5 Players who were forced out of their respective clubs

The word loyalty is becoming a term that is thrown around incessantly every single time the transfer window opens. Despite it being their profession, footballers are expected to stay put at a particular club, snubbing lucrative deals offered by various clubs. Over the course of the last few decades, the commitment of footballers has come under immense scrutiny.

However, very little interest is shown towards the way clubs handle their players. Often times, even the best in the business have been forced out of their respective clubs and while mostly it comes down to the money on the table, sometimes, there are reasons that will never be known until the player himself decides to spill the beans on the affair.

In this segment, we take a look at 5 players who were forced out of their respective clubs.

5. Andy Carroll (Newcastle United)

The English striker made headlines with his performances for Newcastle United in the 2009-10 season as he scored 19 goals in 42 appearances to help the Magpies make a swift return to the Premier League. However, after spending just half a season as Newcastle’s leading striker, a period during which he scored 11 goals in 20 appearances, Carroll attracted the attention of a struggling Liverpool side.

The Reds made a bid believed to be in the region of £30 million which was rejected by the club and in a bid to make sure they extracted an obscene value from the transfer of their main man, Newcastle forced Carroll into handing in a transfer request so as to force Liverpool’s hand.

"I was in talks about a new contract and talking to the gaffer about that. He told me that they are now not going to give me a contract. That was as soon as the offer of £30m came in. So I asked why [I wasn't getting a new contract], and he said his hands were tied. He said it wasn't up to him. Then a £35m bid got accepted. And then I was allowed to talk to Liverpool. The owner then made it clear to me that I was not wanted at the club, saying that his own helicopter is waiting for me to go down to talk to them. So being shown I'm not wanted I said 'OK, I will talk to them'. Then suddenly the bid was rejected. And then Derek asked me to hand in a transfer request. So I was pushed into a corner and had no choice. I wasn't wanted by them and they made it clear they wanted the money. Then I flew down in his [Ashley's] helicopter. I didn't want to leave”, said Carroll in an interview with the Newcastle Chronicle.

The move eventually did not work out as Carroll’s stint at the Merseyside was blighted by injuries and the lanky striker is currently on West Ham’s books where he continues to score goals when fit.

4. Joe Hart (Manchester City)

The arrival of Pep Guardiola meant curtains on Joe Hart's time at the Etihad Stadium

The arrival of Pep Guardiola at Manchester City was seen as a warning sign by the rest of the Premier League. Signing a manager of Pep’s calibre meant that the hierarchy at the club would leave no stone unturned in their quest to become a European superpower. However, there is one particular Manchester City player and Premier League winner who has been left to dry by the Spanish manager ever since he took charge of the affairs at the club- Joe Hart.

While Hart remains on the books of Manchester City, he spent the last season on loan at Torino and is currently on loan at West Ham United after his manager made it clear to him that he does not see a future for him at the Etihad. That is after Hart had played a stellar role in his side’s ascent to the top of the English football over the last 6-7 years prior to his departure on loan to Torino.

Hart did not hold back when asked about his move to Torino last season and more or less let the footballing world know that it was Pep who forced him out of the Manchester club.

“Football is a game of opinions and some people have a great opinion of me and some people probably think I’m absolutely useless. Unfortunately for me, one of the guys’ opinions in charge of my club at the time wasn’t as strong as it needed to be,” Hart said in an interview with the Telegraph.

His departure from Manchester City is all but confirmed as he spends the last year of his current contract with the club on loan at West Ham and while many might deem it to be a regressive move, it definitely offers him the requisite game time to remain in shape for the upcoming FIFA World Cup with the England National team.

3. Angel Di Maria (Real Madrid)

Di Maria was forced out of Real Madrid to Manchester United and it was a move that did not work out

Angel Di Maria is a name that sends shivers down the spine of several established defenders. Ever since he broke into the Benfica starting 11, the Argentine has been a delight to watch for millions of football fans and a threat of unparalleled proportions for the opposition managers.

Given his pedigree as an attacking threat, it was believed to be a match made in heaven when Di Maria signed for European heavyweights Real Madrid in the summer of 2010 and the 29-year-old made sure that the world sat up and took notice of his skills with his performances in the Los Blancos colours.

It was healthy till the summer of 2014 as Di Maria had enjoyed a stellar campaign with Real Madrid having scored 7 goals and assisted another 22, in the process winning the UEFA Champions League. But in a rather suspicious turn of events, Di Maria went from being one of the best Real Madrid attackers to an outcast after the arrival of James Rodriguez in a big money transfer and was forced to leave Real Madrid for Manchester United in what was a record British transfer fee at that time.

Di Maria was not very happy with the way Real forced him out of the club and made sure that the world knows that he did not want to leave the Santiago Bernabeu in a letter he wrote post signing for Manchester United.

“Unfortunately, today I have to leave, but I want to make it clear that was never my wish. After winning the 10th European Cup, I went to the World Cup with the hope of receiving a gesture from the board. They talked about many things and many lies. They always wanted to place the initiative on me for leaving the club, but it was not like this. Unfortunately, I am not to the footballing tastes of some people. The only thing that I asked for is something that would be fair. There are many things I value which have nothing to do with my salary”, wrote Di Maria in an open letter to the Real Madrid supporters.

It was a move that failed to live up to its promise and Di Maria left United for PSG after spending just 1 season at the club where he continues to resurrect his status as one of football’s elite attackers.

2. Jaap Stam (Manchester United)

Manchester United failed to replace Jaap Stam after selling him to Lazio

Jaap Stam was already a superstar when he arrived on the English shores to sign for Manchester United in 1998 in what was then the highest fee ever paid for a Dutch footballer and the highest paid for a defender (£10.6 million) and the centre-back did not disappoint. In his first 3 seasons at the club, the Dutch defender made 127 appearances for the Red Devils and played a crucial role in his side winning 3 consecutive Premier League titles, an FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League.

Given that he was chosen as the UEFA Club best Defender of the year for 2 consecutive seasons (1999-2000 and 2000-01), it was expected that Stam would go on to have many more glorious years at the Old Trafford.

However, in a rather strange turn of events, Stam, the man who had led the United defence with aplomb was sold to Lazio in the summer of 2001 for a fee believed to be in the region of £ 15.3 million. While the money, at that time, was lucrative, losing the leader of their defence was expected to have negative repercussions on the side and many were shocked when the player signed for Il Biancazzurri. In a recent interview, Stam explained that he was forced to quit the club that had become his home as the hierarchy at the club wanted to balance their books and Sir Alex Fergusson himself has agreed that it was a move that he thought was right at that time.

“Every club has like three or four players who are, how you call it? Like the spokesmen, the committee, and I was in there as well and occasionally you speak with a couple of people from the board and about the situation of the club. That’s when they told us that budget-wise they needed to do something."

"They didn’t mention names but… It wasn’t about the book. We spoke about it with the board as well about having a problem with the budget at the time. They needed to sell somebody eventually and, of course, if there had been an offer placed for a player. I had been there three seasons, a bit more, and won everything with the club. They paid, what was it, £10-11million for me? And they could sell me three years later for £15-16million,” explained Stam in an interview.

In hindsight, it was a move that cost Manchester United dearly as they failed to find an able replacement for the Dutch superstar and had to endure several seasons of dodgy defending.

1.Iker Casillas (Real Madrid)

Casillas was allegedly forced out of Real Madrid in the summer of 2015

In a world where we question the loyalty of footballers every time the transfer window opens, the loyalty of the clubs to the players is increasingly becoming a topic of discussion amongst football fans. And one name that comes up in every discussion about the loyalty of the clubs to the players is Iker Casillas.

Casillas had joined Real Madrid as a teenager in 1990 and lived every Madridistas dream since making his debut in the 1999-2000 season. The former Spanish captain won an incredible 5 La Liga titles, 2 Copa Del Reys, 3 UEFA Champions Leagues and 2 UEFA Super Cups. But even one of the best in the business had to go through certain turbulent times during his time at the club that he loves dearly.

He was dropped from the starting lineup by Jose Mourinho in December 2012 on account of differences between the two and that proved to be the start of Casillas’ decline at the club.

Like Di Maria, Casillas too played a crucial role in his side winning the UEFA Champions League in 2013-14 and while the fans rejoiced at the club’s success, the legendary shot-stopper was allegedly forced to bid adieu to the club in a tearful fashion just a season later. His family made it clear that Casillas was forced out of the club by Florentino Perez with his mother claiming that Real had mistreated her season.

“Iker has put up with a great deal, he has suffered psychological pressure and they treated him differently to other players. I have watched him suffer for many years. It is Florentino who is pushing him out because he wanted to end his career at Real Madrid”, Casillas mom Mari Carmen told in an interview after the transfer was confirmed.

Casillas, who currently plays for Porto, on the other hand, has not criticised anyone about his transfer in a bid to refrain from throwing any dirt on the club that he loves so dearly.