5 times clubs massively overpaid for players
In one of the most surprising transfer stories of 2018, it looks like Watford’s Brazilian winger Richarlison will be once again hooking up with former boss Marco Silva, this time at Everton. Silva bought the Brazilian to the Premier League last season and he proved to be a major hit in the early months of 2017/18 before tailing off towards the end of the season.
Richarlison is clearly a talented player and so Everton making a move for him isn’t too big of a shock. The big surprise is the price tag – it’s being reported that the Toffees will be paying a massive £50m for the winger. For a player who scored 5 and assisted in 4 in 38 appearances last season, that seems a little overpriced by anyone’s standards.
Overpaying for a player is nothing new in the modern day game, though. Obviously, we don’t know whether Richarlison will succeed or fail at Goodison Park yet, but the following 5 players struggled after big-money moves, suggesting the clubs that purchased them overpaid by quite a substantial amount.
#1 Andy Carroll - £35m to Liverpool in 2011
When Fernando Torres moved from Liverpool to Chelsea for £50m in the January 2011 transfer window, the Reds clearly had money to burn and to appease their fans, they looked to get their deals done as quickly as possible.
The man they identified to replace Torres was Newcastle striker Andy Carroll, and despite the Geordie having started 2010/11 well – scoring 11 goals in 19 Premier League appearances - £35m always felt like a steep price for him.
Carroll was simply too unproven at that point to warrant becoming the most expensive British player in football history – and at the time, the 8th most expensive player ever – particularly when he was unable to make his Liverpool debut right away due to an injury.
In the end, Carroll did have some high points at Anfield – most notably his headed winner against local rivals Everton in the 2012 FA Cup semi-final – but by the end of that season he was deemed surplus to requirements and was sent on loan to West Ham for the 2012/13 season.
One season later, West Ham signed him permanently for £15m, meaning Liverpool lost around £20m on the striker, who ended his Liverpool career with a record of just 6 Premier League goals in 43 appearances. To say the Reds overpaid for him would be a massive understatement.