10 footballers who did nothing for the clubs they signed for

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Manchester United v Southampton FC - Premier League
Manchester United v Southampton FC - Premier League

#4 Bebe | Manchester United

Ajax Cape Town v Manchester United - Pre-season Friendly
Ajax Cape Town v Manchester United - Pre-season Friendly

Alex Ferguson and the higher-ups at Manchester United rarely made mistakes when it came to player transfers, but Bebe was perhaps one of the rare exceptions. On August 2010, the footballer was signed, and by 2011, he had gone on loan. In 2012, he went on loan again, and then it happened again the following year. Finally, in 2014, Benfica bought the underperforming footballer for €3 million, nearly a third of what the Reds had paid for him.

The footballer managed to make just seven appearances for Manchester United during his four-year stay with the club, scoring two goals. Notably, all his appearances took place in his debut season. The winger never made another official appearance for the club again, aside from friendlies.


#3 Danny Drinkwater | Chelsea

Chelsea v Tottenham Hotspur - Premier League 2
Chelsea v Tottenham Hotspur - Premier League 2

Chelsea's reasons for buying Danny Drinkwater are somewhat understandable. Leicester City had just won the league and clubs were itching to purchase their best footballers, including Drinkwater, N'Golo Kante, and Riyad Mahrez. While Kante and Mahrez have gone on to perform for their new sides, that hasn't been the case with Drinkwater, who Chelsea bought for £35 million in 2017.

His five-year contract is coming to an end but Drinkwater has only played a grand total of 23 games for the club, most of which came in his first season. He has spent the last four seasons on loan at different football clubs and is currently plying his trade at Reading in the English Championship.


#2 Julien Faubert | Real Madrid

West Ham United v Stoke City - Premier League
West Ham United v Stoke City - Premier League

Although he struggled due to injury during his first season at West Ham, Julien Faubert somehow looked like the best option for Los Blancos, who decided to get him on a loan deal. The story inspired a TV drama and got his agent nicknamed David Copperfield, but in reality, it was one of Madrid's worst signings ever.

While West Ham made off with £1.5 million, Faubert went off to Real Madrid and ended up playing just two games for the club. Unsurprisingly, his loan spell finished rather quickly and the star moved back to West Ham where he would blossom for a couple of years.


#1 Alexis Sanchez | Manchester United

Manchester United v Southampton FC - Premier League
Manchester United v Southampton FC - Premier League

It looked like a match made in heaven when Alexis Sanchez began playing for Arsenal. Before long, he was the club's star player, aiding them to two FA Cup wins and a Community Shield in the 3.5 seasons he spent at the football club. A move to Manchester United, however, was perhaps his biggest mistake.

Simply unable to rekindle the goalscoring fire he enjoyed at Arsenal, the footballer scored only three goals in his debut season and two in his second. That's five goals in 45 appearances for the Red Devils. Understandably, he was loaned out to Inter where he eventually moved to on a permanent transfer.

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