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Footballers don’t just need their physical and technical attributes to succeed in their careers. They also need to be mentally tough and have a bit of luck on their side. They need to make sure that they take the right decisions at the right time and don’t rush into a move just for the money.While players like Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane, Didier Drogba and Robin van Persie took their careers to the next level after their big money moves, there were many others who saw their careers stalled. They were either unlucky with injuries, had problems settling into their new environment or just couldn’t perform under the pressure.Here are the top 10 footballers who were ruined by their big money moves to major clubs:
#10 Alexandre Pato
Pato arrived in Italy from Brazilian club Internacional after being touted as the most exciting teenager in world football. He had an excellent turn of pace and dazzling quick feet with which he lit up the San Siro.
But his early promise faded after he suffered persistent muscular injuries wherein he damaged the same hamstring three times in 12 months. Unfortunately for Pato, the medical team at the club were unable to diagnose the cause for this problem.
In his last two seasons at Milan, he managed just one league goal in 15 appearances. That was enough to persuade Milan to cut their losses and offload him to Sao Paulo.
Pato is still young for a striker and is yet to hit his peak. Can he get back to his best in China?
#9 Alberto Aquilani
In August 2009, the sale of Xabi Alonso to Real Madrid left a giant hole in the Liverpool midfield. Manager Rafa Benitez signed Alberto Aquilani for a cool £17 million to fill that hole. Benitez claimed this to be a steal, considering the fact that Aquilani was injured when he signed.
The Italian came with a big reputation from his time in the Serie A, but signing an injured player always comes with risks. That meant Aquilani was never able to settle into the team, which when coupled with his further injuries, loss of form and low confidence, restricted him to just 26 appearances in a red shirt before he was shipped back to Italy on loan – three times.
One can only wonder what his impact at Liverpool could have been.
#8 Jack Rodwell
Jack Rodwell had shown immense promise after he emerged on the scene with Everton in 2008. He even broke into the England team and clearly had a bright future ahead of him with both club and country.
In 2012, his enormous talent persuaded Manchester City to fork out £15 million for him. But his short career at City was blighted by niggling injuries and he couldn’t get a decent run of games under his belt to justify his price tag, thanks in part to the star players at the manager's disposal. He made just 16 league appearances in his two years there before being sold to Sunderland.
That puts him in a long line of young English players who chose a big money move over playing regular football and ruined their careers.
#7 Anderson
Manchester United spent the best part of £20 million to sign Brazilian playmaker Anderson from Porto after Sir Alex Ferguson was convinced that he would go on to be the one of the best attacking midfielders in the world.
But the player, branded ‘the next Ronaldinho’, couldn’t fulfil those lofty expectations. His first season saw him become an important part of United’s midfield. But he suffered a succession of injuries that dented his progress and resulted in his seasons always being stop-start.
His lifestyle also came under the scanner after he was frequently seen looking unfit and overweight.
#6 Juan Sebastin Vern
Another foreign import who came to England with a huge reputation was Veron. Sir Alex Ferguson made him the most expensive transfer in English football at the time when he coughed up around £28m for his services in 2001.
But Veron was shipped off to Chelsea after only 51 appearances and 11 goals for Manchester United. The Argentine failed to adapt to the much faster pace of the Premier League, which was why he also failed to make his mark at the west London club.
Some players just aren’t made to play in the Premier League, which is why Veron spent just one season at Stamford Bridge before being sent back to Italy.
#5 Robinho
Robinho was the new rising star in Brazil and earned a move to Real Madrid when he was just 19. He established himself as a first-team regular before being lured to newly rich Manchester City as their marquee signing.
The Brazilian had the ability to be mesmerising and frustrating at the same time. His attitude problems resulted in him falling out with both managers he played under. He also struggled to adapt to life in Manchester calling it "an awful place to live".
These off-field problems meant that Robinho played only 53 games for the Manchester side, scoring 16 goals. Unable to settle in Manchester, he went on loan to Santos before making a permanent move to AC Milan.
The hype surrounding him rivalled stars like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, but he never managed to live up to his potential.
#4 Andriy Shevchenko
Andriy Shevchenko was perhaps the most feared marksman in Europe when he arrived at Stamford Bridge in 2006. Chelsea’s £30m outlay made him the most expensive player bought by an English club at the time.
Despite scoring on his debut, Shevchenko seemed just a shadow of the player he was at AC Milan. In his two years there, he didn't even make it to double figures in league goals. It was hard to believe that this was the same player who scored goals for fun at Milan and previously at Dynamo Kyiv.
There was talk of him being forced upon Jose Mourinho by Roman Abramovich which is why he was out of favour with the manager. The Ukrainian was loaned back to Milan and eventually finished his career at Dynamo Kyiv.
His plight at Chelsea was a sad sight for all their fans who had such high hopes when he signed for the club.
#3 Andy Carroll
With their coffers freshly full following the £50 million sale of Fernando Torres to Chelsea, Liverpool decided to go all-in for Andy Carroll as his replacement.
Carroll was considered one of the best young players in England so Liverpool stumped up a huge £35 million for his services, making him the most expensive English player at the time. That put huge pressure on a player who had just turned 22.
Unable to handle that pressure, he scored a mere 6 league goals in his three injury-filled seasons at Anfield. A change of manager didn’t help as new boss Brendan Rodgers preferred a more mobile striker to a target man like Carroll.
Unable to break into the first team, he was sent out on loan to West Ham where he later signed on a permanent basis.
#2 Kak
In the summer of 2009, Ricardo Kaká signed for Real Madrid in a jaw-dropping €65 million deal. His signing signalled the beginning of the second Galácticos era at the club.
The Brazilian was voted the FIFA World Player of the Year in 2007 after almost single-handedly leading Milan to the Champions League crown. It seemed a perfect match; one of the best players in the world signing for one of the best clubs in the world.
But to everyone’s surprise, he was unable to recapture that form. We saw glimpses of it, but Kaká was unable to maintain any consistency in his performances. His hefty price tag put him under immense pressure to perform and the persistent injuries that he suffered only added to that burden.
Madrid were so desperate to get rid of him that they let him go to Milan on a free transfer.
#1 Fernando Torres
From being a 20-goals-a season striker to scoring just 20 league goals in four years, Fernando Torres suffered a huge fall from grace. This was after the former Liverpool star made the move to Chelsea in 2011 for a then-British transfer record of £50 million.
He was signed at the peak of his prowess and was expected to hit the ground running. But the pressure of his hefty price tag proved to be too much. He didn’t look like a player who terrorised defenders just a season ago.
He scored one league goal in his first half season there and added just 19 more in a further 96 appearances before being shipped out to AC Milan on loan. Just like that, another top striker was added to the Chelsea striker graveyard.
