The top 10 worst Premier League signings since the year 2000.
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10. Steve Marlet – Lyon to Fulham, £11.5m, 2001
When Fulham splashed the cash on the Frenchman they believed they were buying some top quality from a World Cup winning country. However, what they got was 11 goals in 54 games spread across four years and his contract with the club was cancelled because owner Mohammed Al Fayed accused then manager Jean Tigana of embezzling funds from the deal.
A player so bad he was accused of being a pawn in an embezzlement case! Fortunately, all charges were soon dropped and Marlet returned to France.
9. Francis Jeffers – Everton to Arsenal, £8m, 2001
At the time, Arsene Wenger came under attack for not developing emerging English talent, as he had so often bought foreign stars for small amounts before moving them on for twice, and sometimes thrice, the original cost.
However, Wenger can count this one as a failed experiment. Jeffers managed just four goals during his time with the club as injuries took their toll causing him to lose all confidence before sliding down the divisions into obscurity (and the Maltese Premier League).
8. Sergei Rebrov – Dynamo Kiev to Tottenham Hotspur, £11m, 2000
At Dynamo, Rebrov virtually matched Andrei Shevchenko goal for goal, however, where Milan sought to bring his teammate on board, Spurs plumped on Rebrov thinking that he would fire them to glory.
Sadly, it didn’t work out that way and 10 goals, 60 appearances and four years later he was off. West Ham decided to take a chance on him, but he lasted just a season at Upton Park where one goal in 27 games was enough to see him back to his homeland and his early promise would go unfulfilled.
7. Fernando Torres – Liverpool to Chelsea, £50m, 2011
Torres had probably showed at Liverpool that he was worth somewhere near that fee, but club must never have intended anybody to actually pay it as he form for the Reds had already begun to dip.
However, 42 goals in 154 games don’t make for good reading to Chelsea fans and his only saving grace is that he has helped the club collect an FA Cup, a Europa League title and a Champions League title whilst he’s been there and now the club are stuck in the unfortunate position of wanting to offload him but not taking a significant hit on the fee.
6. Kleberson – Atletico Paranaense to Manchester United, £6.5m, 2003
Just a year after Kleberson captained the Brazilian national team to World Cup glory he made his way to Manchester to replace Juan Veron. United fans must have been rubbing their eyes in disbelief, but that quickly turned into dismay after he failed to prove that he was cut out for life in the English top flight.
In two years he made just 30 appearances for the Red Devils as injury and loss of form kept him out of the side and he left for Besiktas for just half the fee that United paid for him.
5. Afonso Alves – Heerenveen to Middlesbrough, £12.7m, 2008
The Brazilian caught Europe’s attention in 2008 when he banged in 45 goals in 39 appearances to win the prestigious golden shoe, but there was a reason why the top club’s weren’t going for him.
It wasn’t his fee, which was quite reasonable given the circumstances, but his work ethic and all-round game that let him down and just 10 goals in his solitary season in the Northeast couldn’t help the club from sliding into the Championship. He quickly made his way to the middle-east for just £7m.
4. Juan Sebastian Veron – Lazio to Manchester United, £28.1m, 2001
The Argentine international was well worth the fee when he joined at the beginning of the century having just helped Lazio to the Serie A title, but unfortunately he was yet another South American star that couldn’t perform to the same standard in England.
He turned out frequently for United, making 82 appearances and scoring seven goals, but his performances often let him down. Luckily for United, though, Chelsea thought he was good enough to splash £15m on his signature.
However, his spell in London was even more disastrous as he managed only 14 appearances before returning to Italy. He is still playing with Estudiantes in his homeland.
3. Stewart Downing – Aston Villa to Liverpool, £20m, 2011
Downing has often divided opinion and even Villa fans were scratching their heads when they paid Middlesbrough £12m for him two years prior. However, they were laughing all the way to the bank when King Kenny came calling, and they laughed even harder when they saw the impact he had during his first season at Anfield.
Downing clocked up an amazing zero goals and zero assists in his debut league campaign and only fared marginally better in his second season. The Reds then made a significant loss when they allowed him to join West Ham last summer for just £6m.
2. Andrei Shevchenko – AC Milan to Chelsea, £30m, 2006
Five years earlier and nobody would have batten an eyelid at the fee Chelsea paid out for the Ukranian international, but he was already 30-years-old by the time he arrived and people’s doubts were quickly founded.
Spending three years at Stamford Bridge, the former prolific Milan star managed just nine league goals and just made everybody sad as he cost the club £3.3m per goal.
1. Andy Carroll – Newcastle United to Liverpool, £35m, 2011
The most expensive English player ever, and probably likely to stay that way for a while, but what does he have to show for it? Not a lot. After two strong seasons with Newcastle, Liverpool were prompted to splash out the cash to earn just 11 goals in 46 appearances, only to then go on a record a huge loss, again to West Ham, this summer when he joined the Hammers for just £15m.
Injuries and pressure ruined his time at Anfield, but that will be scant consolation to the England international as he can reflect on a failed move and an albatross around his neck that will just never go away.
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