5 players who left on free transfers and made their clubs regret
The world of football has seen players moving clubs at skyrocketing transfer prices, recently. The influx of big money in the game has inflated player valuation to such an extent that mediocre players often get bids of enormous values.
At the same time, there have been instances where players have not signed/been offered a contract and ultimately left the club for free. History has witnessed certain transfers where a player of great calibre has left the club for free and made their former club regret the move heavily.
Sportskeeda brings to you 5 players who made their clubs regret after moving away on a free transfer:
#5 Sol Campbell
The Englishman was a much-loved figure at Tottenham, where he spent 9 years and even captained the side for quite some time. However, all this counted for nothing as the player made the switch to direct rivals Arsenal in 2001 on a free transfer.
The North Londoners were stunned by this development as no one had expected their captain to join their arch rivals. The mere fact that it was a free transfer was a cause of further pain and anger for the fans of Tottenham.
(Video Courtesy: Legend HD YouTube Channel)
Campbell wanted to play for a club which played in the Champions League and had set his sights on a move to Arsenal. The Englishman stayed at the club for a period of 5 years, making a total of 197 appearances for the club where he won the Premier League and the FA Cup twice. He was also the defensive backbone of the ‘Invincibles’ squad that won the league title without losing a single game. Funnily, the English defender played for 6 clubs over his career and all of the moves were free transfers.