Top 10 Football Transfer Disasters
Clubs have been pending millions on a single player. Here's a list of Top 10 transfer disasters of all time. Enjoy
10. ROBINHO – REAL MADRID TO MANCHESTER CITY
In 2008, Manchester City were purchased by the Abu Dhabi United Group which gave the club massive sums of cash to spend. City went out and threw money at any player they wanted, hoping to attract top level talent. Real Madrid forward Robinho took notice and made the move for $54 million. Despite thinking he was going to Chelsea, the Brazilian did well at first and scored 14 goals in 41 games. Production rapidly dropped off after that. Decreased appearances and an eventual loan move signaled the end of his EPL career. In August 2010 his move to AC Milan was completed for $25.3 million.
9. MEMPHIS DEPAY - PSV TO MANCHESTER UNITED
Memphis Depay joined Manchester United in May 2015 for a reported fee of £25 million. During the 2015–16 season, Depay had the third-highest shirt sales in the world behind Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, according to online retailer Kitbag. Having been considered as the next Ronaldo, he only scored 2 goals in 33 league matches that he played. He was sold to Lyon for a transfer fee of £22 million
8. JUAN SEBASTIÁN VERÓN – LAZIO TO MANCHESTER UNITED
Verón had enjoyed great success with Parma and Lazio, winning domestic cups, the league title and even the 1999 UEFA Cup. United’s coach, Sir Alex Ferguson, believed the Argentinian midfielder would be perfect for his attack and so La Brujita (Little Witch) made his move from Serie A to the Red Devils of the EPL in 2001 for $46.1 million. It never really worked out as Verón managed only seven goals in 51 games. The team decided to cut their losses and sold the midfielder to Chelsea for $24 million in 2003. The Little Witch struck again as Chelsea quickly realized they too had bought a lemon.
7. ROBBIE KEANE – TOTTENHAM TO LIVERPOOL
Robbie Keane is a bit of a strange one as far as flops are concerned. From 2002 to 2008, he did well at Tottenham, scoring 82 goals in 197 appearances. Then, in 2008 he made the move to Liverpool for a fee of $33 million. We’re pretty sure management at Anfield checked his ID after every game because the Irish striker in no way performed as well once he joined the Reds. Seven goals in 28 total appearances was not good enough and Keane was shipped back to White Hart Lane after only half of a season for around $25 million.
6. ROBERTO SOLDADO – VALENCIA TO TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
In the summer of 2013 Tottenham Hotspur sold Gareth Bale to Real Madrid for around $140 million. The North London club then proceeded to spend the money like one of the housewives of Orange County. For a combined $90 million, the club purchased Erik Lamela and Roberto Soldado from Roma and Valencia respectively. At first, it appeared the club had got two great players. Midfielder Lamela had scored 21 goals in two seasons with Roma and Soldado had netted 81 times with Valencia. At Tottenham, things have been different. Lamela has managed only one goal all last season while Soldado only scored twice from open play in the league. Things may change but it will need to be fast and drastic if these two are to shake off the ‘flop’ label.
5. NICOLAS ANELKA – ARSENAL TO REAL MADRID
Known unofficially as ‘Le Sulk’ because of his propensity to pout and get upset when he didn’t get his way, Nicolas Anelka has played for a dozen teams over his career. It all really started at Arsenal where the French striker showed his pace and shooting skills. He scored 19 goals in 46 appearances for the Gunners. Naturally the big Spanish clubs came calling and Real Madrid signed Anelka for $37.6 million in the summer of 1999. As with any club Anelka has gone to, he soon fell out of favor with everyone. Before being shipped off to PSG for nearly what Madrid had originally paid, Anelka’s one season in the Spanish capital saw him score 7 goals in 33 total appearances.
4. ANDY CARROLL – NEWCASTLE UNITED TO LIVERPOOL
Liverpool found out the hard and expensive way that a player’s performance at one club doesn’t necessarily carry over to a new club. Andy Carroll was purchased in January 2011 following the departure of striker Fernando Torres. The Reds had $80 million from the sale of Torres and sought to find a replacement immediately. They bought Andy Carroll from Newcastle for $57.4 million. The big English striker had 11 goals in 20 appearances for Newcastle in the 2010/11 season. Over the next two-and-a-half seasons with Liverpool, he only managed 11 goals in 58 appearances. In 2013, Carroll made a permanent move to West Ham United for a fee of around $24 million.
3. ANDRIY SHEVCHENKO – AC MILAN TO CHELSEA
If ever there was a signing of intent, the 2006 purchase of Ukrainian Andriy Shevchenko was it. The striker had made his name at AC Milan, scoring 175 goals over seven years. Chelsea decided to break the English transfer record and signed the goal-machine for $50.5 million. Everyone eagerly watched and waited for Shevchenko to tear teams apart and rack up the goals. It never happened. The striker managed only 22 goals in 77 appearances over two full years while at Stamford Bridge. He was loaned out to AC Milan before rejoining Dynamo Kiev after being released from his Chelsea contract.
2. RADAMEL FALCAO - AS MONACO TO CHELSEA
Chelsea signed Falcao on a season-long loan deal on 3rd July 2015 with the option of a permanent transfer at the end of the season. On 3 November, Falcao picked up a muscular injury in training, and was ruled out for a "few weeks", however on 15 January 2016, new manager Guus Hiddink confirmed that Falcao's latest injury setback was "very serious".[133] He was dropped from the team's Champions League squad the following month, in favour of new addition Alexandre Pato. He just scored 1 in 10 Matches.
1. FERNANDO TORRES – LIVERPOOL TO CHELSEA
Torres moved from Liverpool to Chelsea in January 2011 for $82 million. El Nino, as he is nicknamed, was pricey but had proven himself at Anfield with 81 goals in 142 appearances over four years. On paper, he gave Chelsea’s attack a killer edge over most other teams. Unfortunately, the Spaniard’s time at Stamford Bridge has not been what most thought it would be. In 172 appearances over four years he has managed just 45 goals. Despite this, the fans continue to stand by their striker while others have not.
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