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Over the past two decades Premier League clubs have increasingly turned to overseas transfers to bolster their squad. It therefore seems counter intuitive that there would be an influx of non-league players making it to the top level.Yet, this is exactly what has happened.Despite Premier League clubs casting their talent nets wider than ever before, there have still been plenty of players slipping through the cracks and entering the character-building world of part-time football.Here are some of the lucky few who managed to bounce back from this disappointment to return to the summit of English football, with Luton Town's Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu making history as he becomes the first player to feature for the same club at non-league and Premier League level.

From Jamie Vardy to Chris Smalling - The non-league stars who rose to Premier League stardom as Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu makes history for Luton Town

Joe Aribo, who sealed a £6 million move to Southampton in summer of 2022, has been one of the latest non-league to Premier League success stories.In a previous life Aribo lined up for Staines Town in the Isthmian League Premier Division. Incredibly, the midfielder was never picked up by a professional academy in his youth, but his one season for Staines - who have since sadly gone out of business - was enough to convince Charlton to hand him a one-year deal following a successful trial.A full debut followed over 12 months later in 2016 with Aribo soon establishing himself as a regular starter and fan favourite.A move to Rangers in 2019 would follow, with the Nigeria international falling narrowly short in the 2022 Europa League final - his last action before signing for Saints.<center><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Settling in nicely, <a href="https://twitter.com/J_Aribo19?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@J_Aribo19</a> 🤯 <a href="https://t.co/DxWseOaieL">pic.twitter.com/DxWseOaieL</a>— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) <a href="https://twitter.com/SouthamptonFC/status/1553430134891446273?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 30, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Joe Aribo

Michail Antonio has had a pretty strange career, evolving into one of the most effective strikers in the Premier League after spending significant time shoehorned in at right-back. This is not the only distinguishing feature of his playing career either.The West Ham icon's footballing education actually came at Tooting &amp; Mitcham United, located a stone's throw from his home stomping ground of Wandsworth.After a handful of senior appearances in non-league Antonio was snapped up by Reading in October 2008, beginning a long, winding road to the Premier League.A string of loan moves and sporadic appearances for the Royals followed, before successive spells at Sheffield Wednesday and Nottingham Forest solidified Antonio's reputation.West Ham took a chance on him in 2015 and the rest, as they say, is history.

Michail Antonio

Every time Wolves play on TV you can feel the painful restraint the lead commentator is exercising to avoid mentioning Max Kilman's futsal past. Unfortunately, they are rarely successful in avoiding bringing up the fact that he has 25 England caps in that form of football.A less-discussed aspect of Kilman's pre-Wanderers career is the time he spent in the lower reaches of the game.Following his release from Gillingham, the defender joined Welling United and then Maidenhead United, making 33 appearances for the latter and helping the Magpies finish above non-league sleeping giants Leyton Orient and Hartlepool in the National League.He played predominantly as a left-back during that campaign but has moved into Wolves' back three seamlessly in recent seasons. Kilman is genuinely one of the most technically proficient defenders in England with rumours linking him with a top-six move having been rife.

Max Kilman

From Maidstone to the Eternal City, Chris Smalling has had quite the footballing journey.After being released by Millwall, Smalling rocked up at the Gallagher Stadium in Kent and after just a few appearances clubs were queueing up to offer him a professional contract.Amid strong interest from Middlesbrough, the centre-back was eventually snapped up by Fulham. Soon enough he had established himself in the first team and Manchester United came calling.Despite catching some unfair criticism from fans at times, Smalling went on to win every domestic honour available to him, including a pair of Premier League titles, and also lifted the Europa League in 2017.After falling down the pecking order at United, Smalling has gone on to rebuild his career at Roma, tasting continental success in the form of Europa Conference League glory in 2022. His form in Italy has even led to calls for him to add to his 31 England caps.<center><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Chris Smalling's journey hasn't received anywhere near the coverage nor credit it deserves. Maidstone United ➡️ Fulham ➡️ Manchester United &amp; England 👏🏻👏🏻 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MUFC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MUFC</a> <a href="https://t.co/wRBaR2MLhp">pic.twitter.com/wRBaR2MLhp</a>— RedReveal (@RedReveal) <a href="https://twitter.com/RedReveal/status/1055883896963895298?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Chris Smalling

Although he would go on to captain Wales during their finest hour at Euro 2016, Ashley Williams could have dropped out of the game altogether after being rejected by West Brom as a youngster. Thankfully, Hednesford Town offered him a lifeline.Williams would go on to spend two seasons at the Staffordshire-based club before a route back into the professional ranks presented itself. Five years at Stockport followed before the defender joined Swansea City - a move that would be the making of him.Williams was a vital part of the team who registered two promotions in four seasons to reach the Premier League, and once they made it to the top flight they entertained neutrals with their free-flowing possession style.Following his Euro 2016 exploits, his career would wind down with less memorable spells at Everton, Stoke and Bristol City.<center><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">A REMINDER: Ashley Williams is one of the few who has made it right the way up from non league. Here he is at Hednesford Town 👌 <a href="https://t.co/tY8MOSbUoy">pic.twitter.com/tY8MOSbUoy</a>— Football Remind ⚽️ (@FootballRemind) <a href="https://twitter.com/FootballRemind/status/921123232878645251?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Ashley Williams

<a href="https://www.goal.com/en-gb/lists/mings-aubameyang-premier-league-players-stripped-captaincy/blt436e79a1c43b1247" target="_blank">Being publicly thrown under the bus by Steven Gerrard</a> is not the first time that Tyrone Mings had to deal with adversity in his footballing career.Following his release from Southampton as a teenager, Mings had trials with Bristol Rovers, Swindon Town, Cardiff City and Portsmouth, before eventually electing for an unconventional option - a two-year football scholarship at Millfield School in Somerset.This was followed by a move to nearby non-league side Yate Town, where he combined his football career with working as a mortgage advisor. After an extremely busy season Mings considered sticking to his day job, but a move to hometown club Chippenham reignited his love for the game.Not only that, his performances also earned a trial at Ipswich, alongside a string of released pros."They’d turned up in a Mercedes and wearing designer gear. I’d turned up with my Chippenham Town kit bag. They must have been thinking: ‘Who on earth is that?’” he recalled in an interview with the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/dec/18/tyrone-mings-ipswich" target="_blank">Guardian</a>.Despite arriving in humble circumstances, Mings impressed then-manager Mick McCarthy, who offered him his first professional deal the same day. Since then Mings has established himself in the England squad and rose to become Aston Villa captain, until Gerrard stripped him of the armband of course.

Tyrone Mings

Steve Finnan is perhaps best known as the answer to an excellent quiz question: 'who is the only player to have played in the World Cup, Champions League, UEFA Cup, Intertoto Cup, all four levels of English league football and the Conference?'Finnan's story began with his release from Wimbledon, with the Limerick-born defender landing at Welling United, where he spent two years. This began a topsy-turvy ascent up the pyramid which saw him take in spells at Birmingham, Notts County and Fulham.Then came a life-altering switch to Liverpool where he established himself as a cult hero due to his unflinching consistency at full-back.After two Champions League finals, Finnan made the surprising switch to Espanyol before seeing out his storied career at another seaside destination, Portsmouth.Since retirement, the defender has lived a enigmatic existence. He even missed a 10-year reunion of Liverpool's 2005 Champions League-winning team because he was travelling around Europe.

Steve Finnan

The quintessential non-league to Premier League legend, it is only a matter of time until Jamie Vardy's incredible life story inspires a Hollywood blockbuster - particularly <a href="https://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/rebekah-vardy-loses-libel-battle-coleen-rooney-wagath-christie-trial/bltf948306ff7e47480" target="_blank">in the wake of the Wagatha Christie saga</a>.The details of Vardy's story are genuinely staggering. From working in a factory that made leg splints and leaving away games early as he was subject to an electronic-tag-enforced curfew, to smashing records and lifting the Premier League title just a few years later.After being released by boyhood club Sheffield Wednesday, he joined the wonderfully-named Stocksbridge Park Steels where he earned a whopping £30 a week.Prolific spells at Halifax and Fleetwood followed before Leicester made Vardy the most expensive non-league player in history ahead of the 2012-13 Championship season. It took him a while to get going, so much so that he has admitted to considering packing football in and becoming a rep in Ibiza.Thankfully for Leicester fans, he was convinced to stay and he went on to play a defining role in one of the greatest sporting stories ever told.

Jamie Vardy

Younger readers may know Jimmy Bullard as the loud, floppy-haired bloke off the telly, but in his day the midfielder was a terrific player.Blessed with boundless energy and set-piece delivery to die for, Bullard racked up a total of 90 Premier League appearances for Wigan, Fulham and Hull City between 2005 and 2010.However, the bright lights of the top flight would have seemed a million miles away when 'The Bulldog' was lining up for the likes of Corinthian, Dartford and Gravesend &amp; Northfleet in his teens.After proving himself outside of the EFL, West Ham - who had released him previously - offered him a route back into the professional game in 1999 and Bullard never looked back.Despite the highs he would go on to reach, he never lost that shabby, rough-around-the-edges charm synonymous with the English lower leagues.

Jimmy Bullard

One of the many reasons that national treasure Ian Wright is so universally adored is that he overcame adversity to rise to the very top of his profession.After failing to earn a youth contract at a pro club, Wright instead came through the amateur ranks. A short time after a spell in prison for failing to pay a fine related to driving without car tax, he was snapped up by Greenwich Borough, where he signed a very generous £30 per week contract.It did not take long after that for Crystal Palace to come calling, with 90 league goals in six years leading to a dream move to Arsenal.Wright would go on to establish himself as a club legend in north London, famously netting a hat-trick to become their all-time record scorer in 1997. He would later be bettered by some guy called Thierry Henry, but he remains a cultural icon that everyone in Britain would love to have a drink with.

Ian Wright

Whether he was playing in front of 80,000 at Old Trafford or 80 at the Middlesex Stadium - home to Hillingdon Borough - Yannick Bolasie always ensured the crowd got their money's worth.Few players in recent memory have a box of tricks as varied as Bolasie, and it is little surprise that he is fondly remembered at nearly every club he rocked up at during his nomadic career. His was not a conventional route to the top, though.Beginning his career with Rushden &amp; Diamonds, Bolasie made a brief pit stop at Hillingdon before jetting off to Malta with Floriana. Plymouth Argyle offered to take him back to England and coming-of-age loan spells back at Rushden, and then Barnet, toughened him up.Bolasie really began making a name for himself when Crystal Palace snapped him up in 2012. Alongside the equally tricky Wilfried Zaha, he helped the Eagles reach the promised land of the Premier League in 2013.Bolasie earned plenty of admirers in the top flight, including Everton. The Toffees signed him in 2016, before fitness problems began to take their toll. A string of promising but injury-laden loan spells preceded his release in 2021 and he has since been starring at Turkish side Caykur Rizespor.

Yannick Bolasie

From Jamie Vardy to Chris Smalling - The non-league stars who rose to Premier League stardom as Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu makes history for Luton Town | Goal.com Malaysia

With Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu making his Premier League debut for Luton Town, having also played Conference football for them, GOAL looks at the players who have risen from non-league to England&apos;s top flight.