1) Frank Lampard

Famous for his intelligent late runs into the box, Chelsea’s all-time record goal scorer has 12 GCSEs at A or A*, including an A in Latin.
Lampard took an intelligence test in 2009 after which Chelsea's club doctor revealed Lamps had an IQ of “well above 150”, putting him in the top 0.5% of the world’s population.
Worth bearing in mind that Albert Einstein’s was 160.

2) Matt Smith

Smith studied for a Business degree in Manchester while he was playing non-league football and was eyeing a career as a City management consultant.
That was until he was snapped up by Oldham and scored a famous FA Cup goal against Liverpool.
He's since worked his way through the Football League with Bristol City, Leeds, Fulham and QPR.
3) Andrey Arshavin

The former Arsenal playmaker has a degree in Clothing Technology and has even written a thesis on the design of a suit that can be worn for both business and sport.
Not bad considering the Russian originally chose to enroll at the St Petersburg State University of Technology and Design aged 17 just because of the number of girls studying there.

4) Simon Mignolet

The Liverpool goalkeeper may not always convince between the sticks, but he does have a degree in Law and Political Science.
Oh, and he can speak four languages. Not as good as Belgian team-mate Romelu Lukaku’s five, but still….

5) Shaka Hislop

The former West Ham, Newcastle and Portsmouth goalkeeper must be pretty smart because he once did an internship at NASA. No, seriously.
Hislop has a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Washington DC’s Howard University, but said most of the meetings he attended at the US space agency went over his head and he wasn’t allowed to press any big red buttons when he was there.

6) Clarke Carlisle

The former Burnley and QPR defender had a difficult time both before and after he retired in 2013, but has a reputation as one of English football’s most articulate and erudite players.
In fact, he was even named Britain’s Brainiest Footballer back in 2002, and has appeared on Countdown and Question Time.
He has a degree in Sports Writing and Broadcasting from Staffordshire University, and was Chair of the Professional Footballer’s Association (PFA) too.
That’s a pretty strong CV.

7) Juan Mata

The Manchester United playmaker has a reputation for unlocking defences with his intelligent passing and movement, but off the pitch the Spaniard is also opening doors for a career after football.
The World Cup winner studied Journalism in Spain and has his own blog. Mata has also taken a degree in Sports Science and Finance.

Jean-Alain Boumsong

The former Newcastle defender arrived in England with a big reputation, but for many, ultimately failed to deliver at St James' Park.
The former French international could have completed a degree in Medicine before his playing career took off, but instead settled for a degree in Mathematics later down the line.
That's just showing off.

9) Dennis Bergkamp

When he wasn’t tearing defenders apart for Arsenal, Dutchman Dennis Bergkamp used his spare time studying for a degree in Medical Engineering from the University of Bath.

10) Duncan Watmore

The young Sunderland striker has been a big miss for the Black Cats this season after suffering a knee injury.
However, the 23-year-old will probably be using his time off wisely, having graduated last year from Newcastle University with a first in Economics.
Watmore started his studies in Manchester while playing non-league football for Altrincham, before moving to the north east when he signed for Sunderland.
Fittingly, he was awarded his first-class honours just as he was establishing himself in Sunderland’s first team.

11) Socrates

Brazilian legend Socrates is one of the greatest players in his country's history, captaining the famous 1982 World Cup team.
He scored 22 goals in 60 games from midfield for the Selecao and when his career was over, he qualified as a doctor.
A strange career move, considering he was famous for smoking 40 a day as a player.