5 players who have been disappointing with their performances this season

The 2019/20 season has been a topsy turvy campaign for many a player. Going into the season, there were high hopes for several players due to their sizeable price tags. Some have lived up to the hype while several have not. Of course, names like Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Marcus Rashford and Kylian Mbappe have continued to set the bar. Others were meant to be in that bracket but have instead tainted their careers with a below-average season so far.

Here are 5 players who have been a disappointment with their performances this season.

5. Aaron Ramsey

Aaron Ramsey’s future was the hot topic throughout last season, with Arsenal not deeming the Welshman’s wage demands as value for money. In response, the midfielder engineered a dream move to Italy where he agreed to an astronomical 4-year contract. Since joining Juventus as a free agent, Ramsey has failed to make any kind of impact whatsoever. In 12 Serie A games, Ramsey has scored once and provided 0 assists. The Welshman has been a costly experiment for the Italian giants, with no upside in sight.

Despite spending the majority of his career in the physically demanding and fast-paced Premier League, Ramsey has looked sluggish and off the pace in Italy. Maurizio Sarri has struggled to decide between picking him and Adrien Rabiot for the midfield spot alongside Miralem Pjanić, due to both of them being subpar.

Many a Juventus fan would struggle to tell you what Ramsey brings to the team besides messing up several Juventus attacks a game. If Ramsey is to repay the heavy investment the Serie A Champions have placed in him, he must produce one of the best goalscoring returns of a midfielder in the second half of the season.

4. Nicolas Otamendi

With the unexpected departure of Vincent Kompany in the summer, this was meant to be the season where Nicolas Otamendi firmly staked his place in Pep Guardiola’s plans. Instead, the Argentinean’s stock has hit rock bottom this season with Pep even refusing to start him on many an occasion. That’s not even the worst bit, the Spanish manager has decided to play a 34-year-old defensive midfielder in Fernandinho ahead of him at centre-back.

It all started at an away game at Carrow Road, where the reigning champions were dismantled by the newly promoted Norwich. It was a game that saw Teemu Pukki run Otamendi ragged for 90 minutes, leading to a 3-2 win for the Canaries. Now the 32-year-old goes into each game week wondering whether or not he’ll be in the starting line-up, such has been the poor standard of performances he’s produced. It’s clear that Pep no longer trusts the defender and his days at the Etihad may be all but numbered.

3. Antoine Griezmann

A few years ago, Lionel Messi - Luis Suarez - Neymar Jr. was the most feared attacking trio in world football. Since Neymar left to step out of Messi’s shadow, Barcelona has scoured the market to replace the Brazilian’s strike rate. They’ve signed Philippe Coutinho, Ousmane Dembele and more recently, Antoine Griezmann to no avail. The Frenchman has been the most disappointing of the lot, as he’s been itching for a move to Barcelona for quite some time. He got his wish last summer, as the Catalonians signed the forward for £107million on a 5-year contract.

As a player that was once meant to be challenging the likes of Messi and Ronaldo, the 28-year-old has not lived up to expectations at the Nou Camp. In 23 Liga appearances, the Frenchman has scored 8 and provided 4 assists, a tally that suggests Messi has been carrying him throughout the season thus far. Instead of being the one to lighten the burden of Messi, he has instead added to that weight. Griezmann was meant to be the one to take over from Messi, however, he may seemingly never reach near such heights.

2. Philippe Coutinho

Two years ago, who would have thought that Liverpool would be on the verge of winning their first Premier League title without Philippe Coutinho. The Brazilian was once Liverpool’s talisman but when Barcelona came calling, the playmaker couldn’t care less about Anfield. Now the Reds are European Champions while Coutinho has flopped so badly that Barcelona loaned him out to Bayern Munich. He’s now done so badly in Germany that Bayern doesn’t want to make his move permanent come the end of the season.

In fact, the 27-year-old doesn’t even start games for Munich anymore, with the once exiled Thomas Muller now back in the frame. In 19 Bundesliga appearances, Coutinho has only scored 6 goals and Hans-Dieter Flick does not deem that good enough. Coutinho has been dropped over the past few weeks with a starting place looking none the closer. After Coutinho’s dismal stint in Germany comes to an end, what will be next for the Brazilian? Surely, no other top club in Europe will take a chance on a player that seemingly looks past his best.

1. Nicolas Pepe

Signed for £72million in the summer, Arsenal’s record signing has completely flopped in his debut season in England. The Ivorian winger has only shown glimpses of his brilliance at the Emirates. However, when you consider the price tag of the winger, glimpses are not god enough. This season, Nicolas Pepe has scored 3 goals and provided 3 assists in 21 PL appearances, bear in mind the majority of those contributions were from dead-ball situations. Apart from a few dribbles and free kicks, Pepe has shown nothing in an Arsenal shirt.

Instead, his body language has been laboured and his performances have been nothing noteworthy. When Manchester United fans are comparing the goal contributions of Daniel James to that of Pepe, then you know something is certainly wrong. In a season where Arsenal have struggled for form, the Ivorian’s performances have looked that much worse as he’s had nowhere to hide. We live in a time and age where people expect results quickly, patience is running thin for Pepe at the Emirates and the 24-year-old must get his act together fast if he’s to save his already diminishing Arsenal career.

Edited by Sai Teja