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Michael Carrick
Manchester United shelled out £18million in 2006 to bring the England international to Old Trafford from Tottenham. Nearly a decade on and the investment looks more like a bargain.
Carrick has, over the years, more than justified his price-tag and become the bedrock in the middle of the pitch upon which United have built their success. Even at the age of 33, the former England international makes his subtle presence felt and the stats don’t lie about it.
Louis van Gaal had a difficult time getting-off to a good start without the influence of Carrick in the middle. The opening nine games were without the ex-West ham prodigy, which saw the Red Devils win only three whilst conceding 13 goals. Another injury saw him miss 6 weeks, from late February to almost the end of March.
United have only lost one of the 17 games the 33-year-old midfielder has started this season.
Andy Carroll
The opening day of the season saw Andy Carroll looking on from the stands nursing an injury. Nine months later when the curtains came down on the season for the Hammers with a 2-0 defeat at Newcastle, the scene hadn’t changed much. The pony-tailed striker was still looking on from the stands, nursing another setback.
After making a late start to the campaign in November, torn ligaments in his left knee meant that the Geordie would have to prematurely blow the candles out for the season. The big forward made only 14 appearances for the Hammers, scoring 5 goals.
Since moving from Liverpool three seasons for a hefty sum of £15 million, the Londoners are yet to see the England international repay them, having registered 53 games for the Upton Park outfit in his three seasons there.
Lorenzo Insigne
A 4-2 loss on the final day of Serie A meant that the North Italian town of Naples won’t be a fixture in the Champions League next season. However, this shouldn’t have come to pass if Napoli and Rafa Benitez had their say in the injury department.
Napoli fans feared the worst when local favourite Lorenzo Insigne went down in a heap in November. Their fears were confirmed to be true when it was announced after further tests on the forward that he had indeed ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. This should have meant the end of the season for the Italian but, in an amazing comeback, the talented Insigne was back on the pitch by February.
However, the damage had been done. In the 17 games that he missed in the Serie A, Rafa Benitez saw his side go on a winless run of four games, which was a far cry from the dominant Partenopei that had the beating of both Fiorentina as well as Roma, before Insigne’s untimely departure. The last day heartbreak was just the final nail in their coffin.
