10 footballers whose careers dipped after joining Arsenal

Arsenal have been a well-known club for a long time, but even more so since Arsene Wenger assumed the reins of the club in 1996. Wenger's philosophy helped in the creation of one of the best Premier League teams the world has ever seen: The Invincibles.

'The Professor' has had the privilege of managing some of the peerless footballers of their era. Thierry Henry, Patrick Viera, Dennis Bergkamp and many others have become household names all over the world. Yet, the quality of the Frenchman's squad has faded vastly due to lack of spending in the transfer market.

Wenger is more like Sir Alex Ferguson when it comes to bringing in new players. He would go for a cheap player and make him better rather than buy an established talent. But, like his Scottish counterpart, Wenger also has been accused of destroying good talents due to wrong decisions.

Most of the players who had their careers affected were at the club during the Invincibles era. One cannot blame Wenger totally, but the lack of required minutes combined with his inaccurate decisions did see the downfall of some players at the Emirates.

Let's take a look at 10 such players who could have had better careers if not for the unfortunate circumstances at Arsenal.

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#10: Igors Stepanovs

Stepanovs(red) was signed as a replacement for the injured Tony Adams.

Following an injury to captain Tony Adams, Igors Stepanovs was signed by Arsene Wenger for £1.35 million in 2000.The Latvian defender scored in a 2-1 debut defeat to Ipswich Town in the League Cup. But his fairytale at the Highbury was destined to be cut short.

In a game versus bitter rivals Manchester United, Stepanovs put up a horrible performance as Arsenal were humiliated 6-1 by the Red Devils. As a result, Arsenal's title hopes were hit hard after the loss. That probably seemed to be the last straw for his end.

Stepanovs never featured regularly after that game, being hit by a serious loss of confidence. One bad game never defines a player but that was quite the opposite with the Latvian defender. Wenger never trusted him enough after that fateful match. He was also loaned out in his last year to Beveren.

Stepanovs could have improved had Wenger showed trust in him. The Latvian left Arsenal after a torrid four-year-spell, making only 31 appearances for the Gunners. But, Stepanovs never managed to resurrect his career, changing a host of clubs after Arsenal and failing to stabilize himself.

#9: Stephen Hughes

Hughes playing for Arsenal.

Stephen Hughes was the backbone of an Arsenal midfield, after joining the Gunners in his youth. But his playing time seemed to last much shorter than expected.

Hughes played in the time when the Invincibles squad was just under construction. The English midfielder failed to establish himself as the first-choice midfielder amongst Emmanuel Petit, Patrick Viera, Marc Overmars and Freddie Ljungberg.

He seemed to be another victim of downfall due to inadequate minutes on the pitch. The Englishman was always left out of crunch clashes and then loaned to Fulham in 1999. Hughes left the following year to revive his career with Everton but failed to do so.

Once a youngster at Arsenal, he scored 7 goals in 76 appearances in his five-year stint with the Gunners.

#8: Mathieu Debuchy

Debuchy hasn't featured much after joining the Gunners in 2014.

Frenchman Mathieu Debuchy shook hands with Arsene Wenger after making a name at Newcastle United. Arsenal signed the right-back for £12 million in July 2014.

Still biding his time at the Emirates, Debuchy looks nowhere near the form that convinced Wenger to sign him three years ago. The French left-back has already fallen behind Hector Bellerin as the first-choice right back at the Emirates.

Debuchy has also claimed that he doesn't get on quite well with his boss after Wenger blocked his move to rivals Manchester United. To top the pile, the Arsenal manager still seems to keep Debuchy unused even after blocking his move to rivals.

Wenger sent Debuchy on loan to Bordeaux last year and the Frenchman is keen on moving out due to lack of game time. Arsene is surely being unjust with the Frenchman, not letting him move and keeping him unused at the Emirates.

#7: Marouane Chamakh

Chamakh was never a fit in the 4-3-3 formation with Van Persie in the squad.

Marouane Chamakh joined Arsenal on a Bosman transfer in July 2010. The Moroccan forward had caused a stir with French outfit Bordeaux before joining the Gunners. He was another bright prospect who found his career go down the spiral with limited minutes on the pitch.

Chamakh started his career admirably well, replacing the injured Robin Van Persie. But, the tables turned on him after Van Persie returned to the squad in the form of his life. Spectacular performances from the star Dutchman saw Chamakh being sidelined to the fringes.

Arsenal played a 4-3-3 formation during those times and the Moroccan was asked to fill in as a winger instead of being a centre-forward. Playing second-fiddle to Robin Van Persie harmed his potential considerably. A bright talent that once showed the hopes of being the best, Chamakh moved to Crystal Palace in 2013 in search of first-team football.

In his three years at Arsenal, Chamakh appeared only 40 times and mustered 8 goals. Chamakh should never have been bought in the first place, owing to the formation used by Arsene Wenger. But, that's what the Moroccan forward was destined to be -- an incomplete and unfinished article.

#6: Francis Jeffers

Francis Jeffers joined Arsenal during the Invincibles era.

Francis Jeffers rejected a new contract at Everton to join Arsenal in 2001 following a £8 million deal. However, the Englishman never had the mettle to battle against the Invincibles at Arsenal.

The starting XI consisted of the legendary Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, Freddie Ljungberg, and Patrick Viera. Jeffers being the most inexperienced, found it hard to win a starting berth under Wenger.

With the few chances he was given, the English forward failed to impress. Jeffers failed to live up to the tag of 'fox-in-the-box' he had earned at Goodison Park. Also, he had a fall-out with Emmanuel Petit at Arsenal and was forced to serve a loan spell later with former employers Everton.

The English forward escaped in 2004 with just 4 goals in 22 appearances after three years at Arsenal. Jeffers later stated that he regretted joining the Gunners, and was never quite the same after he left them.

#5: Nelson Vivas

Nelson Vivas got more criticism than he deserved which lead to his Arsenal exit.

Arsene Wenger signed Nelson Vivas as a backup for inveterate defence duo Lee Dixon and Nigel Winterburn. His first team chances were already scarce with Arsenal fielding a plethora of talented players at Highbury.

If anybody remembers Vivas, it has to be the fateful match against Leeds United in 1999. The Argentine defender became a scapegoat for more criticism than he deserved regarding his blunder.

In the fixture against Leeds, Vivas came on as an 81st-minute substitute for the injured Winterburn. The Argentine failed to mark Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink who scored the winner in the dying minutes of the fixture. However, Vivas was condemned for being the reason Arsenal were thrown out of the title race in 1999. Wenger did no good by further criticizing the defender publicly in the media.

The match was easily in the bag had Arsenal not missed the host of chances they produced during the game. Also, Vivas was trying to mark multiple players when Hasselbaink scored the goal.

To top his woes, Vivas missed a penalty in the shootout against Middlesborough in the League Cup as Arsenal crashed out of the competition. The Argentine was unjustly deemed as a failure at Highbury and left the Gunners after his three-year-spell, making only 61 appearances.

#4: Jose Antonio Reyes

Reyes could not live up to the expectations at Arsenal.

Arsene Wenger is not known to be a lavish spender when it comes to transfers. However, the Frenchman did shake the Arsenal coffers after signing Sevilla's in-form 20-year-old winger Jose Antonio Reyes for £10.5M in 2003.

Many would argue that Reyes wasn't a failure at the Emirates after winning an FA Cup medal and a Premier League medal in England. The Spaniard also ended as a runner-up with the Gunners in the Champions League 2006 final. Reyes made a good amount of appearances and scored goals, but the weight of expectations proved far too heavy compared to his success at Arsenal.

Bad times beaconed for Reyes after the fateful 2-0 loss to Manchester United at Old Trafford. Gary and Phil Neville gave quite a taste of English football to the Spaniard with rough and rash tackles. Circumstances never seemed to improve after that and Reyes was loaned out to Real Madrid.

During his rough time at Highbury, Reyes also stated his desire to leave the club owing to some bad people at Arsenal. Reyes left for Atletico Madrid in 2007 with 69 appearances and 18 goals in three years with the Gunners.

#3: Ryo Miyaichi

Miyaichi was never given enough chances to prove himself at Arsenal.

Branded as 'Ryodinho' in comparison to the Brazilian grandmaster Ronaldinho, Ryo Miyaichi was another youngster who failed to make his mark at the Emirates.

Ryo Miyaichi was signed as a youngster in 2011 by Arsene Wenger. Just 18 at the time of signing, Wenger sent the Japnese winger on loan to Feyenoord where Miyaichi was quick to make an impression. After a successful loan spell with the Dutch side, Bolton was the next stop for the 24-year-old. Miyaichi was a smooth player on the ball, capable of gliding past defenders and breaking the deadlocks when needed.

It is fair to say that Miyaichi needed to go on loan to have playing time and experience. However, the story of his loan spells never seemed to end, with the Arsenal boss sending him out 5 times in his four-year stay at Arsenal.

With the likes of Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade Chamberlain, and Marouane Chamakh in midfield, the Arsenal boss failed to trust the Japanese winger and his uncanny abilities. Miyaichi certainly had his shortcomings, finding it hard to adapt to the physicality of the Premier League was one of them. But, the negatives weren't impossible to overcome had the Japanese played a lot more at the Emirates.

Miyaichi left Arsenal after being frustrated with lack of playing chances. The 24-year-old now plays for second tier German outfit St.Pauli after making only 7 appearances for the Gunners. What a waste of talent!

#2: Carlos Vela

Carlos Vela chose the wrong lane to blossom in his career.

Mexican international Carlos Vela was quite a bargain signed for £500,000 from Guadalajara in 2005. Being one of the hottest youth prospects of his time, little did the youngster know he had chosen the wrong lane.

Carlos Vela's manhandling at the Emirates is perhaps the biggest mistake of Arsene Wenger's managerial career. The young dynamic forward made his way at Arsenal when the Gunners lacked proper firepower. Vela's clinical finishing and sublime long-range goals could have solved the problem for Wenger, who chose to go with Nicklas Bendtner instead.

Of course, the decision was a horrible failure. Yet, Wenger still didn't bat an eye towards the youngster and kept loaning him constantly. Changing roles and managers had a deep impact on Vela's career which began spiralling down.

At 28 years of age, Vela now plays for Spanish outfit Real Sociedad since 2012. In his seven years at Arsenal, the Mexican appeared only 29 times and netted 3 goals while being loaned out four times. It is a pity to see such a talented prospect being wasted due to wrong decisions by the manager.

#1: Andrey Arshavin

Arshavin was deployed a winger rather than a preferred no.10.

Ask any Arsenal fan about Arshavin's best performance in an Arsenal shirt and the 8 goal thriller between the Gunners and Liverpool will pop out as the answer. Arshavin took the Premier League by storm after scoring all four goals against Liverpool that day. However, it is the only beautiful memory we may ever remember related to the unlucky Russian.

Andrey Arshavin joined Arsenal after ten years with Zenit St, Petersburg in 2009 in a record deal worth £15 million. Yes, the Russian did get a handful of games in his four-year stint at the club. But then, what exactly ruined him?

Arshavin was born to play a no.10 role behind the striker. However, Arsene Wenger's tactically genius mind saw him playing on the left wing. Arshavin found it difficult to adjust to his new role and appeared slow and sloppy. Further, he made defensive errors while tracking back and was blamed harshly for goals.

Some players can adjust position changes while some aren't cut out to do it. Arshavin would have been way better playing as the spearhead of Arsenal's attack. But, playing on the left wing ruined his potential and he never reached his full potential at the Emirates.

Arshavin made 105 appearances and scored only 23 goals, rejoining Zenit in 2013. We could have seen a better Andrey Arshavin had he not been misused by Arsene Wenger.