The Most Epic Transfer Sagas of Modern Times

As the 2013 January transfer window draws to a close, there will obviously be mixed reactions from the club faithful. Some will be feeling aggrieved that their club has not spent sufficiently to warrant a push upward in their league positions, while some will have a smug look on their faces as their club strengthens the necessary positions in the squad.

Whatever be the case, exasperated football fans will be breathing a huge sigh of relief and opportunistic rumour mongers will be shedding a few tears at the demise of a regular storyline as one of the longest running transfer sagas of modern times came to an end – the one involving Wesley Sneijder.

The Dutchman has been constantly linked with a host of clubs over the course of the last four transfer windows, most notably Manchester United, who seem to be in the perpetual need for a creative midfielder. A player once flashed around at a princely sum of £35m had to eventually settle for a transfer to Turkish heavyweights Galatasaray for a fee of around £8m. Till the point the deal was confirmed, it was still being reported that Liverpool and Tottenham were circling around the Dutchman who helped Inter to a historic treble in the 2009-10 season.

We now take a look at some of the best part-memorable and part-annoying transfer sagas of this decade and the last.

The big daddy of all transfer sagas revolved around this Spanish pass master. After having left Barcelona in 2003 to pursue his footballing education at Arsenal, Fabregas matured into one of the finest midfielders in the English Premier League. His metronomic rise to the top echelons of English football did not go unnoticed as the Catalan giants upped the stakes and decided to bring the boy “home” in 2009. The Blaugrana faithful started talking of the “Barca DNA” as Cesc was famously draped in a Barcelona shirt by Puyol and Pique as they celebrated their World Cup 2010 victory. After holding on to him for the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons, Arsenal succumbed to a bid of £35m and he was shipped back to the Nou Camp in the summer of 2011.

This saga makes its way into our list not for its duration but for the very public way in which it was being conducted. People were always kept in the loop as to which clubs were involved at various stages, with the Belgian being aggressively courted by Chelsea. From the Lille academy director public stating that the Stamford Bridge outfit was most interested, to the Belgian professing his admiration for Manchester United, to being spotted at the Manchester derby, to his announcement that he will be sporting a “Blue” jersey next season to cryptic tweets (‘good afternoon guys. I made up my mind. see you later. thanks’) – one seemed to be at a loss to figure out where he was eventually headed. Even after Hazard publicly declared, ‘I’m signing for the Champion’s League winner.’ – it took over a week for Chelsea to confirm their acquisition of the services of the fleet footed Belgian in the summer of 2012 for an eye popping sum of £32 million.

It was always likely that the Croatian play maker would leave White Hart Lane for greener pastures. However, Spurs chairman Daniel Levy displayed impressive determination to hold onto their star asset and extract the maximum possible transfer fee before he had to let Modric leave following Spurs’ inability to qualify for the Champions League in the 2012 season. A £30 million bid from Chelsea was reportedly turned down in the summer of 2011, as Manchester United also tested the resolve of Spurs with a purported January bid. Modric finally departed the English shores for Real Madrid. The profile of the Croat was mistakenly uploaded on the Los Blancos website on 21^st August, before the transfer eventually took place on 28^th August 2012 for a fee of £33m.

The only transfer target in this list which has not yet been completed and speculations still abound. The flying Welshman had joined the ranks of Tottenham Hotspur from Southampton in 2007 for £10 million, in the process becoming one of the most expensive teenage prodigies in British football. It has been widely rumoured that El Classico opponents Real Madrid and Barcelona are in pursuit of the left winger, and that the Lilywhites have slapped a price tag of £60 million on his head. And it looks almost certain that Bale will depart for the Spanish shores if Spurs fail to qualify for the Champions League this season.

When it comes to sagas that had captured the imagination of millions worldwide, this one is right at the head of the pack. 42 goals in 48 matches for the Red Devils meant that the Portuguese superstar’s appeal had sky-rocketed in the 2007-08 season. The Los Blancos continued their public flirtation with Ronaldo with alleged reports of a pre-contract agreement to which Sir Alex had retorted: “Do you think I would get into a contract with that mob? Jesus Christ, no chance. I wouldn’t sell them a virus.” After months of tapping up and United fans living in denial, Cristiano Ronaldo completed his “dream move” to Real Madrid for a record shattering fee of £80m.

A transfer which had hit the headlines because it involved one of the most high profile cases of “tapping up” in recent memory. It was January 2005 when Cole met Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho and chief executive Peter Kenyon in a very public London hotel even as he was contracted to the Gunners. They were subsequently charged and fined by the FA for this breach of regulations. Arsenal held on to Cole for another year before they allowed him to move to Stamford Bridge in the summer of 2006 for £5m and William Gallas moving the other way.

One of the most high profile transfers in football history for it involved three of the biggest clubs in world football and an iconic footballer. A rumour which started with a stray boot to the face as Sir Alex vented his frustration at his skipper following a disappointing 0-2 home loss to Arsenal in the FA Cup. Some not-so-subtle hints from Victoria ‘Spice’ Beckham later, the rumour picked up pace as Beckham started on the bench in a crunch Champions League quarter final away fixture against Real Madrid – his touted destination. Barcelona jumped into the fray as presidential candidate Joan Laporta based his campaign pitch on a promise to sign Beckham if he got elected. Meanwhile Beckham shirts are on sale at Real Madrid. After considerable negotiations, the English superstar makes his move to join the Galacticos for £25m in June 2003.

It proved to be one of the longest running transfer sagas which eventually did not come to fruition and has now been put to rest. After a series of repeated bust-ups with the manager, culminating in Tevez refusing to come off the bench in a Champions League clash versus Bayern Munich, it seemingly looked like he was destined to play at anywhere other than Eastlands after the next transfer window. AC Milan and Corinthians were queuing up for the Argentinian’s signature, only to be put off by his astronomical wages. Mancini and Tevez later buried the hatchet as the Argentine spearheaded the Manchester City front-line in the second half of the 2011-12 season as they romped to their first Premier League title in 44 years.

One of the most bizarre transfer sagas you are ever likely to hear, for it involved alleged reports of kidnapping, death threats, fraudulent agents and two of the biggest clubs in English football. In the summer of 2006, Mikel was reportedly signed by Manchester United from Norwegian club Lyn Oslo for £4 million. The player was unveiled at a press conference sporting a United jersey. Chelsea objected, saying a transfer deal was already in place with the player’s agent. Mikel became a target of death threats in his native Nigeria and disappeared (supposedly kidnapped). He re-emerged in London as a Chelsea player, and said that he was pressurised into joining the Red Devils. It looked as if a legal wrangle was on the cards when Chelsea decided to pay off United £12 million and Lyn Oslo £4 million to end this saga. And looking at how Mikel has performed over the years in a Blue shirt, Manchester United could be forgiven for thinking that they got the better deal.