Players from Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea all feature in our ‘must-do-better’ category.
Here is a list of players who are simply not performing to the high standards they have previously set themselves. Let us know what you think.
Louis Saha
The Frenchman on his day can be a real handful and present problems for any defence. The problem is it has not been his day for around 18 months now. Everton fans were glad to see the back of him, and on current form his move to Spurs is quite perplexing. He needs to put in some good performances for Spurs otherwise the move will instantly be seen as a flop.
Andrei Arshavin
The Russian has been below his high standards for well over a year. The night he scored four goals at Anfield seems a long time ago now. He has flattered to deceive for Arsenal to date, and only a strong end to the season will save him from being sold, and even then that may not be enough.
John Obi Mikel
The Nigerian was seen as a real star prospect a few years back, but what has happened? Mikel is not the dynamic midfield player fans were expecting and has stagnated over the past year. New manager Andre Villas-Boas prefers not to include him and he could be heading for the exit soon if he does not improve.
Andy Carroll
£35 million. The figure goes hand in hand with the name Andy Carroll the price tag is inescapable. A goal against Wolves and an assist against Manchester United has shown he is improving, he needs to go on a scoring run to really establish himself. This will depend on if he can gel with Luis Suarez when the Uruguayan returns from suspension.
Fernando Torres
If we include Carroll then we have to include Torres who has been twice as bad since signing for Chelsea. He has been desperately poor and his form has hurt Chelsea as a whole. If he does not start firing soon then he faces being dropped as soon as Didier Drogba returns from international duty.
Nicklas Bendtner
The Dane has endured a nightmare spell at Sunderland, a club which lets face it he never wanted to join in the first place. He wanted to leave Arsenal for a club like Bayern Munich or Roma, but none of these moves came off and he was sent packing to the north-east. When he gets back from injury he needs to finish strongly or he could find himself in the Championship.
David de Gea
We are hardly writing off the Spaniard, it would be foolish to do so as he is only 20, but even his most ardent supporter would admit he needs to improve. His mistakes have cost United points and some would argue their place in the Champions League, and he may well have lost the number one jersey to Anders Lindegaard.
Joey Barton
For all his high-profile publicity and Twitter japes, Barton’s form has slipped quietly under the radar of late. He was superb for Newcastle last season but has not yet made his mark in a struggling QPR side. His influence will be needed if the club are to stay up.
Stewart Downing
Downing is looking like Dalglish’s greatest folly, the winger has had plenty of chances at Liverpool but remains ineffective. He was brought in to get the best out of Andy Carroll and put simply it has not worked. He will get more opportunities to turn it around, and needs a strong end to the season to restore his reputation.
Stefan Savic
The defender was brought in as a future Manchester City star and a man capable of stepping into action at any given time. He has proved more of a liability in Vincent Kompany’s absence, and has done very little to gain the trust of his manager, teammates or the club’s fans.
– Should anybody else be on this list?
image: © James Boyes
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