Every footballer dreams of making an impact at the club that they’re plying their trade for and make a mark. Footballers want to be remembered by the fans and peers alike for scoring winning goals in finals, putting their bodies on the line to secure a result and giving it their all to ensure that the club remains successful.
Footballers are after all, human beings. The cheers from the crowd pump them up, the boos likewise affect their morale. They don’t want to be the ones held responsible for poor results; the heartbreak on their faces when a mistake is made visible for all to see.
Thus, there are those like Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, John Terry, Thierry Henry, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and few other players who will forever be remembered as legends at their clubs for all they gave to it, both on the pitch and off it. Their legacy will leave a lasting impact for generations to come, inspiring younger players to join the academy ranks and the more ‘established’ ones to push the club to further glories.
However there are also those who ruined their reputation and legacy through various means – be it drug abuse, joining rival clubs or a host of other reasons.
Here is our list of 5 footballers who effectively ruined all that they’d worked to achieve, courtesy of some poor decision making.
#5 Cesc Fabregas
Cesc Fabregas was one of the most talented individuals to ever graduate from Arsenal’s academy and made his first-team debut at the age of just 16 after Wenger acquired him from Barcelona.
Wenger had so much faith in the Spanish midfielder’s abilities that he shipped club legend, Patrick Viera off to Juventus to make space for him in the team. Unfortunately for the Spaniard, he became a mainstay in the team after the Invincibles’ season, and at a time when the club were struggling to pay off debts for their new Emirates stadium.
He thus ended up winning only an FA Cup with the Gunners and watched as the quality of the squad deteriorated and they simply managed to just qualify for the Champions League each season.
A part of the team that lost the Champions League final to Barcelona in 2006, he eventually began to agitate towards a move to Barcelona – the club where he’d had his initial footballing education – and the Gunners faithful were angered when he tried to force through a move.
He eventually got his wish in 2011 and though he won the La Liga, the Copa Del Ray and a few other titles with the Catalans, expectations were much higher of him, with fans booing him during matches on quite a few occasions.
He sealed his fate as a ‘traitor’ amongst Gunners fans when he then ended up moving to bitter London-rivals, Chelsea; made worse by the fact he joined them under Jose Mourinho’s tenure, a man the Arsenal faithful hated with a passion.
#4 Paolo Di Canio
Perhaps history’s most likeable fascist, Di Canio began his career at Lazio. After a mixed spell at Juventus, Napoli and Milan – where he won the league and narrowly missed out on the Champions League – he went to Britain to play for West Ham United and mesmerised fans at the London club.
Di Canio was so good for the Hammers that Alex Ferguson tried to sign him for United, but the Italian would return to his homeland, where his politics would once again land him in hot water; performing a fascist salute in front of Lazio fans.
Eventually becoming a manager, he was hired to be Sunderland’s boss in a bid to survive what has now become a yearly battle against relegation; this prompted the resignation of club vice-chairman, David Miliband. Though he did help the Mackems escape the drop-down, he was fired just 5 games into the next season.
In 2016, he hit the headlines once again, this time displaying a tattoo on Italian dictator, Benito Mussolini, and he was suspended by Sky Italia with immediate effect.
#3 Michael Owen
Owen was a true phenomenon for Liverpool, adored by the faithful as he’d been one of their own. The Englishman came through the youth ranks before eventually making his first-team debut at the age of 17. Between the ages of 18 and 24, he scored 117 league goals in 7 seasons of top-flight football and is still the last Englishman to have won the Ballon d’Or.
He left a sour taste in the mouths of everyone associated with club when he left on a free to Real Madrid in 2004; a blow lessened by the fact that the Reds would go on to win the Champions League under Rafa Benitez that season, a trophy Owen failed to win in his career. His stint at the Los Blancos was short-lived, however, hampered by injuries and overall failing to consistently impress at the level required to play for the Spanish giants.
He ended up moving back to English shores just a year later and signing for Newcastle United, where he again failed to recapture the form that saw him heralded as one of the best strikers of the modern game, scoring only a further 32 league goals in the next 8 seasons.
He became universally hated amongst all Liverpool fans when he signed for bitter-rivals Manchester United, popularly scoring an all-important ‘Fergie time’ goal that saw United run out 4-3 winners against City at Old Trafford.
Owen has been criticsed even after retiring as a player as his punditry has been often ridiculed, with his commentary regarded as one of the most boring and mundane in the sport today.
#2 Franz Beckenbauer
Arguably Germany’s greatest ever player, Beckenbauer won 5 Bundesliga titles and 3 European Cups, also picking up the Ballon d'Or twice in his 14 years with Bayern Munich. Der Kaiser also became a World and European Champion with Germany, leaving everyone in awe with splendid performances from his sweeper post. He’s also one of just 2 persons (along with Mario Zagallo) to have won the World Cup as both a player and a manager.
However, he has recently found himself right in the middle of FIFA’s crackdown on corruption, with the German icon being probed for fraud and money laundering in his leading role to hosting the World Cup to Germany in 2006. His house was raided and the investigation is still ongoing as the German federation published a report linking the famous captain to possibly the most hated man in world football in Sepp Blatter.
#1 Michel Platini
The only person who could possibly rival Sepp Blatter for the title of ‘most hated man among footballing fraternity,’ currently is Michel Platini.
The Frenchman was one of the best players to ever grace a football pitch, winning innumerable personal accolades and trophies in a career spanning across Nancy, Saint-Etienne and Juventus. Platini won the Ballon d’Or 3 years on the bounce from 1983-1985 whilst at Juventus; a record that was only recently broken by Lionel Messi. He also won a European Championship for his country and was one of the most well-respected footballers of his time.
After taking up a role in the football politics, he’s been mired in controversy and has been charged with corruption in the sport alongside Blatter. The former UEFA president was banned from football for 8 years and the ethics committee stated that, ‘Platini lacked respect for the laws and regulations of the organisation.’ Not content with the corruption permeating FIFA, he was also involved in Greece’s football scandal as well as being named in the Panama papers.
He is undoubtedly the epitome of a footballer who ruined his legacy in the sport.
