Ex-Players from Leeds, Nottingham Forest, Derby County and Newcastle United feature.
Serge Gnabry – Arsenal
One of the most eye raising transfers in recent weeks was former Arsenal man Serge Gnabry moving to Bayern Munich from Werder Bremen after scoring 11 goals in 27 Bundesliga appearances, but spare a thought for West Bromwich Albion manager Tony Pulis.
The Baggies’ boss loaned the 21-year-old for the 2015/16 campaign, but the Germany international only featured three times for Pulis, with the former Stoke City boss claiming he “just hasn’t been for me, at the moment, at that level to play the games”, as reported by the Metro.
Pulis isn’t the only manager to completely misjudge a player and get things hilariously wrong, and here are five other examples when that has happened.
Ross Barkley (Front) of Leeds United in action with Kim Bo-Kyung of Cardiff City
Ross Barkley
In order to aid the England international’s development, Barkley was sent on loan to Leeds United – then managed by Neil Warnock – in 2013. Barkley had just come off the back of an exceptional loan spell with Sheffield Wednesday, but at Leeds, things were different. Despite being given assurances that he’d get a fair crack of the whip, Barkley hardly had a sniff at Leeds – with Michael Brown being preferred – and was quickly recalled by Everton after it became apparent that wouldn’t change.
Barkley then kicked on for both Everton and England, becoming one of the nation’s star prospects in the process, but Later on, it became apparent there was bad blood between Warnock and Barkley, with the experienced manager claiming, as reported by the Liverpool Echo, that Barkley “couldn’t defend” and that you “can’t give him any responsibility.” Last season, Barkley got five Premier League goals and eight assists, somewhat proving Warnock wrong.
Tom Ince scores the second goal for Derby County
Tom Ince
One of the (many) victims from Stuart Pearce’s ill fated managerial spell with Nottingham Forest was Tom Ince. The winger was brought in on loan from Hull City but made just six appearances before being recalled by Hull, with Pearce’s archaic style of play completely bypassing Ince’s ability. Pearce then suggested that Ince had played his way out of the side due to his minimal impact, which wasn’t Ince’s fault, so the winger made both Pearce and Forest pay in spectacular fashion. The 25-year-old signed for Forest’s hated rivals Derby County and has been a success there ever since, scoring 35 times in 108 matches in all competitions from the wing, including one in Derby’s 3-0 win over Forest in the 2016/17 season.
Robert Earnshaw
Derby didn’t have things all their own way though, and several years ago, the Rams paid a hefty price for letting Robert Earnshaw depart for Forest in 2008. Derby had just had the worst ever season in Premier League history and Paul Jewell booted Earnshaw out the door, possibly after claiming midway through the season, as reported by the Mirror, that Earnshaw needed “to look at himself” and “put more of a shift in”. The decision to sell Earnshaw to the Reds was a terrible idea, as Earnshaw silenced Jewell in spectacular fashion, bagging 41 goals in 111 appearances for Forest – including five in seven matches for Forest against the Rams. The cherry on the proverbial cake for Earnshaw was scoring in a 1-0 win at Pride Park for Forest, which was the Reds’ first ever win at the stadium.
Charles N’Zogbia (L) and Mohamed Diame in their Wigan days
Charles N’Zogbia
Joe Kinnear’s time at Newcastle United was eventful to say the least, but nothing summed up his chaotic spell in charge more than the Charles N’Zogbia saga. After mispronouncing N’Zogbia’s name as ‘insomnia’, as reported by BBC Sport, N’Zogbia was so incensed that he refused to play for Kinnear again, as reported by the Times. N’Zogbia eventually left for Wigan Athletic in January 2009 for a £6.5m deal which saw Ryan Taylor move the other way, as reported by the Telegraph, and Kinnear claimed in the aftermath that N’Zogbia “lived in a fantasy world” when it came to clubs interested in his services.
At Wigan, N’Zogbia excelled to the point he became a France international, and then earned himself a £9.5m move to Aston Villa, as reported by the Guardian, while Kinnear hasn’t managed since, partially due to the damage he did which saw Newcastle relegated that season.
Andriy Shevchenko
The best one on this list is left until last. Andriy Shevchenko, one of the best strikers Europe has ever seen – and a Ballon d’Or winner to boot – almost signed for West Ham United under Harry Redknapp back in 1994, according to Midfield Dynamo, but didn’t because Redknapp passed up the opportunity. The current Ukraine manager came to West Ham on trial, and even scored against Barnet in a reserve match, but Redknapp sent him back on the basis that he didn’t look anything extraordinary and then sent his scout to go and find someone better. Shevchenko then went from Dynamo Kiev to AC Milan, scored 175 goals in 322 games, won Serie A and the Champions League, and also scored 48 in 111 for Ukraine. Finding someone better may have proved to be a tall order for that scout.
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