Hassan Chamas


There have been many players that have dipped their feet in the attractive world of Spain’s La Liga, and counting them would be more than just a task and a half. But what about the players whose Spanish stay turned sour? What about the players whose tenures down south were quickly erased from their respective CVs? Without further ado, La Liga’s top ten biggest ever flops:

1) Jonathan Woodgate – Newcastle to Real Madrid – August 2004 – £13.4M

Back when the Madrid version of “The Godfather” – part 1 – was running, Florentino “Vito” Perez came up with the idea of recruiting England’s most injured centre-back in 2004, as a way of shutting up critics who hassled him about the team’s defensive frailties. Woodgate’s first season managed to pass unnoticed, as he was confined to the sidelines due to continuous injuries. When he finally made his debut – a year later – he managed to score an own goal and get sent-off. What a way to start. The England man’s performances did improve later on, but he was quickly shipped back to Premier League side Middlesbrough. Three years as a Madridista; and just nine appearances. No wonder Marca labelled him as the worst signing of the 21st century.

2) Julien Faubert – West Ham to Real Madrid (loan) – January 2009 – £1.5M

Did Faubert really play for Real Madrid? People don’t seem to be convinced he did. Arrived for six months, played 28 minutes of football, slept on the bench during the game against Villarreal, “mistakenly” took a day off, and was even pictured touching his “fruits” in front of the public. Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No it is Faubert’s jet flying back to London.

3) Denilson de Oliveira Araujo – Sao Paolo to Real Betis – July 1998 – £21.5M

It’s one thing to arrive in a new country and try to adapt as soon as possible to its customs. Brazilians and Argentines have been doing it for years. But, what if the transfer is a record-breaker with all the extra attention that brings? Denilson de Oliveira transferred from Sao Paolo to Sevilians Real Betis for a huge £21.5M. The player who really looked like a proper winger, arguably the first since the great Garrincha, found it hard to justify his hefty price tag, and was soon turned into the laughing stock of European football. Why did Denilson, who was idolised all over Brazil long before it was cool to have a Ronaldo 2002 haircut, find it hard to play away from the Tricolor Paulista? Commentators never managed to answer that question, as the 2002 World Cup winner has had a miserable career ever since, playing no more than 30 games for a single club. He travelled the globe in the space of six years, between 2005 and 2009, and not surprisingly, is currently a free agent.

4) Aliaksandr Hleb – Arsenal to Barcelona – July 2008 – €15M

The Belarusian was bought in to help his former Arsenal team-mate Thierry Henry to fill the void left by the departed Ronaldinho. While Henry managed to adapt on the left flank, Hleb’s performances under coach Guardiola raised a few questions as to why this player was acquired in the first place. He only managed to play half of the Camp Nou club’s league games, and half of those were substitute appearances. Eager to see him go, the Blaugrana hierarchy offered him to Inter on loan, but Hleb chose Germany and former club Stuttgart. Certainly no loss to Barcelona.

5) Asier del Horno – Chelsea to Valencia – July 2006 – €8M

Very few people knew who Asier del Horno was to begin with. That is, until the Basque-born full-back scored his first ever goal for La Seleccion – two months after making his debut – against England. After that, the player was flooded with praise and hyped as the solution to Spain’s left-back migraine. His performances gained the eye of Roman Abramovich’s Chelsea, and so he was soon shipped to join the Russian revolution at Stamford Bridge. 12 months and a series of chronic injuries later, del Horno was back home with Valencia. Needless to say, his Mestalla stay also turned into one to forget, as he only played six league games before joining boyhood club Athletic Bilbao on loan. There too the full-back has seemed to regress. A disappointing time for a left-back once touted as Spain’s best.


Atletico Madrid 09/10 Away                 Real Madrid 09/10 Away

Atletico Madrid 09/10 away shirt                        Real Madrid 09/10 away shirt


6) Nikola Zigic – Racing Santander to Valencia – August 2007 – £20M

The 202 cm forward was bought from Racing Santander – and for a hefty price – as support for David Villa. His long posture drew comparisons with Peter Crouch, and with time, the Serb also started to behave like the England man. He never really established himself at Los Che, and possible suitors such as Stoke City, Portsmouth and Galatasaray all expressed interest in this giant. However, he opted to go back on loan to Santander. Now, with Fernando Morientes teaming up with Didier Deschamps once again at Marseille, Zigic has another chance at the Mestalla.

7) Gregory Coupet – Olympique Lyonnais to Atletico Madrid – July 2008 – €1.5M

Pundits raised eyebrows when the French keeper signed for Atletico, especially since the Madrid side had Leo Franco in that position. After initially impressing Javier Aguirre, 36 year-old Coupet was swiftly brushed aside in favour of his Argentine rival. After a fruitless season at the Vicente Calderon, the former Saint-Etienne player returned to his native land with Paris Saint-German.

8) Santiago Ezquerro – Athletic Bilbao to Barcelona – July 2005 – Free transfer

“Santi” Ezquerro left for Barcelona when the summer transfer window opened in 2005, hoping that his performances for the Basque outfit the previous season would earn him a place in Frank Rijkaard’s Barcelona eleven. For the whole of his three-year stay in Catalunya, Santi was nothing more than a bit-part player, featuring in cup matches and lesser league fixtures. His Barcelona nightmare ended when boyhood club Osasuna picked him up on a three-year deal. After his first season at the Rojillos, he managed just nine appearances, and subsequently, his contract was terminated.

9) Jozy Altidore – New York Red Bulls to Villarreal – July 2008 – €7.4M

The future of the United States frontline alongside Freddy Adu, Jozy Altidore took a huge step in his professional career by leaving the MLS to land in Europe, where Villarreal were the luckiest in clinching this wonderkid’s signature. With his transfer fee being the largest ever paid for a player from the US, his first six months with the Yellow Submarine soon turned into a disaster: Altidore played just six games and was swiftly shipped to second division team Xerez. However, the American ended up getting injured and did not make a single appearance for them. Now on loan at Hull City he will hope to put his La Liga nightmare behind him.

10) Rafael van der Vaart – Hamburg SV to Real Madrid – August 2008 – €13M

The potential transfer coup of the last summer, it is hard to work out just why the Dutchman’s move soon tured sour. Bought as a consolation prize after the failed Cristiano Ronaldo attempt, great things were nonetheless predicted for the former Ajax playmaker. After an impressive start to his La Liga career – he recorded an amazing hat-trick in the 7-1 drubbing of Sporting de Gijon – a dip in performance, followed by Wesley Sneijder’s return from injury relegated him to bench-warmer. Coach Bernd Schuster lost faith van der Vaart, his successor Juande Ramos never had any in the first place, and Manuel Pellegrini made it clear that he is surplus to requirements. A terrible fate for such a promising talent.

  Related Articles: