A look back at ten of the worst high-profile signings made by Premier League clubs in the 2012/13 season.
10. Fabio Borini (Liverpool)
Fabio Borini was brought in from Roma after new Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers made it a priority to reunite himself with one of his former players from Swansea City. Things haven’t worked out for the Italian forward with just 2 goals all season and a struggle to impose himself on the first team. Nowhere near looking worth the £10.5million the Reds paid to bring him to Anfield, the Reds are already being linked with a whole host of strikers next summer, as it’s clear they don’t consider him a worthy backup to Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge. A notable mention must also go to Joe Allen, another ex-Swansea man who has failed to reproduce his form for Rodgers in a Liverpool shirt. After also failing to make the grade at Chelsea as a youngster, maybe the Premier League just isn’t for him, with his best form coming in Serie A and the Championship.
9. Junior Hoilett (Queens Park Rangers)
The former Blackburn winger was in high demand after an impressive individual campaign at Ewood Park last year, being linked with the likes of Arsenal. The Gunners will be pleased to have dodged that bullet though, as Hoilett has not looked anywhere near the same player since joining QPR – and once again he has finished the season relegated. Swansea City are reportedly interested in him, but the Canadian player looks like something of a curse at the moment, and perhaps just a one-season wonder, following up a campaign of 7 goals and 7 assists with just 3 goals and 2 assists this time round. Still only 22, there is admittedly time on his side for things to improve, but he will go down as a bad buy this time. And he’s not alone in that category at Loftus Road this season.
8. Marouane Chamakh (West Ham)
Although only brought in on loan from Arsenal, the Moroccan striker has been a complete waste of time for West Ham, barely featuring since agreeing to join the Hammers, and looking every bit as ineffectual as he did in his two years at the Emirates Stadium. Even though he was a free transfer for Arsenal as well, his lack of killer instinct in front of goal makes him one of the worst ever Premier League signings, not just one of the worst this season. It’s hard to imagine anyone taking a punt on him next season, when presumably neither Arsenal nor West Ham will make any effort to keep hold of him. One to forget for Sam Allardyce, who has shown he can use the loan market well, with Andy Carroll coming in from Liverpool and doing a much better job. As for Chamakh, he looks set to finish this season with an amazing record of one Premier League goal in two years. To put that into some context, that’s a record as good Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard.
7. Maicon (Manchester City)
The Brazilian right-back may have been a great player a couple of years ago, but a few eyebrows were rightly raised when Manchester City brought him in from Inter Milan last summer. Looking slow, sluggish and off the pace, it’s clear that doubters were right to question Roberto Mancini’s signing of the 31-year-old, especially with Pablo Zabaleta and Micah Richards ahead in the pecking order for the right-back position. One of many poor pieces of business in the transfer market by City, and surely one who will be out of the door again very quickly as they look to build a title-winning team again. Likely to be joined by the likes of Samir Nasri, Edin Dzeko and Kolo Toure – top flops from previous years. Proof that if you give a club tons of money that they won’t necessarily spend it well.
6. Park Ji-Sung (Queens Park Rangers)
After an impressive seven year spell at Manchester United where he earned the trust of Sir Alex Ferguson as a big game player, Park Ji-Sung looked like an absolute steal for Queens Park Rangers when he signed for a fee of roughly just £2million, but he has failed to make any significant impact whatsoever on their disastrous relegation season. The South Korean was even made captain upon signing for Rangers, but has been anything but a leader for the club when they’ve needed him. It’s clear now that Park was benefited by being surrounded by top players at Old Trafford, rather than having much individual quality to lift a side by himself. While QPR players could easily have dominated this whole list, Park probably stands out as the worst of their many signings due to his reputation before joining the club. See also: Jose Bosingwa, Jermaine Jenas, Andrew Johnson, Fabio, Christopher Samba and Tal Ben Haim. Funnily enough, after failing so spectacularly to cement the team’s place in the top flight, these players will probably all leave the club in the summer, thinking themselves too big for the Championship.
5. Scott Sinclair (Manchester City)
To be fair on Scott Sinclair, Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has accepted a large chunk of the blame for the signing from Swansea City failing to make an impact at the Etihad Stadium. The Italian tactician has barely played the former Chelsea winger, who looked very good at the Liberty Stadium last season and rightly earned a move to a bigger club. “This situation with Sinclair is difficult because I didn’t give him a lot of chances to play,” he said. “He is very unlucky. It is my fault, not his fault. A young player like Scott who is a good player deserves to play always. For him, it was a really difficult year this year. I can understand his frustration in this moment because he didn’t play a lot of games. I repeat: He did everything well, he worked well, he is a good guy, he deserves to play. I can understand when one player can’t play often, it is difficult.”
The 24-year-old will surely move on in the summer, with a move to Liverpool and a reunion with former Swansea boss Brendan Rodgers being mooted. Given his potential, hopefully Sinclair won’t be making this same list again this time next year.
4. Marko Marin (Chelsea)
Marko Marin was brought in by Chelsea from Werder Bremen for around £7million and looked like being one of many talented players coming from Germany at the moment, but the 24-year-old has not managed to break into the first-team at Stamford Bridge at all, making just six appearances in the Premier League, all as a substitute. Despite a lack of playing time, he has managed one goal for the club, which came in the final minute of a 4-1 win over Wigan, so it was hardly the most important and memorable contribution either. With Juan Mata, Eden Hazard and Oscar all ahead of him in the pecking order, there’s little reason to think Marin will be kept around next season. You know the signs are ominous when Yossi Benayoun – all but given up on by Chelsea a couple of years ago – is managing to get games ahead of you.
3. Nuri Sahin (Liverpool)
Nuri Sahin lasted only half a season in the Premier League with Liverpool, after a bizarre transfer saga that saw Arsenal and Tottenham fight it out for his signature from Real Madrid. The Turkish playmaker had previously made a name for himself at Borussia Dortmund before earning his move to the Bernebeu, but was seen as unfairly not getting a chance in the Spanish capital. He then looked an astute signing by Reds boss Brendan Rodgers when he was brought in on loan, but failed to make any significant impact whatsoever. Sahin then left in January to return to Dortmund in another loan move, and has once again looked a top player. For whatever reason, the Turk seems capable of playing for Dortmund only, and will go down as a big disappointment for his time in England. Another bullet unwillingly dodged by Arsenal, who probably pulled out of the deal due to being stingy on the player’s wages, for once the right decision, and one to forget for Liverpool.
2. Emmanuel Adebayor (Tottenham)
After an impressive loan spell from Manchester City in 2011/12, Tottenham fought hard to bring Emmanuel Adebayor in on a permanent basis this season. It now doesn’t look worth it at all, as the Togolese forward has managed just three Premier League goals and summed his season up by skying a crucial penalty in Spurs’ Europa League quarter-final defeat to FC Basel. Rivals Arsenal will be laughing since letting him go to City for £25million in 2009, as he has failed to reproduce his best form since. After just one season at Spurs, he looks like one who’ll be out the door in the summer, with a return to former club Monaco his most likely destination. The enigmatic target man has kept us all guessing in his time in England, but his mixed career in the Premier League now looks to be over. Some will wonder how he stayed around for so long and persuaded so many clubs to put so much money and effort into signing him.
1. Michael Owen (Stoke City)
The embarrassment that has been the last half of Michael Owen’s career is nearly over, with the former England striker recently announcing his plans to retire from the game at the end of the season. Signed on a free by Stoke from Manchester United, they got very much what everyone else was expecting, ie nothing. The player who once tore defences apart in his days as a youngster with Liverpool and earned a big move to Real Madrid has had some rotten luck with injuries, but has prolonged his career for far longer than necessary with his strange spell on the bench for three years at Old Trafford, and was never likely to get much playing time in for Tony Pulis’ side. The 33-year-old has made just seven league appearances for the Potters and will bow out from football with a whimper – not the way it should have been. To be fair on him, he did manage one goal in his limited playing time, which probably gives him a good goals-to-games ratio, but statistics won’t cover up what a poor signing he’s been.