Gone are the days when footballers would play for a single team all their life. One-club men like Paolo Maldini or Javier Zanetti, who symbolise everything their respective clubs stand for, have become a rare breed and are hard to come by these days.
With astronomical wages being offered by clubs to get the services of star players, it is only fair for professionals to choose the more lucrative option. However, when a player switches clubs to play for their rivals, it often infuriates fans and they are often branded as traitors. Loyalty, in football, has little place in modern football with the likes of Ronaldo playing for all four teams involved in both the Milan Derby and El Clasico.
Several players over the years have moved to their most bitter enemies over the years. We take a look at the top ten players who completed the controversial move, forever losing the support of fans of the clubs they left:
#10. Johan Cruyff (Ajax to Feyenoord)
Johan Cruyff returned to Ajax in 1981 where he had developed into one of the world’s best players. He had been the most integral part of the Dutch side which had pioneered ‘Total Football’ in the 70s which brought about a revolution in the game. It was almost at the end of his playing career, but his influence on the game was still undiminished.
Therefore, when Ajax decided not to renew his contract in spite of winning the Eredivisie two seasons in a row from 1981 to 1983, an angry Cruyff completed a controversial move to Ajax’s arch-rivals Feyenoord.
It was like rubbing salt on an open wound when the Dutchman exacted revenge on Ajax by scoring in a 4-1 thrashing by Feyenoord. In his only season at the club, he played in all the league matches except one and guided Feyenoord to the Eredivisie title for the first time in a decade.
#9. Luis Enrique (Real Madrid to Barcelona)
Luis Enrique played almost half of his career at Real Madrid. The current Barcelona manager, who had a glorious career with the Blaugrana had spent eight years in the whites of Real Madrid. However, Luis Enrique could never become an integral part of the Real Madrid side, scoring only 18 goals in 213 matches for Los Blancos.
When he made his move to Catalonia in 1996, Enrique did not go for transfer fees, but he let his contract run out with Real. The midfielder, who was praised for his versatility, would go on to become a regular for Barcelona and was eventually given the captain’s armband.
He won over the hearts of Barcelona fans in spite of him spending so many years at Madrid by often scoring in El Clasico against his former employees. In the Barcelona shirt, Enrique scored 109 goals in 300 matches winning two La Liga trophies in the process. He was appointed the manager of the Barcelona senior team in 2014 after a stint as Barcelona B coach from 2008 to 2011.
#8. Robin Van Persie (Arsenal to Machester United)
Robin van Persie had become one of the deadliest strikers in the Premier League in his last couple of years at Arsenal. Initially signed as a left sided winger for a paltry sum of £2.5 million from Feyenoord, Arsene Wenger developed the Dutchman into a striker who could lead the line for Arsenal after Thierry Henry’s departure. Van Persie matured into a complete striker and was also given the captain’s armband after Cesc Fabregas departed to Barcelona.
In his last season at Arsenal, van Persie scored a massive 37 goals in all competition for the Gunners. But trophies didn’t come by at the Emirates and to the Dutchman. When he refused to sign a contract extension at the Emirates, Manchester United’s the then manager Sir Alex Ferguson lured him to sign for Manchester United with the promise of trophies.
Van Persie joined Manchester United for £24 million in 2012 after having a hugely successful year with Arsenal. He would be influential in guiding the Red Devils to the Premier League title by scoring 26 goals in the process. Though he had infuriated the Arsenal fans, van Persie did not care as he had finally won the league in his first season at his new club. After three years in Manchester, van Persie was sold to Turkish outfit Fenerbahce.
#7. William Gallas (Chelsea to Arsenal to Tottenham)
When William Gallas moved to Arsenal in a swap deal which saw Ashley Cole going the other way, William Gallas was the less hyped transfer of the two. However. Gallas’ move to the Gunners wasn’t without its share of controversy. On completion of the transfer, Chelsea released a scathing statement that Gallas had, in fact, forced a move away from Stamford Bridge and had threatened to score own goals if they did not grant him a transfer.
Gallas’ time at Arsenal was a decent one, but without trophies. While at Chelsea, he was a two-time Premier League champion but had no trophies to show from his time at Arsenal.
Things didn’t end there though as the Frenchman made things worse for himself when he signed for Tottenham in 2010, angering Arsenal fans as well. With his transfer to Spurs, he became the first player to play for Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham- all clubs who couldn’t see eye to eye.
#6. Fernando Torres (Liverpool to Chelsea)
Fernando Torres hurt his legacy at Liverpool when he made a switch to Chelsea in 2010 in the middle of a poor season for the Reds. At his peak, Fernando Torres was a devastating forward, terrorising defences with his pace. However, when a £50 million transfer bid was lodged by the Blues, it proved to be an offer too good to refuse for Liverpool.
Fernando Torres left Anfield on the back of the most expensive transfer in England ever at the time. Much was expected of him at his new club, but the Spaniard flopped miserably. He gave up possession easily and missed goals from point-blank range. El Nino, who had lit up Anfield in the past was nowhere to be seen and he was left a mere shadow of his former self.
Though he won the Champions League and the Europa League with Chelsea, Fernando Torres managed to score only 45 goals for the Blues. He was dispatched to Milan on loan in 2014 and now has returned to his boyhood club Atletico Madrid where he has started showing sparks of his former self.
#5. Carlos Tevez (Manchester United to Manchester City)
Carlos Tevez became a hated figure at Old Trafford when he signed for rivals Manchester City in 2009. Tevez had been a successful and loved player in the red part of Manchester but a failed salary negotiation made Tevez decide to leave the club.
But the club he was about to join was not any other club in another country. It would turn out to be their bitter rivals Manchester City for whom he was signing, become the first player since Terry Cooke in 1999 to make the move from the red to the blue side of the city.
City were obviously jubilant at their new signing and put up a billboard with his name and the words ‘Welcome to Manchester’ which led to Sir Alex Ferguson dubbing City as the ‘noisy neighbours’. The Argentinian’s career at City would go on to become a successful one. He scored with ease at the Etihad and in his third year at the club, Tevez helped his team win their first league title in 44 years. Tevez scored a total of 73 goals in 138 matches for Manchester City. He was signed by Juventus in 2013 at the back of his excellent display in Manchester and now plies his trade for Boca Juniors in Argentina.
#4. Ashley Cole (Arsenal to Chelsea)
’Unhappy with a new contract offer by Arsenal, left-back Ashley Cole moved across London to Stamford Bridge in 2006, with William Gallas moving the other way. Ashley Cole was integral in the Gunners’ ‘Invincibles’ campaign and had already made his name as one of the best left-backs in the world.
Therefore, when Cole was offered a contract which did not meet his demands, Roman Abramovich’s Chelsea were quick to pounce upon the England international and give him all the financial happiness he thought he deserved. Arsenal fans were infuriated by the move with them nicknaming him ‘Cashley’ and would often be booed when he returned to the Emirates Stadium.
However, Cole would go on to have a hugely successful career with the Blues. He established himself as the best left-back of his generation and went on to win four FA Cups, a Premier League and a Champions League in the blue shirt. He was released by Chelsea in 2014 and now plies his trade for MLS side Los Angeles Galaxy.
#3. Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Juventus to Inter Milan)
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is not somebody who shies away from a controversy. After Juventus were stripped of their last two Scudetti and relegated to Serie B following the Calciopoli Scandal in 2006, Ibrahimovic forced a move out of Turin by threatening to pursue legal action against Juventus.
His fan support at Juventus was irrevocably tarnished when he joined Juventus’s biggest rivals and the major instigators behind Juve’s relegation – Inter Milan – on a four-year deal. He made things worse when he vocally said that he was a loyal Interista and had supported them when he was young.
Zlatan was a massive hit at Inter where he won three back-to-back Serie A titles scoring 57 goals in the league in his three years at the club. The Swede was transferred to Barcelona in 2009 in a big-money deal which saw Samuel Eto’o moving the other way. Zlatan would go on to play for Inter’s biggest rival, AC Milan, too, signing for them after a single season in Catalonia.
#2. Sol Campbell (Tottenham to Arsenal)
Sol Campbell came through Tottenham’s youth ranks, making his debut for Spurs at the tender age of 18. He became a mainstay at the Tottenham centre-back for years to come and captained them to a League Cup victory in 1999 but couldn’t help them secure a better league finish than seventh that year.
European football eluded him and Spurs fans understood that a player of his calibre deserved to play in the Champions League when he decided to leave the club after the expiration of his contract. However, little did they know that he was about to join Tottenham’s fiercest enemies Arsenal after his time with them was over. He had said in the past that he would never play for Arsenal and when he went on in search of greener pastures on the other side of the wall, It was seen as a betrayal of the highest order to the fans.
The England international’s time at Highbury would be one for the record books as he seamlessly incorporated himself in the Arsenal defence. He won two Premier League titles and three FA Cups in his time with the Gunners and was also a major part of the ‘Invincibles’ in the 2003-2004 season.
However, the move to Arsenal had earned him the title of ‘Judas’ by the Spurs fans and he was hated by them for years after he had joined their rivals.
#1. Luis Figo (Barcelona to Real Madrid)
When Fiorentino Perez became the club president of Real Madrid in 2000, he launched the famed Galacticos era at Santiago Bernabeu by signing at least one star player every summer. Luis Figo, who was one of the best players in the world, was signed from sworn enemies Barcelona in a world record transfer fee.
Figo had spent five years in a Barcelona shirt and was revered by the Catalan fans. However, the move to Real Madrid took place without any player at the club really knowing about it. It broke Catalan hearts when the fan's beloved Portuguese decided to join their arch rival in such a controversial manner.
For Real Madrid, the move was viewed as a great success in establishing their financial superiority over Barcelona. When Figo returned to Camp Nou in October to play in El Clasico, he was jeered and taunted with Barca fans screaming “Die Figo!”
However, Figo was very successful for Los Blancos too and won two La Liga titles and a Champions League before moving to Inter Milan in 2005.
