Top players who have failed at Liverpool but excelled at international level, former Arsenal star included…
Patriotic players often give that little something extra for their country. Despite failing to make the grade at Anfield, a number of current and former Liverpool stars seem capable of doing so on the international stage.
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Here are 11 players who have flopped at Liverpool but shone for their international sides:
11) Mario Balotelli – Italy
Mario Balotelli has been charged with leading the line for his country for the last few years, despite being recently dropped from the squad. He has shown his quality on the international stage despite his young age, including a superb brace versus Germany in the Euro 2012 semi-final.
His Liverpool career so far however, has been an unmitigated disaster. He has failed to find the back of the net in the Premier League despite being the club’s main striker, and his lethargy has drawn heavy criticism from a number of sources.
If he continues in this vein it is only a matter of time before he is unloaded.
10) Salif Diao – Senegal
Liverpool bought Diao in 2002 ahead of the World Cup in Japan, and at just £5m he appeared to be a bargain.
The Senegalese international put in a number of dominant displays and even helped his team reach the quarter-finals of the tournament.
He failed to carry his international form over to the Premier League however, and looked like a different player when he pulled on the red shirt. He was shipped out on loan a number of times before eventually being moved on permanently.
9) Milan Jovanovic – Serbia
The Serbian essentially enjoyed a short holiday in Liverpool, failing to impress and spending just a year at the club before being sent straight back to Belgium with Anderlecht.
His international form was often fantastic however, scoring 11 times in 44 appearances from the wing. He was the top scorer in Serbia’s 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign and also scored the winning goal in his side’s memorable win over Germany in South Africa.
8) Boudewijn Zenden – Netherlands
It wasn’t all Zenden’s fault that he was largely ineffective at Liverpool, with a number of nasty injuries hampering him throughout his two seasons with the club.
The former Barcelona winger was fantastic for the Netherlands however, his pace often decimating the opposition. He retired from international football after a successful Euro 2004 tournament, and was snapped up by Liverpool on a free transfer in 2005.
7) Joe Cole – England
The Englishman was fantastic for Chelsea and England for a number of years, and was one of the national team’s best players at the World Cup in 2006.
He was arguably already past it by the time he made the switch to Liverpool however, and after making just 26 appearances for the club and scoring three goals he was shipped off to West Ham.
6) Kolo Toure – Ivory Coast
Part of the ‘Golden Generation’ of football in the Ivory Coast, Toure has been superb for his country throughout his career.
After stints with Arsenal and Manchester City he finally made the move to Liverpool, but he looks to be past it and was guilty of a number of costly errors during the season which saw the club come so close to winning the title.
5) Brad Friedel – USA
Friedel was not exactly a flop at Liverpool, but he was certainly underutilised. He never managed to cement a first team spot during his three years at the club, and eventually moved on.
He went on to have a very successful career in the Premier League, as well as becoming a legend in the US for his shot-stopping heroics.
In 2002 he produced a number of unbelievable performances, and helped a USA team who weren’t expected to do anything to reach the quarter finals of the World Cup.
4) El Hadji Diouf – Senegal
Another stand-out member of the 2002 World Cup, Diouf was named in the team of the tournament after reaching the quarter-finals with Senegal.
At Liverpool however, he scored three goals during two seasons, spat on a fan, and was generally disliked by his entire team; not exactly a bounding success.
3) Fernando Morientes – Spain
The Spaniard was prolific for Real Madrid, and Rafael Benitez thought he had got himself a gem when he brought Morientes to Anfield.
His goals all but dried up however, and after just two seasons he headed back to La Liga and joined Valencia.
His international record was excellent, scoring 27 goals in 47 appearances for his country. It remains a mystery how he flopped so badly at Liverpool.
2) Milan Baros – Czech Republic
With 19 goals in 68 appearances for Liverpool, Baros failed to have any real impact at the club during his three year spell.
He was the man everyone looked to for the Czech Republic however, and even won the Golden Ball in Euro 2004 after netting five times.
1) Robbie Keane – Republic of Ireland
Keane is the highest scoring currently active international goalscorer, with 65 goals for Ireland.
His time at Liverpool however was absolutely woeful. He was brought in for, what was at the time, a massive £19m. He was sent straight back to Tottenham after less than a season at Anfield however, Benitez so unimpressed with the Irishman that he was willing to take a colossal loss.