As the official start of the summer transfer window looms, let’s take a look back at some of the worst Serie A transfers from the winter mercato.
Samuel Eto’o: Everton – Sampdoria (Free)
Sampdoria president Massimo Ferrero injected talent, and more importantly, life into Sampdoria in his first season as owner of the club. One of his more ambitious moves was bringing in aging star Samuel Eto’o. Along with Luis Muriel, the addition of Eto’o was supposed to give Samp one of the leagues most potent attacks. It didn’t happen.
In 17 appearances, the Cameroonian international managed only two goals, and was embroiled in controversy the whole time. Ferrero insisted there were no problems, but Eto’o never seemed to fit in at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris. His presence was seen as something that could have helped the troubled Muriel, but nothing like that ever came to fruition, and his brief time in a Blucerchiati shirt appears to be up, as a move to Turkey is in the cards.
Victor Ibarbo: Cagliari – Roma (Loan)
Roma, despite adding Juan Manuel Iturbe in the summer window, felt the need to stock up on attacking talent during the winter mercato. A loan deal for Cagliari man Victor Ibarbo, a consistent but not explosive striker, made little sense. At the time Roma were beginning to lose their grip on Juve for the lead in Serie A, and an infusion of attacking talent was a need. Ibarbo failed to make a difference, miserably.
In 10 appearances, the Colombian did not score a goal and recorded only one assist for the Giallorossi. Roma finished 8th in goals scored in Serie A this season, and while there defense was sound, their inability to outscore teams contributed to the poor stretch of form they endured early on in 2015. Ibarbo was no help at all to the Lupi, and his time at the Stadio Olimpico bore no fruit.
Xherdan Shaqiri: Bayern Munich – Inter Milan (€15m)
Arguably the most prolific of the winter signings, Inter warded off Juve and a host of EPL clubs for the Swiss winger Xherdan Shaqiri. A move that looked good on paper for the struggling Inter Milan turned out to be a microcosm for their season. Shaqiri struggled to gain playing time and form early on in his career at Inter, and never quite lived up to the fee they paid for him.
The 23-year old Swiss international made 15 total appearances for the Nerazzurri, but had more yellow cards (3) than goals (1). His average match rating of 6.69 was one of the lowest on the team.
Seydou Doumbia: CSKA Moscow – Roma (€14.4m)
My vote for worst signing goes to Seydou Doumbia and his nearly €15m move to AS Roma. Coming into January, Roma were desperate for an attacker to make a difference. They put their trust in the Ivorian, who in turn let them down. A lot of factors contributed to the Giallorossi’s meltdown, but the inability of Doumbia, Ibarbo, Iturbe and Totti to score goals was key there. The reason Doumbia is the biggest letdown of the four? The rest didn’t cost upwards of €14m int he winter window.
The numbers aren’t kind, and don’t do the 27-year old any favors. He managed only two goals across 14 appearances for the Rome outfit. His average match rating of 6.36 is a telling statistic as far as how the former BSC Young Boys played this season, and his passing percentage of 72.1% illustrates that he was not even getting his teammates involved. Two goals and zero assists for €14.4m, consider that a let down.
Lukas Podolski: Arsenal – Inter Milan (Loan)
Lukas Podolski arrived at Inter with a bit of fanfare. Like with Shaqiri, the Milanese outfit reportedly out-dueled rivals Juventus to sign Podolski, and on top of that, he was a talented attacker going to a team that, outside of Mauro Icardi, didn’t have a lot going in attack. However, almost from the start, Podolski could not find his form.
The German international made 17 appearances for the Nerrazzurri, and scored a goal and added an assist. Despite partnering with a prolific striker in Mauro Icardi, Podolski could not help Inter create chances consistently, and he himself was unable to make a solid contribution on the score sheet. The former Bayern man had only two appearances with a match rating over 7.
Alessio Cerci: Atletico Madrid – AC Milan (Loan)
AC Milan, just like Roma and Inter, tried to add a wealth of attacking talent to help them continue to chase European dreams, and just like those two teams, the moves back fired. Alessio Cerci was terrific at Torino last season partnering with Ciro Immobile, but failed to get in form at the Vicente Calderon. The walls of the San Siro were not kind to Cerci either, and along with his poor performances on the pitch, he seemed constantly unsettled off the pitch as well.
Cerci made only seven starts for AC Milan, and that number clearly upset the former Torino man. However, his inability to score goals (just one in 16 total appearances) was the major reason for his lack of starts.
So, looking back on it, who was the biggest winter mercato flop in your opinion? Let me know in the comments or fire your tweets my way @JLoftgren_LBR
The post The Flops of the Winter Mercato appeared first on Italian Football Daily.
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