#2 Hernan Crespo
Hernan Crespo is one of the few players in world football who can boast of the title of having been the “most expensive player” at one point in time.
A very impressive start to a career in Italy saw him score 80 goals in 151 appearances for Parma and notch a trophy in the form of the Italian Super Cup. This saw Lazio pay a then massive £35m for the striker who went on to pull similar numbers for them, scoring 58 goals in just 73 appearances.
(Video Courtesy: CFCVideos)
After a brief spell at Inter Milan, he moved to Claudio Ranieri’s Chelsea and scored only 13 goals in 43 appearances. With Ranieri’s sacking and the arrival of Jose Mourinho from Porto, he was deemed surplus to requirements at the Bridge and loaned out to AC Milan.
Though he did recapture some of his previous form at the Rossoneri, scoring 2 goals in that ill-fated Champions League final against Liverpool, he never hit the potential he showed while at Lazio and Parma.
He was released by the Blues upon the expiry of his contract in 2008 and he had further spells at Inter Milan, Genoa and Parma, where he failed to impress and mostly took up the role of a fringe player.