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When Newcastle United announced the loan signing of Salomon Rondon last summer, the fans were understandably underwhelmed. This was a striker who had failed to score double figures in the Premier League despite being the driving force at West Brom.
After getting off to a slow start at St James’ Park, the 29-year-old opened his Premier League account for the club with both goals in a 2-1 victory against Bournemouth on 10th November. More goals followed against Everton, Huddersfield, Watford and Manchester City before the record signing of Miguel Almiron in January placed Rondon at the heart of an exciting attacking trio that helped fire the team even further up the table. He ended the season with 11 goals (which came in 7 victories, 2 draws and 1 defeat) and 7 assists which led to him being named the club’s player of the year.
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With a £16.5 million release clause being activated following West Brom’s failure to gain promotion from the Championship, Newcastle United know exactly what they need to do to turn his loan deal into a permanent transfer. But that is where the problem lies. It has been reported that this deal has been one of the key sticking points during Rafa Benitez’s contract negotiation talks, with Mike Ashley and the club board seemingly unwilling to sanction that kind of transfer fee for a player who will turn 30 during the upcoming season.
Although the Premier League has had its fair share of golden oldies over the years – from Henrik Larsson to Liberian President George Weah – more often than not these players arrive on a free transfer or for a cut-price fee meaning low risk and potentially high reward. Premier League clubs have often been cautious about paying huge transfer fees for players over a certain age due to concerns about their potential sell-on value. In this article, we take a look at 10 Premier League strikers that prove sometimes it is better to throw caution to the wind.
#10 Graziano Pelle (Southampton)
An £8 million signing from Feyenoord, Pelle spent two seasons on the south coast between 2014 and 2016. During this spell bagged 23 goals in 68 Premier League games including a brace in a 4-0 win against Newcastle and another two-goal haul in an 8-0 drubbing of Sunderland. Whilst not particularly remarkable, he did enough to establish himself as a regular for Italy and his time at Southampton can be considered a resounding success. He ended both seasons as the club’s top goal scorer in the Premier League (albeit joint-top scorer in the 2015/16 season, level with Sadio Mane). He was also the last player to score double figures for the Saints in the Premier League with the top scorer in each of the following three campaigns ending with a paltry seven goals. From a financial perspective, the move was also a resounding success with the Saints turning over a tidy profit when he moved on to Shandong Luneng in China for £12 million – at the same time making him the joint-fifth highest paid footballer in the world.
(#9 Paolo Di Canio (West Ham))
At £1.5 million, Di Canio was not exactly a costly acquisition but the fiery Italian did pose some risk. After all, he had just completed an 11 game ban for pushing over referee Paul Alcock during a Premier League game between Sheffield Wednesday and Arsenal. Joining the Hammers at the age of 31 in 1999, he instantly became a fan favourite. During his first season with the club, he was named Player of the Year and his flying volley against Wimbledon in March 2000 is still considered one of the greatest Premier League goals of all time. He stayed at Upton Park for four years scoring 47 goals in 118 games but was not able to steer the club clear of relegation at the end of the 2002/03 season. He later joined Charlton Athletic on a free transfer but his time with the claret and blues will always be remembered fondly.
(#8 Tony Yeboah (Leeds United))
The Ghanaian joined Leeds United in January 1995 from German side Frankfurt for £3.4 million having finished the previous two seasons as the top scorer in the Bundesliga. While many casual fans would be forgiven for not knowing who he was when he first arrived at Elland Road, his penchant for scoring wonder goals ensured he could not be forgotten by the time he left two years later. In his second season at the club he scored two of the greatest Premier League goals of all time – a pair of sublime volleys against Liverpool and Wimbledon. He was also named Leeds’ Player of the Year. A combination of injuries and the arrival of a new manager who did not seem to favour Yeboah led to his stay at the club being cut short as he was sold shortly after the start of the 1997/98 season to Hamburger SV. During his two and a half years at Elland Road he managed a decent return with 32 goals in 66 games but more importantly contributed two of the most iconic strikes in Premier League history.
(#7 Fernando Llorente (Tottenham Hotspurs))
His Premier League return of 2 goals in 36 appearances at Tottenham Hotspurs is even worse than the 6 goals in 46 games that Joselu has managed at Newcastle over the same two year period! However, the Spain international has proven to be a huge asset in the Champions League. He came off the bench to score in the round of 16 against Dortmund as well as scoring a memorable late goal against Manchester City to take Spurs through to the semi-final on away goals. With the club trailing 3-0 on aggregate at half time in the second leg, the 34-year-old emerged from the bench to play an important role as the North London side staged a remarkable comeback against Ajax. Despite failing to lift the trophy following a 2-0 defeat against Liverpool in the final in Madrid, his starring role in the incredible journey to Spurs' first European Cup final in the Premier League era is easily worth the £14 million paid to Swansea for his services alone.
(#6 Jurgen Klinsmann (Tottenham Hotspurs))
The 30-year-old only stayed at White Hart Lane for one season but what a year it was! Following his £2 million signing, Klinsmann scored 30 goals in all competitions including 20 goals in 41 Premier League games for what was, at the time, a struggling Spurs side more at home with relegation scraps than Champions League finals. He was named the winner of the inaugural Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year award, selected in the PFA Team of the Year, and was runner up for the Ballon d'Or. The German international’s quest to play at the highest level saw him leave for Bayern Munich and the chance to play Champions League football. However, he did return to the North London club for a second spell on loan in 1997/98 season further cementing his place in Spurs folklore by scoring 9 goals in 15 games to ensure the club's Premier League survival.
(#5 Peter Crouch (Stoke City))
Given that he is still plying his trade in the top flight for Burnley it is easy to forget that Peter Crouch was already in his thirties by the time he joined Stoke City for a club record fee of £10 million in 2011. Scoring 14 goals in his first season, he was named the club’s player of the year but what is even more telling is the fact he is now their all-time leading goal scorer in the Premier League with 45 goals as well as having made their fourth most Premier League appearances with 202. His seven and a half year spell at the club ended on a low note with the player reduced to cameo appearances off the bench in the second tier following relegation in the 2017/18 season. But even then, Stoke managed to make some return on their investment with Burnley offering a player swap with Wales international Sam Vokes.
(#4 Jermain Defoe (Sunderland))
In recent times, Jermain Defoe has become the benchmark for what can be achieved by a player reaching the latter stages of his career. Following his January switch from Toronto, he bagged the only goal in the Tyne-Wear derby to end an eight-game run without a win as well as scoring in a crucial victory against Everton in May which took the club out of the relegation zone. He then scored 15 goals in 33 games the following season to keep what was, by all means, a very poor Sunderland side in the Premier League. A further 15 goals in 37 Premier League games during the 2016/17 earned him an England recall but was not enough to prevent Sunderland from relegation to the Championship. Following his release on a free transfer, Sunderland continued to plummet further with back-to-back relegations followed by a 2-1 play-off defeat to Charlton Athletic which leaves the club playing a second season in the third tier against the likes of Lincoln City and Shrewsbury Town.
(#3 Robin Van Persie (Manchester United))
At £24 million, Robin Van Persie is the most expensive acquisition on the list. The 29-year-old arrived at the peak of his playing career with the final of his eight seasons at Arsenal ending with the Golden Boot after scoring 30 goals in 38 games. His first season for the Red Devils followed suit with 26 goals earning a second Golden Boot for the Dutchman as well as his first Premier League winners’ medal. He failed to match the same high expectations in the following two seasons but will forever be remembered as a Manchester United legend for his starring role in delivering a record-breaking 20th league title (surpassing the 19 titles Liverpool had won, set in 1989/90). It also signified a fitting send-off for Sir Alex Ferguson who stepped down as manager at the end of the 2012/13 campaign which coincided with the club falling down the table. They haven’t lifted the trophy since.
(#2 Teddy Sheringham (Manchester United))
Although the Manchester United treble-winning side will mostly be remembered for the deadly strike partnership of Andy Cole and Dwight Yorke along with that stoppage-time winner by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in the Champions League final against Bayern Munich, Teddy Sheringham’s contribution to the team simply cannot be overlooked. He came off the bench to score the first goal in a 2-0 win against Newcastle in the FA Cup final. He also emerged from the bench later that week to not only score a stoppage-time equaliser but also provide the headed flick-on for Solskjaer’s famous winner. The last of his four seasons at Old Trafford saw Sheringham gain more pitch time for Man United as his 15 league goals helped secure a third consecutive title. The 34-year-old was also named the PFA and Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year whilst re-establishing himself as an England regular.
#1. Peter Beardsley (Newcastle United)
If Mike Ashley needs reminding what impact a player in his thirties can make, he doesn’t need to look much further than the club he currently owns. When Peter Beardsley arrived as a 32-year-old, he was no longer an England regular and could easily be mistaken for being past his prime. It would have been easy to question such an expensive acquisition (yes, £1.5 million was a lot in those days!), however, Beardsley proved any doubters wrong by becoming an integral part of Kevin Keegan’s now famous ‘Entertainers’. During Newcastle’s maiden Premier League season in 1993/94, his strike partnership with Andy Cole set a Premier League goal-scoring record with 55 goals between the pair – a tally that has not been broken since, and only once been genuinely troubled by Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge in Liverpool’s near-title run 20 years later. He also captained the side as they narrowly missed out on the title to Manchester United in 1995/96. After scoring 56 goals in 157 appearances across four seasons, Beardsley was sold to Bolton Wanderers for £450,000 but later returned to the club as a coach between 2001 and 2019.
