"Top" players whose careers crumbled

[ant london]

prematurely....and seemingly not directly due to injury (ie. no place for Michael Johnson).

Joe Cole
That lad, who was the "next Beckham"...went from Blackburn to Spurs in a "big money move" and then who knows where...I can't even remember his name...pretty boy (and not our Australian version).
Although slightly injury-driven...Michael Owen

and Robbie Fowler actually

[Pretty Boy Lee]

David Bentley. Play for a team that translates to Russian agricultural.


Leroy Lita seems to have gone from England fringe to trivia answer in the space of a few years.

[Piccsnumberoneblue]

Franny Jeffers.

Or Michael Branch.

[Nigels Tackle]

am i imagining things or did we not have a very similar thread a couple of weeks back???

[Blue Blood]

prematurely....and seemingly not directly due to injury (ie. no place for Michael Johnson).

Joe Cole
That lad, who was the "next Beckham"...went from Blackburn to Spurs in a "big money move" and then who knows where...I can't even remember his name...pretty boy (and not our Australian version).
Although slightly injury-driven...Michael Owen

and Robbie Fowler actually

Robbie Fowler had a normally career ending hip injury at Leeds.

Amazingly he came back and then went on to sign with us but was never the same after that injury. Definitely must go down as an injury caused decline.

[Goaters 103]

Joe Cole's never really been the same after doing his cruciate tbh.

Some worthy nominees in this category - Nigel Clough, Neil Webb, Peter Davenport, Garry Birtles, Any player Utd spent big money on from Forest, Harry Kewell, Lee Hendrie - one England Cap and then went way downhill, Michael Ball who went for big money from Everton to Rangers and then spent 4 years doing his best Darren Anderton impression, Winston Bogarde who cleverly took Chelsea for every penny, and Jose Antonio Reyes who Arsenal spent a fortune on but slowly slid down the ladder in Spain.

[london blue 2]

Thanks Joey although I wouldnt call him top

That blackburn defender Samba, what a waste

[Ted Hughes]

prematurely....and seemingly not directly due to injury (ie. no place for Michael Johnson).

Joe Cole
That lad, who was the "next Beckham"...went from Blackburn to Spurs in a "big money move" and then who knows where...I can't even remember his name...pretty boy (and not our Australian version).
Although slightly injury-driven...Michael Owen

and Robbie Fowler actually

David Bentley.

He was genuinely the 'next Beckham' imo as well, a more talented version who could also use his other foot. Bizarre how he went to pieces.

Lee Sharpe.

[Dronny]

Thanks Joey although I wouldnt call him top

That blackburn defender Samba, what a waste

Is that since he's gone to Anzhi or whatever or are you being facetious?

[Ted Hughes]

Joe Cole's never really been the same after doing his cruciate tbh.

Some worthy nominees in this category - Nigel Clough, Neil Webb, Peter Davenport, Garry Birtles, Any player Utd spent big money on from Forest, Harry Kewell, Lee Hendrie - one England Cap and then went way downhill, Michael Ball who went for big money from Everton to Rangers and then spent 4 years doing his best Darren Anderton impression, Winston Bogarde who cleverly took Chelsea for every penny, and Jose Antonio Reyes who Arsenal spent a fortune on but slowly slid down the ladder in Spain.

Doesn't count due to him retiring injured but Ian Moore back in the day was perhaps the biggest 'now you see him, now you don't' I can ever remember. Great player, signs for rags, one season then finished.

Lee Hendrie was a good shout, carried on playing but just seemed to be G.O.D. for two weeks then Joe Average for ten years. Considered suicide & to top it all, Trevor Francis' son was arrested for trying to rob his house.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/tr ... aid-747942

[Alioune DVToure]

David Bentley.

He was genuinely the 'next Beckham' imo as well, a more talented version who could also use his other foot. Bizarre how he went to pieces.

Lee Sharpe.

Bentley used to live down the road from my mum and dad, and he was widely accepted to be an absolute tit. I've heard hundreds of stories of him acting like a proper whopper in the pubs round ours.

I started a thread not too dissimilar to this about 18 months ago, and Lee Sharpe was the ultimate example for me too. How the bollocks do you go from being a starter in a title-winning side to being surplus to requirements at Bradford within the space of a couple of years?

[razor400]

am i imagining things or did we not have a very similar thread a couple of weeks back???

We did, it started off with bags of promise then just died out.

[Ted Hughes]

David Bentley.

He was genuinely the 'next Beckham' imo as well, a more talented version who could also use his other foot. Bizarre how he went to pieces.

Lee Sharpe.

Bentley used to live down the road from my mum and dad, and he was widely accepted to be an absolute tit. I've heard hundreds of stories of him acting like a proper whopper in the pubs round ours.

I think the words 'tit' & 'pubs' are probably key in this matter( but not in the way they may initially connect in one's mind ).

[I Just Blue Myself]

Thanks Joey although I wouldnt call him top

That blackburn defender Samba, what a waste

Is that since he's gone to Anzhi or whatever or are you being facetious?

I don't get it either. Starter for a side that is joint 2nd in the Russian Premier League (3 pts of the top) & playing in Europe, on decent wages, too, I reckon... how is that not a step up from fucking Blackburn?

Although calling him a top player may be a bit of a stretch, but what about Wayne Bridge? From England international to Brighton in the space of 2.5 years. Same age as Ashley Cole.

[walmai]

Bentley's a good shout. He's extremely gifted in terms of shooting/passing, but doesn't have the necessary grit to put his own stamp on a game.

Joe Cole was probably the most technically-gifted teenager to emerge from WHU's academy all those years ago. People claim that Mourinho somehow ground out the skill and tricks, but the reality is that, if you seriously want to get and stay in a top team, you, again, need that little bit of grit to stop players kicking you off the ball.

If a team had been built around Joe with the Foe or Diame like player alongside him, he may have gone even further than he in fact did. Perhaps the truth is that he peaked too soon. A lot of decent players have, in the last 10 years or so, been snapped up by a top team, only to slowly but surely fade from prominence.

[walmai]

Although calling him a top player may be a bit of a stretch, but what about Wayne Bridge? From England international to Brighton in the space of 2.5 years. Same age as Ashley Cole.

Its more than 'a stretch' to dub Bridge a top player. Its positively mangling the meaning of the word!

[london blue 2]

Thanks Joey although I wouldnt call him top

That blackburn defender Samba, what a waste

Is that since he's gone to Anzhi or whatever or are you being facetious?

I don't get it either. Starter for a side that is joint 2nd in the Russian Premier League (3 pts of the top) & playing in Europe, on decent wages, too, I reckon... how is that not a step up from fucking Blackburn?

Although calling him a top player may be a bit of a stretch, but what about Wayne Bridge? From England international to Brighton in the space of 2.5 years. Same age as Ashley Cole.

I just cant understand why a player of that quality at the peak of his career who's been linked with various "big" clubs in one of the best leagues in the world decided to fuck off to racist Russia... all about the benjamins I guess...

[london blue 2]

Now I dont know enough about overseas football but whatever happened to Deco?

[Rag_hater]

Woodgate and Boyer than fuck.

[Wonderwall]

Danny cadermarteri (sp) was the new everton wonderkid at one point but never went on to do anything of note. Looked good when he broke onto the scene too.