8 long-drawn and irritating transfers in club football

Transfer windows are exciting times for the football fans with all the buzz and speculation over potential moves. However, there are some transfer stories that never seem to end. Often looking close to completion, these transfer moves would end up finding a new twist or a roadblock, which would prolong the wait. When the move finally goes through, often theres a sigh of relief that its finally done and everyone can get on with the game.We look at eight transfers in club football which caused a lot of media hype but took ages to complete.

#8 David Beckham Manchester United to Real Madrid

David Beckham struggled to get a regular spot in the starting XI in Manchester United team in the 2002-03 season after an injury, and rumour mills got busy with talks of a potential move abroad.

In February 2003, following a defeat in the FA Cup, an angry Sir Alex Ferguson kicked a boot which struck Beckham just over his eye and needed him to get stitches, causing a clear rift between the duo. These were compounded by reports of his wife, Victoria Beckham, wanting to leave England and live abroad.

In the summer transfer window of 2003, Barcelona president Joan Laporta (who had won his presidential campaign largely on his promise to sign Beckham) seemed to have a deal in place to sign Beckham, and reports emerged that Manchester United were looking to sell Beckham.

It was widely believed that Barcelona would be his destination, but instead Beckham opted to join their arch-rivals Real Madrid where he was unveiled in July 2003 as the latest of their Galacticos.

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#7 Carlos Tevez Manchester City to Juventus

Even though Carlos Tevez’s switch to Juventus was done swiftly without the usual long-drawn discussions and negotiations associated with transfer sagas, what preceded this move is what makes the player’s move intriguing.

When Tevez made a controversial move from Manchester United to their city rivals Manchester City in 2009, few would have fathomed the soap opera that followed during the player’s time at the club. Being made club captain, losing a spot in the starting XI, refusal to come on as a substitute in a Champions League game, repeated bust-ups with manager Roberto Mancini which included Tevez being told he’ll never play for the club again but only to return after being initially frozen out and win the league with the team, repeated transfer requests and withdrawn transfer requests, constant trips back home to Argentina – it was certainly one roller-coaster ride for the player.

It was no surprise when Juventus announced the signature of the player in June 2013, but given the fact that Tevez made his first transfer request way back in December 2010, gave plenty of content for the media to write on him with the constant controversies and desire to move away from the club during his stay at Manchester City.

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#6 Luka Modric Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid

The management at Tottenham had known for long that their talented Croatian playmaker would leave White Hart Lane for greener pastures sooner or later. After signing for Spurs from Dinamo Zagreb in 2008 for a record-equalling fee of £16.5 million, Modri quickly settled into the side and put in impressive performances which led to him being considered among the best players in the Premier League.

Sir Alex Ferguson admitted he was an admirer of the player and Manchester United were rumoured to be interested in purchasing him. The summer of 2011 saw Modri being actively pursued by Chelsea who had multiple bids rejected.

Modric went on record to say that he wanted the move to happen, and refused to play in Spurs’ opening game of the season. However, Daniel Levy stuck to his guns, and rejected a final day bid of £40 million by Chelsea and ensured that the player stayed on at Spurs.

The following summer saw another transfer saga, this time with interest from Real Madrid, but Modric finally got the move as the Spanish club signed him for £33 million after several rounds of discussions between Spurs and Real Madrid.

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#5 Neymar Santos to Barcelona

The talented Brazilian made his debut for Santos in 2009 at the age of 17, and soon became a regular in the side despite his young age. It was widely expected that Neymar, like many of his illustrious compatriots, would move to a European league in a matter of time. And many clubs did show interest. However, Santos refused many big money offers and Neymar himself insisted that he was committed to the club.

Neymar’s stock increased with impressive performances for the Brazilian national side and Santos and soon Real Madrid, Barcelona and Chelsea upped their interest in the player, with reports emerging about pre-contract agreements with the clubs. These reports were denied by the player and Santos threatened to report the clubs’ pursuit of him to FIFA.

In March 2013, Neymar was quoted saying that he had a “dream of playing in Europe, for a big club like Barcelona, Real Madrid or Chelsea”. But he also added: “There’s no point in speculating when I’ll leave Santos. I’ll leave when I want to.”

On May 25, 2013, Barcelona announced the signature of Neymar for an undisclosed amount on a five-year contract.

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#4 Gareth Bale Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid

It is hard to believe that the world’s most expensive player was once deemed a flop at Tottenham after his move from Southampton. Joining the club as a talented teenager, Bale struggled in the left-back position and struggled to keep a spot in the starting XI.

It was manager Harry Redknapp’s decision to push the player to a more advanced role where Bale flourished. And after impressing in the 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons, it was widely expected that Bale would be lined up by the big clubs in Europe for a big money move.

And Real Madrid stepped ahead soon in the summer transfer window of 2013, and the deal went on to become the story of the transfer window with multiple rounds of discussions and bids being rejected by Spurs. There were many times when the move seemed on the verge of a collapse.

Ultimately, the transfer move did happen and Real Madrid announced on September 1, 2013 that they had signed the Welsh star. The fee was reported to be approximately £85 million, which was a world record. Bale himself admitted that the transfer saga was a very difficult and stressful period for him, but said that he was hopeful that it would go through, and it did.

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#3 Ashley Cole Arsenal to Chelsea

Ashley Cole’s move from Arsenal to Chelsea is one of the most controversial transfers in recent times. A boyhood Gunner, who progressed through the ranks of the club to become a regular first-team player and an England international, Cole was a firm favourite at Arsenal who had been carefully nurtured by Arsene Wenger. However a successful Euro 2004 and growing reputation after impressive performances for Arsenal meant other clubs started tracking him.

Cole began stalling on signing a new contract at Arsenal and a meeting was held between him, his agents, Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho and Chelsea CEO Peter Kenyon in January, 2005. Chelsea were alleged to have spoken to the defender about the possibility of a transfer during the meeting. Everyone who attended the meeting was fined for the alleged illegal tapping-up, and Cole signed a one-year contract extension at Arsenal.

However the damage had been done and the player continued to push for a move to Chelsea which he finally got in the following year. A player who was once revered by Arsenal fans was now dubbed “Cashley” for his apparent greed for money which made him want to leave his boyhood club and join their cash rich city-rivals.

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#2 Cristiano Ronaldo Manchester United to Real Madrid

After establishing himself as the best player in the Premier League and winning all possible honours at Manchester United, Ronaldo suggested in June 2008 that he would be keen to move to Real Madrid, who were known admirers of the player.

There were reports of a pre-contract to which Alex Ferguson responded by saying: “Do you think I would get into a contract with that mob? Jesus Christ, no chance. I wouldn’t sell them a virus.”

Speculation on a possible move continued the whole summer until Ronaldo announced that he was staying at Manchester for another year.

Real Madrid knew that even though they didn’t get the player that year, he was well within their grasp the following summer. While United fans refused to believe that their star player would want to leave them, it was an open secret that Ronaldo had his heart set on a move to the Santiago Bernabeu.

Finally, in June 2009, Manchester United accepted an offer of a then-world record £80 million from Real Madrid and the player got his dream move.

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#1 Cesc Fabregas Arsenal to Barcelona

The most annoying transfer saga involved the move of Cesc Fabregas from Arsenal back to his hometown club Barcelona. The player had left the Catalan club as a 16-year-old fearing lack of opportunities and moved to the Premier League to continue his football education. Under the tutelage of Arsene Wenger, he went on to develop into one of the finest midfielders in modern game. And this didn’t go unnoticed by Barcelona, who soon set about on a mission to bring back the player, who they had let go off thinking he wasn’t good enough.

Fabregas, whose connection with Barcelona was well documented, never hid his desire to play for the Catalan giants and was frequently linked with a move back to Spain. Wenger considered the Spanish midfielder central to his plans at Arsenal and named him the club captain. In the summer of 2010, Arsenal received several bids from Barcelona for the player, and rejected them all. Several Barcelona star players made comments in public in which they invited Fabregas to join them at the Camp Nou.

While Fabregas committed himself to Arsenal, the speculation of a move continued the entire season. In the 2011 summer transfer window, Barcelona tried to sign the player once again, but Arsenal refused to do business. Wenger was quoted saying: “You do not educate a player for eight years as we have done only to want him to go once he is at an age to deliver.”

However, the player decided that he wanted to push for the move, and refused to train with the Arsenal squad. And he soon got his wish as Arsenal agreed to sell him to Barcelona for a fee reported to reach up to £35 million.

The irony of the whole saga is that in this transfer window (2014 summer), Fabregas was deemed surplus to the requirements at Barcelona and was told to find a new club for himself. Arsenal, who had the first option to sign him, rejected the chance to do so, instead choosing to spend the money on Alexis Sanchez. And Fabregas is now at Arsenal’s city-rivals Chelsea, with his revered status among the Gunners lost forever.

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