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There are many things to take in to account when appraising the success of a club’s signings. I’ve had to look at both their on and off field record and balance the two in choosing a top three for each club during the Premier League years. On the field, I took in to account number of appearances and achievements and off the field it was things like purchase price, profit and dressing room impact. So, here we go:
This is by far the most successful period in Swansea’s history and they’ve done brilliantly in the market since promotion, but it’s 3 stalwarts who make this list.
Leon Britton
How many players in the top flight can say that they played for a team that only just kept itself in the Football League and then ten years later, at the same club, without leaving, you lift the first major trophy in club history? Well, that man is Leon Britton. He was picked up after being released from West Ham with questions about his size but he more than made up for it with his metronomic passing and workrate.
Ashley Williams
Signed from Stockport for just £400,000, Williams was regarded as one of the better defenders outside of the top flight for a few years, but since promotion he has taken his game on to a level where he can be realistically linked to Liverpool and even Arsenal and it makes sense. Tough, rugged and a superb leader.
Angel Rangel
Rangel was brought over from Spain for £50,000 by Roberto Martinez in 2007. Since then, he has been the best right back in League One and the Championship and has then looked just as comfortable in the Premier League. A canny, clever player who uses his head rather than his pace, he is just as good going forward as at the back. He’s also an active member of the local community.
Spurs
For the first 10 years or so of the Premier League, Spurs signed as many duds as anyone. They know how to pick a winger though.
Bale is the best player Spurs have had in the Premier League and is one of the best players in the world. He was signed as an 18-year-old leftback from Southampton for £10m and he has since developed in to one of the most dangerous attacking assets in the world game. His searing pace and dribbling are now complimented by goals of all kinds. How good does that £10m look now?
Darren Anderton
Anderton was a prime prospect at Portsmouth when Spurs signed him for £1.75m in 1992. He stayed for 12 years and played the best part of 300 games. Despite the reputation of being a ‘sicknote’, he managed to play over 80% of possible games for the club, usually as part of a front three or wide in a 442. A stellar servant to the club and much underrated.
David Ginola
Ginola had already made a name for himself at Newcastle but he played the best football of his career at Spurs. In 1999, Ginola won the Footballer of the Year, Goal of the Season and the League Cup. He cost just £2.5m from Newcastle after Dalglish cast him aside. Ginola was overloaded with flair and creativity and had a fine line in goals and assists. He personified the type of football that Spurs fans expect to see.
West Brom
West Brom have lived up to the ‘boing boing’ mantra, bouncing between the top and second tiers, but they’ve found some great value.
Chris Brunt
Brunt was a much desired player at Sheffield Wednesday and it was considered something of a coup for West Brom to win the race for his services in 2007 for £3m. Since then, he has racked up over 200 games for the club in two divisions in a variety of positions. He was signed as a technical wide midfielder and has developed in to a central midfield playmaker. His hard work has always stood out alongside his ability to create chances.
Jonas Olsson
Olsson makes the list as the best example of West Brom’s vastly underrated scouting prowess. He was brought over from NEC of Holland for £800,000 in 2008 and has since matured in to one of the best defenders in the league. A resolute and rugged defender who specialises in winning aerial duels, he is worth north of £10m now and is part of the surprisingly strong Baggies team of the last few years.
Bob Taylor
A bit old school this. Taylor signed for West Brom in 1992 for a 6-year spell and then returned in 2000 for a further 3 years. During the course of his combined decade at the club, he became a firm fan favourite because of his hard work and down to earth approach, quite apart from his goals. He scored over 100 goals, including some very important ones as they scrapped up to the Premier League for the first time. ‘Trigger’ cost a combined £400,000 all told and came to support the club he played for.
West Ham
West Ham have a pretty poor record in the markets, having sold lots of talent and being punished for not replacing it.Paolo Di Canio
Di Canio was a truly inspired signing by Harry Redknapp. After the controversy at Sheffield Wednesday, the Owls were desperate to get rid of him and ate a big loss. West Ham pounced on him for £1.7m and he found his home. The fans idolised him and he reciprocated with the best football of his life. He scored 48 goals in 118 games, which is the most by a Hammer in the Premier League.
Trevor Sinclair
Of all players, it is only Trevor Sinclair who features on this list twice. Sinclair looked like a star to be at QPR and carried on where he left off after moving to West Ham for £2.7m in 1998. He is second only to Di Canio in West Ham’s goal scoring ranks, a massively impressive feat for a wide midfielder. He played with a desire and passion for the club that connected with the fans. His form at the club got him England recognition to the point where he started at World Cup 2002.
Thomas Repka
Repka was raw and a little hot headed but he played, appropriately, with iron will. Like Di Canio, he connected with the fans on an emotional level which brought performances out him. He gained particular popularity when, unlike other big names, he remained loyal to the club when they were relegated in 2003, to lead the club in the Championship. Whole hearted and very rugged but a key man.
Wigan charged up the lower leagues before competing manfully in the Premier League on an increasingly tight budget.
Charles N’Zogbia
Without N’Zogbia, Wigan wouldn’t be in the Premier League. In the 2010/11 season, N’Zogbia was at times a one man team and it was his moment of inspiration that won that critical game against West Ham which kept them up. N’Zogbia joined as a much coveted player for £6m in January 2009 and proved spectacular value.
Nathan Ellington
He was terrible, at Watford he was beyond terrible, everywhere he went after Wigan but at the Latics he was incredible. He cost a then club record £1.2m in 2002 and scored goals galore to lead them to the Premier League. During their title winning 2004/05 season, he was the top scorer in the land.
Jimmy Bullard
Bullard came as a hot prospect from Peterborough and blossomed in to the string puller in Wigan’s team which took the third and then second tier by storm. At £275,000 he represented excellent value as he registered 145 games before being sold on for £2.5m. His jocular image belied an inner grit and determination to win and he displayed his passion for the club.
