Worst Transfers in Football History

We all remember signings most clearly when they go wrong.

Football clubs have the opportunity to bolster their teams through the transfer market, and they go out of their way to get the best players they believe would help them achieve their goals.

The market has existed for more than a century despite significant changes; with teams paying set fees for the hiring of footballers much like goods are traded on the open market.

The game's globalization implies that elite football clubs in Europe now have access to more funding, which has led to rising market prices and player sales for unimaginable sums at the moment. Every move is meant to strengthen the team, and stronger players typically cost more money.

Nevertheless, pricing doesn't always equate to performance, as evidenced by the numerous expensive signings that failed in the history of the sport. The best football teams in Europe will all be associated with the world's top players. In any case, if a move is made, we must be careful because not all of them will be profitable. In fact, there have been a number of significant surprises over the years.

The future success of the club may be significantly impacted by the transfer market. Leading European clubs have the financial resources to spend as much as necessary to sign the most sought-after players in the world. Yet, transfers are known risks that might not always go in one's favor.

Just think back to the Chelsea club's 50 million pound purchase of Fernando Torres; we all know how that one ended out. Like Torres' instance, many others have had outcomes that were not anticipated.

Worst Transfers in Football History

The following are the worst signings in the history of world football

Gaizka Mendieta

(Valencia to Lazio)

• Place of birth

  : Bilbao

• Citizenship

  : Spain

• Height

  : 1,73 m

• Position

  : Right Midfield

• Caps/Goals

  : 40/8

Once upon a time, 

 were regarded as one of the best sides in Europe, and Gaizka Mendieta was their hero. Mendieta was named greatest Midfielder in Europe by UEFA 2 years on the run, and when Lazio bought him in 2001, they made Mendieta the 6th most costly player ever. 

Mendieta had been a productive goalscorer for Valencia. Gaizka Mendieta was one of the greatest playmakers in his prime on the planet and featured with Valencia for 8 campaigns somewhere in the range of 1993 and 2001, assuming a key job in the triumphs delighted in by the club.

However, he dismissed the chances to find the back of the net once in 31 matches for Lazio, who offered him to 

after one campaign. He finished his profession with Middlesbrough, those long stretches of Champions League fame since quite a while ago overlooked. 

The Spaniard was bought to supplant the leaving Juan Sebastian Veron and Pavel Nedved, yet he turned into one of the

worst transfers

ever

neglecting to take care of business and struggled to deal with the genuinely demanding Italian 

.

Juan Sebastian Veron

(Lazio to Manchester United)

• Place of birth:

  La Plata

• Citizenship

  : Argentina

• Height

  : 1,82 m

• Position

  : Central Midfield

• Caps/Goals

  : 75/10

The 

bought the Argentina international Juan Sebastian Veron in the late spring of 2001 for 28 million pounds to break the 

 record. Veron came in with tremendous expectations after his accomplishment in Italy with 

.

He began well in the Premier League and it appeared as though great business when he hit the ground running with 3 goals in his initial 4 Premier League games."Veron is a f*cking incredible player, and you're all f*cking blockheads," Alex Ferguson told the media, yet Veron gradually lost his feet. He would proceed to go through 3 campaigns with Man United playing in only 82 matches, however, Ferguson finally surrendered and permitted Veron to join Chelsea for a huge misfortune in 2003. The Argentine was no better at Chelsea.

Andriy Shevchenko

(AC Milan to Chelsea)

• Place of birth:

  Dvirkivschyna

• Citizenship

  : Ukraine 

• Height

  : 1,83 m

• Position

  : Centre-Forward

• Caps/Goals

  : 111/48

Andriy Shevchenko penned the contract for joining Chelsea in the mid-year of 2006 in what is regarded as one of the most noticeably awful signings ever. Shevchenko was famous for being one of the greatest strikers in Europe after his adventures with 

. Chelsea was a fan of him. Anyway, the transfer ended up being pointless as Shevchenko neglected to fulfill the exceptional standards of the 

.

He scored only 22 goals in 2 campaigns for Chelsea ahead of returning to Milan and 

 as his amazing football career tragically subsided.

​If ever there was a striker worth using up every last cent for, it was Andriy Shevchenko. A productive goalscorer in Italy, he had netted 173 goals for AC Milan, with the 25-goal record in 6 of his 8 campaigns and in 2004 won the Ballon d'Or.

Ricardo Kaka 

• (AC Milan To Real Madrid)

• Place of birth

  : Gama

• Citizenship

  : Brazil

• Height

  : 1,86 m

• Position

  : Centre-Forward

• Caps/Goals

  : 92/29

The absolute diamond who is along with 

 in 2018 and Karim Benzema in 2022, the last footballer to beat Lionel Messi and 

 to the Ballon d'Or award. He helped Milan to the Champions League title with some amazing exhibitions.

In 2009, Kaka moved to Real Madrid for 56 million pounds. Anyway, he couldn't exactly satisfy his grand measures as he endured various long-term injuries all through his time at Santiago Bernabeu. In 2013, after a fruitless spell with Real, Kaka returned to Milan. be that as it may, he never fully recovered the form he once had during his spell with AC Milan

Dmytro Chygrynskiy

(Shakhtar Donetsk to Barcelona)

• Place of birth:

  Iziaslav

• Citizenship

  : Ukraine 

• Height

  : 1,89 m

• Position

  : Centre-Back

• Caps/Goals

  : 29/0

The Ukrainian defender persuaded Pep Guardiola to buy him from Shakhtar Donetsk as a replacement for Gerard Pique and Carles Puyol as he saved his side against Barcelona for 115 minutes until 

scored a late winning goal in the 2009 UEFA Super Cup. 

Dmytro Chugrynski became well known for his presentation for Shakhtar Donestk in the Ukrainian Premier League and this motivated Barcelona and Pep Guardiola to spend €25m to sign him, with the club certain that he would reinforce the side with his defensive skills. 

It appeared that they made the correct decision but Chygrynskiy played only 14 games for Barcelona, winning a trophy per seven matches, before coming back to 

 toward the finish of the campaign.

His name stays a reference in a celebrated time of Barcelona's history. Perhaps he thought that it was difficult to adjust to the new culture and couldn't uproot the main XI pairing of Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic 

(Milan to Barcelona)

• Place of birth

  : Malmo

• Citizenship

  : Sweden

• Height

  : 1,95 m

• Position

  : Centre-Forward

• Caps/Goals

  : 121/62

​Zlatan Ibrahimovic has netted goals wherever he has featured, and Barcelona was the same. he scored 21 goals during his single campaign in Barcelona. In any case, no one appeared to comprehend why Barcelona had exchanged €46m plus the Cameroonian for a forward who was scarcely any superior to Samuel Eto'o. 

Ibrahimovic's character demands that he is deadly in any place he plays, however, that was not the situation at Barcelona. Compelled to play in the shadow of 

, Ibrahimovic became baffled with Guardiola in the wake of Barcelona's UCL loss against 

. Finally, he was sent back to Italy at the end of the campaign.

Ciro Immobile 

(Torino to Borussia Dortmund)

• Place of birth

  : Torre Annunziata

• Citizenship

  : Italy

• Height

  : 1,85 m

• Position

  : Centre-Forward

• Caps/Goals

  : 55/15

In 2014, when 

sold Robert Lewandowski to their greatest opponents Bayern Munich, they expected to discover a player who could supplant the Polish striker. They went for Ciro Immobile, who had netted 22 goals for 

in Serie A. 

Joining from the moderately steady pace of Serie A to the high pressure of Jurgen Klopp's strategies fell short for Immobile and he netted only 3 

 goals. Following quite a long while of exceptional achievement, Dortmund finished 7th that campaign and Jurgen Klopp left the club.​ 

Fernando Redondo

(Real Madrid to AC Milan)

• Place of birth

  : Buenos Aires

• Citizenship

  : Argentina

• Height

  : 1,86 m

• Position

  : Defensive Midfield

• Caps/Goals

  : 28/1

In the late 1990s, Fernando Redondo was outstanding amongst other holding midfielders on the planet In his prime and was a key figure of the Real Madrid and 

. 

Regardless of his defensive skills, Redondo additionally had the uncanny talent for offensive moves and made one of the godlike minutes in 

history in the 2000 quarterfinal at the point when he demonstrated incredible expertise to dribble past Berg by backheeling the ball around him and assisting Raul to score the goal. 

For his brilliant performances in Bernabeu, AC Milan offered €15m to sign him, in spite of protests from Redondo and fans to stay in Madrid. 

A physical issue occurred in one of his first training days with Milan and postponed his introduction by 2 years, forcing Redondo to choose to relinquish his wage and in spite of the fact that he contributed gently in his 3rd campaign, having shown up 33 times for the Rossoneri in 4 years, another injury compelled him to retire. 

In 2000, Alex Ferguson once praised him in that Redondo had magnets in his boots after an especially amazing exhibition for Real Madrid against Manchester United. Redondo was en route to winning the Champions League again, however, he was shockingly permitted to leave Madrid and join AC Milan. He won the Champions League again in 2003, however, had no impact in the final.

Roberto Soldado

(Valencia to Tottenham)

• Place of birth

  : Valencia

• Citizenship

  : Spain

• Height

  : 1,80 m

• Position

  : Centre-Forward

• Caps/Goals

  : 12/7

In 2013, Roberto Soldado was made one of 

the most costly transfers

in 

' history when the club bought him for £26m from Valencia. 

Soldado was a goal machine in the Spanish Laliga and it was normal that he would carry out the same in England, yet he never truly got moving in North London and didn't find the back of the net in the PL for more than 60 days. 

The development of 

 put paid to his time and having scored only 7 goals from 52 PL matches, Soldado left Tottenham for Villareal for a total of £10m after only 2 campaigns.

Jonathan Woodgate

(Newcastle to Real Madrid)

• Place of birth:

  Nunthorpe

• Citizenship

  : England

• Height

  : 1,88 m

• Position

  : Centre-Back

• Caps/Goals

  : 8/0

Jonathan Woodgate could be one of the greatest defenders of his generation if it was not for injury issues. 

Woodgate started his football with 

 and performed brilliantly in 5 campaigns at Elland Road to have an offer to join Newcastle United where he played a single season ahead of leaving to join Real Madrid. 

He finished the paperwork of signing for £13.4m and notwithstanding being injured at the hour of his singing, Los Blancos felt that he would refind his feet soon. That, nonetheless, demonstrated not to be the situation and it took him longer than a year to play in a Real Madrid shirt. 

In his debut match, he scored an own goal ahead of being sent off in the initial 30 minutes. Woodgate's time at Madrid was cursed by injury inconveniences and he played 14 times in his 3 campaigns with the club ahead of joining his old club in 2008. 

Jackson Martinez

(Porto to Atletico Madrid)

• Place of birth

  : Quibdo

• Citizenship

  : Colombia

• Height

  : 1,85 m

• Position

  : Centre-Forward

• Caps/Goals

  : 40/9

Jackson Martinez is a retired Colombian striker who played for 

in the Portuguese Primeira Liga between 2012 to 2015. Scoring a lot of goals persuaded Atletico Madrid to sign him for €35m. In contrast to his countryman Radamel Falcao, he didn't find his feet at Madrid. He had an issue with Diego Simeone who was supposedly discontent with Jackson's lack of responsibility.

He was offered to the Chinese Super League team 

 for €42m only 7 months in the wake of joining Madrid. Jackson Martinez scored only 3 goals in 22 games for Atletico Madrid. 

Leonardo Bonucci

(Juventus to AC Milan)

• Place of birth:

  Viterbo

• Citizenship

  : Italy

• Height

  : 1,90 m

• Position

  : Centre-Back

• Caps/Goals

  : 120/8

Winning 6 back to back Serie A trophies with Juventus, Bonucci moved to AC Milan planning to reestablish the club to achieve the previous awards once again. 

Yet, that is not how it ended up. In the wake of being named skipper and penning a five-year contract, the Italian could just assist them to a 6th place. He came back to the Old Lady squad the following season.

Philippe Coutinho

(Liverpool to Barcelona)

• Place of birth:

  BrazilRio de Janeiro

• Citizenship

  : Brazil

• Height

  : 1,72 m

• Position

  : Attacking Midfield

• Caps/Goals

  : 68/21

The Catalans demanded Philippe Coutinho to space in close by 

 and Messi at their forefront. Yet, that didn't occur, as the player attempted to adjust to life in Spain and was unsuccessful. 

In eighteen months, he scored 21 goals in 76 games before joining Bayern Munich on loan. Coutinho's €145 transfer fee is the third-most expensive signing in the history of the sport.

Angel Di Maria

(Real Madrid to Manchester)

• Place of birth

  : Rosario

• Citizenship

  : Argentina

• Height

  : 1,80 m

• Position

  : Right Winger

In 2014, Di Maria's expensive transfer to Manchester United had fans genuinely energized. In any case, after a strong beginning, he was played by Louis van Gaal more as a substitute. ​13 years on from Juan Sebastian Veron, Man United indeed broke the British signing record to lure an Argentina international.

Regardless of his brilliant performance at Real Madrid with considerable achievements, Angel Di Maria proceeded without shining at Old Trafford. In the wake of only a year at Old Trafford, the club cut their misfortunes and sold Di Maria on to PSG for £44.3m. He went on to be an indispensable and productive striker for 

 before leaving to join Juventus in 2022.

Angel Di Maria was the highest earner in the Premier League at that point and was given the blessed shirt number 7. But he never turned into a new Eric Cantona, Cristiano Ronaldo, Bryan Robson, George Best or David Beckham.

Fernando Torres

(Liverpool to Chelsea)

• Place of birth:

  Fuenlabrada

• Citizenship

  : Spain

• Height

  : 1,86 m

• Position

  : Centre-Forward

• Caps/Goals

  : 110/38

​On its essence, this resembled a mind-boggling bit of business for The Blues, purchasing one of the Premier League's most deadly center-forwards from opponents Liverpool, yet his doomed spell with Chelsea never arrived at the productive statures he had accomplished at Anfield. 

Fernando Torres netted 45 goals for the Blues, including the goal against Barcelona which finally resulted in their championship in 2012 Champions League, however, he never netted in excess of 8 goals in a PL campaign at Stamford Bridge before 2014 that he returned to the home. 

The Spanish striker joined Chelsea in the winter of 2011 for an expense worth around 50 million pounds. In the wake of his spell with The Reds where his exhibitions made his name as one of the World's Best Strikers, much was anticipated from him at Stamford Bridge. Anyway, Torres pitiably neglected to fulfill the desires.

It took him 14 matches to score his first goal, scoring only 44 more in 172 matches for the Blues. Anyway, the UCL title filled in as a significant trophy covering for Torres during his time in London. In 2015, He eventually left Chelsea and in the end joined his childhood club, Atletico Madrid.

Andy Carroll

(Newcastle to Liverpool)

• Place of birth

  : Gateshead

• Citizenship

  : England

• Height

  : 1,93 m

• Position

  : Centre-Forward

• Caps/Goals

  : 9/2

The frenzy purchase to end all frenzy purchases. It wasn't that Andy Carroll was a terrible center-forward. he'd netted 11 goals in 19 matches for Newcastle United assisting them to come back to the PL, yet signing him was such an indication that how ineffectively arranged Liverpool were for the exit of Fernando Torres. 

Andy Carroll netted only 6 Premier League goals in 44 matches ahead of leaving the Reds to join 

 in 2013. 

The deal made him the most costly British player at that point. While finally Carroll struggled to score goals and went down as one of the most costly fails in Premier League history.

Antoine Griezmann

(Atletico Madrid to Barcelona)

• Place of birth

  : France

• Height

  : 1,76 m

• Position

  : Attack - Second Striker

• Foot

  : left

Griezmann signed a five-year agreement with Barcelona on July 12, 2019.

Bartomeu strangely pursued Griezmann willing to pay the Frenchman's contract buy-out clause of €120 million. The talented striker had his moments at Camp Nou, but they weren't often, and in 2021 he left the club.

We think Antoine Griezmann was a terrible purchase for Barcelona, but he insists that his time there was not a failure despite finding it difficult to justify a €120 million price tag and leaving after just two seasons to join Atletico Madrid.

Eden Hazard

• (Chelsea to Real Madrid)

• Place of birth

  : Belgium

• Height

  : 1,75 m

• Position

  : Attack - Left Winger

• Foot

  : right

Hazard made a name for himself at Chelsea as one of the top players in the world. Real Madrid made the announcement that Hazard would be joining them on June 7, 2019. He agreed to a deal to pay him £400,000 per week for a reported sum of €100 million.

To be fair to Hazard, he was incredibly unlucky with injuries given that he was virtually injury-free throughout his tenure at Chelsea. Yet even when he's been able to string together a few matches in Spain, he's come off as a pretty shoddy replica of the guy who shone in the Premier League for seven years.

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