads' the list by 12 goals to former Everton forward Tim Cahill, who scored 31 goals with his head despite being three inches under six foot.
30 - Having come close to having the most goals in the Barclays era, Lampard tops the list for the most goals scored from outside the box across its 12-year timeframe.
Known for his incredible knack of being in the right place at the right time, Lampard's ability both in and outside the box made him one of the deadliest midfielders the division has ever seen.
Strikes against Norwich City, Fulham and away at Goodison Park are standouts, with the Englishman often finding the back of the net when pulling back his cultured right foot.
11 - While James Ward-Prowse leads the way for the most free-kick goals scored in the Premier League, Sebastian Larsson might just be the true embodiment of a Barclaysman.
The former Arsenal, Birmingham City and Sunderland midfielder scored 11 direct free-kick goals between 2004-05 and 2015-16, one more than five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo and Morten Gamst Pederson, who must be another candidate for the ultimate Barclaysman.
That being said, who had the most direct free-kick shots? It wasn't any of the above. Instead, it was Lampard, who tried his luck 173 times, scoring on nine occasions.
486 - Charles N'Zogbia. Remember him?
A star for Wigan Athletic, N'Zogbia completed 486 dribbles during his time in the division. Surprisingly, Glen Johnson, a full-back, was the next best with 481, ahead of Eden Hazard (463).
Remarkably, though, Ronaldo comes in at fifth, and that is despite only playing in five of the Barclays seasons. He completed 449 dribbles in total, an average of 2.7 per game.
1,107 - Jussi Jaaskelainen, the baby-faced Finn, made 1,107 saves in the Barclays era, which puts him ahead of Mark Schwarzer (1,018) and Tim Howard (1,014).
Petr Cech, meanwhile, was the goalkeeper to keep the most clean sheets (178).
48 - Now time for the unlucky statistics during the Barclays era. During his spells with Arsenal and Man United, no one struck the woodwork more than Robin van Persie.
Despite netting 144 goals in his 280 Premier League appearances, ranking 14th on the all-time list, the Dutchman could have been among the top 10 scorers to play in the division had it not been for the crossbar and posts.
Van Persie also squandered the most big chances (80), though Sergio Aguero (78) was hot on his heels.
910- Out on his own by three, former Aston Villa, Man City and QPR defender Richard Dunne is the unfortunate man to have scored the most own goals between 2001-02 and 2012-13, with 10.
Across his time in the Premier League, the Republic of Ireland did manage to score more goals at the right end, finishing his career in 2015 with 11 top-flight strikes.
Shaw, Layzell on target as Man City stun holders Barcelona in Women's Champions League
Naomi Layzell enjoyed a dream Women's Champions League debut as her goal and assist helped Manchester City stun holders Barcelona 2-0 on Wednesday.
Layzell was playing her football in the Women's Super League last season with relegated Bristol City, but was the star of the show at the Joie Stadium.
City were making their first appearance in the competition since falling to a 4-2 quarter-final loss to the Catalan side in March 2021, and exacted their revenge with a plucky display.
The hosts, however, almost found themselves a goal behind with just three minutes on the clock when Caroline Hansen took aim and saw her effort cannon off the post, shortly before Lauren Hemp struck the woodwork with a strike of her own.
City grew into the contest and almost got the goal their performance merited in the 35th minute when Vivianne Miedema teed up Khadija Shaw, only to see her effort saved by Cata Coll.
But from the resulting corner, Gareth Taylor's side got their noses in front as Miedema brilliantly headed the ball from the back post and back into the danger area, with Layzell sliding in to mark her Champions League debut with a goal.
Barcelona had only failed to score once in their past 79 games heading into the encounter, and improved after the interval in their search for an equaliser.
Aitana Bonmati forced Ayaka Yamashita into making a smart save down to her right, with substitute Claudia Pina going close from distance as City were forced to withstand a relentless wave of pressure from the defending champions.
But the hosts landed a sucker punch in the 77th minute on the counter, with Layzell turning provider for Shaw, with the striker riding the challenge of Patri Guijarro before rounding Coll to seal a memorable triumph for City.
The Citizens ended the contest with an expected goals (xG) total of 1.68 compared to Barca's 1.5, despite having four fewer shots than their opponents.
Gareth Taylor's side sit level on points with Hammarby in Group D, after the Swedish side beat Austria's St. Polten 2-0 earlier on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, in Group C, Juventus edged out Norwegian side Valerenga to kickstart their campaign with a victory at the Intility Arena.
Sofia Cantore's 29th minute strike proved to be the difference, with the Italian curling a fine right-footed effort beyond the grasp of Tove Enblom against the run of play.
Juventus continued to struggle throughout the contest, with Valerenga registering 25 shots, with six of those on target, ending with an xG total of 2.2.
Man United's Diallo withdraws from Ivory Coast squad
Manchester United's Amad Diallo has withdrawn from the Ivory Coast's Africa Cup of Nations qualifying double-header against Sierra Leone due to illness.
Diallo, who has made six appearances for his country, has since returned to Manchester ahead of the Red Devils' upcoming Premier League fixture against Brentford.
The 22-year-old earned his first cap for the Elephants in 2021, and was recalled to Emerse Fae's group after a 15-month absence in June for wins over Zambia and Chad.
Ivory Coast know that two wins against the Leone Stars will seal their progression to the tournament, which takes place in Morocco at the end of next year.
A statement by the Elephants read, “The Ivorian Football Federation informs the Press and the public that the player, Amad DIALLO, arrived in group on Monday October 7, 2024, as part of the 3rd and 4th Days of the CAN qualifiers Morocco 2025, is declared forfeit for health reasons.”
Diallo is the latest player within Erik ten Hag's ranks to withdraw from international duty with their respective nations.
Argentina's Alejandro Garnacho, England's Kobbie Mainoo and Morocco's Noussair Mazraoui are the other players left out as a precaution.
Diallo has made 10 appearances for United this season in all competitions, scoring once in his side's 2-1 defeat to Brighton at the start of the 2024-25 campaign.
However, he has yet to fully nail down a starting berth, with Ten Hag so far rotating his wide options with Garnacho and Marcus Rashford.
Daniel Maldini the missing piece to Italy puzzle, believes Spalletti
Italy head coach Luciano Spalletti believes Daniel Maldini has been the creative spark the national side has been lacking ahead of their Nations League clash with Belgium.
Maldini could follow in the footsteps of his father, Paolo, and grandfather Cesare, both former Italy captains, should he represent the Azzurri at the Stadio Olimpico on Thursday.
The 22-year-old came through the ranks at Milan, managing 24 appearances in all competitions and scoring once, but spent three seasons out on loan from 2022 to 2024.
Maldini spent the second half of last season on loan with Monza before making his move permanent in July, netting five goals in 19 outings to help Raffaele Palladino's side to a 12th place finish in Serie A.
Now under the guidance of Alessandro Nesta, Maldini has begun to flourish, completing more dribbles (12) than any of his team-mates in the league so far.
The young Italian was one of four players given their senior call-up by Spalletti for their Nations League fixtures against Belgium and Israel, with the Monza forward replacing Lazio's Matteo Zaccagni.
And Spalletti is confident Maldini can make an impact, saying: "He is the (kind of) player we were missing."
Italy come into the contest off the back of an impressive opening to their Nations League A2 group, beating Israel and France last month.
After a disappointing Euro 2024 campaign that saw them lose to Switzerland in the round of 16, Spalletti insisted that their encounter against Belgium is crucial to their development.
"We will immediately become a great team in every match where we will be able to give the best of ourselves," Spalletti said.
"It is a crucial match for our future."
Spalletti, however, has his eyes set on the 2026 World Cup, a tournament the Azzurri have won on four occasions throughout their history.
But Italy failed to qualify for the 2018 and 2022 editions of the competition, but have since won the European Championships against England in 2021 under Roberto Mancini.
While Spalletti signified the importance of the World Cup's influence on the Azzurri's illustrious history, he said his players must focus on each game as it comes.
"It is a tournament that has determined our history, it has made many people happy," Spalletti concluded.
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