Top 5 transfers in the modern era that failed to click

When Angel di Maria left Manchester United for Paris Saint-Germain a fortnight ago, United fans were angered and took to social media to express their disappointment about how the transfer affected the club, its fans and also the famous number 7 jersey. It was a transfer that many thought will bring laurels back to United. But it wasn't meant to be.In recent times, we have seen many deals that didn’t meet the initial expectations of the club. Be it for injuries, poor form, unsettlement or any other reason, the player failed to deliver in his time with the club which forced him to search for new pastures in order to revive his career.And as we near the close of the transfer window for this summer, apart from Di Maria’s one year spell at United, we look at the other top five transfers in the history of club football that never clicked.

#5 Rio Ferdinand - Manchester United to Queens Park Rangers

Ferdinand hung up his boots from professional football after QPR

Rio Ferdinand’s career took a complete downfall when he signed for Queens Park Rangers on a one-year contract in 2014 after being released by Manchester United. Having made over 700 Premier League appearances and having won 81 England caps, 6 Premier League titles and a Champions League medal, Ferdinand has been named as one of England’s most successful players over his brilliant career.

• However, since joining Queens Park Rangers after he was released by United, his career fizzled out and after failing to impress during the club’s opening 7 games, the 36-year-old was either benched, suspended or failed to make the squad on most occasions. In October 2014, Ferdinand confirmed in an interview that he would retire at the end of the season, saying "I'm not fearful of retirement, I'm looking forward to it, I can see some good stuff hopefully happening ahead".
• In May 2015, following their relegation, QPR announced the release of Ferdinand in the summer. He made only 12 appearances in his only season with the club. On 30 May 2015, Ferdinand announced his retirement from professional football, three days after leaving QPR.
• A lot was expected from Ferdinand by QPR when theY signed the experienced defender, but a horrendous season for the club in which they were relegated, meant that Ferdinand’s contract was not renewed and he had already decided to retire having made just 12 appearances for the club. It’s a shame, given just how much he has achieved in his career.

#4 Abou Diaby - Auxerre to Arsenal

Diaby’s time in Arsenal was woeful as he was plagued by injuries

In 2006, Arsenal bought Abou Diaby from French club Auxerre for around £2 million in the January transfer window. Having signed for the club, the midfielder was given the number 2 shirt, which was left vacant after the retirement of Lee Dixon.

Abou Diaby was once expected to be the next big thing at Arsenal, but during his ten seasons at the club, Diaby was always affected by injuries every season. He made only 180 appearances for the club in his decade-long career at the Emirates scoring 19 goals and assisting 16. The Frenchman was always a victim of injuries and following several seasons on the sidelines and making 22 appearances in the last four seasons for the club he was released by the London outfit.

Coming into the club as a promising 19-year-old, Diaby’s career never really kicked off and finally moved back to his homeland as he signed for Marseille.

#3 Rafael van der Vaart - Hamburger SV to Real Madrid

Van Der Vaart was forced to leave due to lack of playing time after two seasons at the Bernabeu

Rafael van der Vaart who has recently signed with Real Betis was once an employee of Real Madrid. In 2008, Hamburg sold van der Vaart to the European giants Real Madrid for a fee of about €13 million, making him the only signing for the Madrid outfit in that summer transfer window.

The Dutchman spent only two seasons at the club in which he made 73 appearances and scored 12 goals. In his first season with the club, coach Juande Ramos used van der Vaart as an impact substitute, which led to speculations of a fall-out between coach and player. He made 42 appearances in which he scored just 5 goals.

In his second season at Real, newly appointed manager Manuel Pellegrini stated that the Netherlands midfielder wasn’t a part of his plans going forward which led to numerous transfer rumours as he was linked with clubs like Arsenal, Chelsea, and Liverpool.

But the player denied having any links with the English clubs and stayed on with Real for another year where he made 31 appearances and scored 7 goals. But with the purchase of Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaka, van der Vaart was seen as a surplus to the needs at the Bernabeu and he was eventually sold to Tottenham Hotspur in 2010 for a reported fee of £8 million.

The Dutchman always maintained that he wanted to stay with Madrid for a longer period, but with the lack of chances in the first team, he was forced to leave.

#2 Wesley Sneijder - Ajax to Real Madrid

Sneijder made 66 appearances overall for Real Madrid

Wesley Sneijder’s transfer from Ajax to Real Madrid in 2007 for €27 million made him the second most expensive Dutch player at the time and was expected to reap rewards for the Madrid outfit but it turned out to be a mismatch with his two seasons at the club eventually ending with the Dutchman only making 66 appearances before being sold to Inter Milan in 2009.

At Madrid, Sneijder was given the number 23, which had been previously worn by David Beckham for four seasons. Even though he scored the winner in his first appearance in La Liga for Madrid in the Madrid Derby against Atletico Madrid and scored two goals against Villarreal, one of them on a direct free-kick, he was never a favourite to start at the club. He did manage to score 9 goals in his first season which also saw Los Blancos retain the La Liga title.

But coming into the second season in August 2008, Sneijder was stretchered off in the pre-season friendly at Arsenal with a suspected cruciate ligament injury after a collision with Abou Diaby. The Dutchman was expected to be out for at least three months but managed to come back early.

On 2 September 2008, after Robinho's departure to Manchester City for €42 million, Real Madrid confirmed on their website that Sneijder would wear no. 10. His previous number, 23, was taken over by his fellow Dutchman and former Ajax teammate Rafael van der Vaart. His second season with the capital club was disappointing as he scored only 2 goals and assisted 2 in 28 appearances playing in the number 10 role.

With Madrid rooting for changes bringing in Ronaldo and Kaka, Sneijder was forced off to join Inter, ending his two disappointing seasons in Madrid and therefore he ranks at number 2 in out list.

#1 Zlatan Ibrahimovic - Inter Milan to Barcelona

Ibrahimovic survived only one season with the Blaugranas

In 2009, Zlatan Ibrahimovi signed a 5-year contract with Barcelona for €46 million for the exchange of Eto'o (valued at €20 million) and with a €250-million release clause. Eventually, Ibrahimovi cost Barcelona about €69.5 million which included other fees. The Swede was joining a club known for its beautiful play and he could not manage to fit into the team with the likes of Lionel Messi, Bojan, Andres Iniesta, Xavi, already established into the side.

Barcelona’s playing style was not suited for Zlatan playing as the lone striker and coach Guardiola played him in the wing positions which the player did not like and it ended up in spats between the two on numerous occasions.

With Messi already an established star under Guardiola, there was friction between the two massive egos since the Sweden international arrived at the Nou Camp, although the tipping point came when Messi allegedly demanded a change of tactics from Pep Guardiola. Stating in his book, “I Am Zlatan” in 2011, Ibrahimovic said "It started well but then Messi started to talk. He wanted to play in the middle, not on the wing, so the system changed from 4-3-3 to 4-5-1. I was sacrificed and no longer had the freedom on the pitch I need to succeed."

Zlatan spent just one season at the club where he was used as a substitute on many occasions, which the player did not like. He made 46 appearances for Barca in his only season at the club and scored 22 goals.

His spats with Guardiola, his love for cars and inability to play with the Barcelona tactics meant that he was loaned to AC Milan in 2010 and eventually sold for €24 million only in the next season, incurring a loss for the Catalan side.