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The summer break is not something the fans look forward to. A couple of months devoid of football action can get mundane but the summer transfer window does help keep things interesting. Football fans stay hooked to their devices, scouring through rumours and finding out what their teams are up to in the transfer market.
The Covid-19 pandemic hit clubs hard in a financial sense. As a result, top clubs have had to sell some of their best players. In a sense, the pandemic opened up the market in a massive way. So there was no shortage of transfer activity in the summer of 2021.
Many high-profile players were available for sale and top European sides were ready to break the bank to bring reinforcements to their squads. The summer of 2021 saw several transfer records broken as well. But have all those investments paid dividends? Not really.
Without further ado, let's take a look at five 2021 summer signings who have failed to live up to expectations.
#5 Memphis Depay (Barcelona)
Ronald Koeman was keen to bring Memphis Depay to Barcelona in the summer of 2020. However, the club's awful financial condition stopped them from making a move for the Dutchman. Koeman was finally able to rope him in as a free agent in the 2021 summer transfer window.
Depay got off to a good start to life in Barcelona. But the weight of expectations was perhaps a bit much. After all, he was now the main man in attack for Barcelona and it's difficult to fill the shoes of players like Lionel Messi for obvious reasons.
Depay was expected to be prolific in front of goal. He has impressed in spells but has only eight goals and two assists to his name after making 23 appearances across all competitions for the Catalans. While those numbers are not bad, a club like Barcelona need much more than that from their main forward.
Sport claims Barcelona are now looking to offload Depay in the summer with new manager Xavi open to selling him.
#4 Georginio Wijnaldum (Paris Saint-Germain)
Georginio Wijnaldum had established himself as one of the most efficient central midfielders in Europe at Liverpool. The Merseysiders, however, weren't ready to offer a fresh, lucrative deal to a player who had gone past 30 and decided to let him leave last summer as a free agent.
Paris Saint-Germain swooped in for him and the Dutchman was expected to become a great addition to their midfield. He was impressive for his national side at Euro 2020 as well, scoring three goals in four appearances in the continental competition.
However, Wijnaldum has looked like a shadow of his former self at PSG. Not only has he failed to nail down a starting berth at the club but he has also proven to be an ill-advised signing. He has only started 11 times in Ligue 1 so far, scoring a goal and providing two assists.
Wijnaldum has failed to add much to PSG's midfield and he is already being linked with an exit.
#3 Lionel Messi (Paris Saint-Germain)
Lionel Messi failed to hit the ground running at Paris Saint-Germain. Although he has offered glimpses of his genius, he has not exactly been able to produce matchwinning displays on a regular basis. That is precisely what he was signed for in the summer.
The Argentina international has done well in the Champions League, scoring five goals in five appearances. But his Ligue 1 form has been a cause for concern for Mauricio Pochettino. Messi has scored just a single goal and provided five assists in 11 appearances.
The 34-year-old has more than enough quality to turn things around and be phenomenal for PSG in the second half of the season. They will need him at his best as they prepare to navigate the knockout stages of the Champions League as well. But as of now, Messi has failed to live up to expectations at PSG.
#2 Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea)
Romelu Lukaku was arguably Inter Milan's best player as they won the Serie A title in the 2020-21 season after a 11-year wait. However, due to the Nerazzurri's financial problems, they were forced to part ways with manager Antonio Conte and two star players, Achraf Hakimi and Lukaku.
Lukaku was signed by his former club Chelsea for a club record €115 million. After impressing in his first few games, the Belgian's form has dipped and he has been awful in recent times. To make matters worse, Lukaku revealed in an interview that his heart is still at Inter Milan.
He also suggested that Chelsea were only his fifth-choice club after Inter Milan, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. The Stamford Bridge faithful, who had celebrated their former player's return in the summer, were naturally miffed by his comments.
Amid calls for him to be sold, Thomas Tuchel has continued to deploy Lukaku but his on-field form hasn't improved much. Having signed him for a sum in excess of €100 million, Chelsea would have expected Lukaku to be prolific in front of goal.
He has scored eight goals and provided two assists in 22 appearances across all competitions so far this term.
#1 Jadon Sancho (Manchester United)
Manchester United had lacked a specialist at right-wing for years. That's why Jadon Sancho was their primary transfer target heading into the 2021 summer transfer window. At the end of a drawn-out transfer saga, Manchester United got their man for €85 million.
He had scored 16 goals and provided 20 assists in 38 appearances across all competitions for Borussia Dortmund in the 2020-21 season. As such, Sancho was expected to light up Old Trafford. But he has been one of Manchester United's most underwhelming signings in recent times.
The Englishman has scored a total of two goals and has provided zero assists after making 23 appearances across all competitions for the Red Devils. But at the age of 21, he still has a long way to go and a lot to learn.
Sancho definitely has the quality but he will need to start delivering soon or he will go down in history as one of the biggest transfer flops in the history of Manchester United.
