Did you ever write off a player...and get it wrong?

Phoenix Wright

I never thought Harry Kane would make it. Most players that regularly go on loan to clubs in the championship rarely become anything more than squad players. He did very little at Norwich and I was fully convinced he'd end up like Ryan Mason or Tom Carroll.

Gringo180

Theo Walcott. He looked like a 100 metre sprinter in his early days. How he has proved me wrong......... Oh wait!

Icaras

I remember when Capello dropped Beckham I though someone had realised he (Becks) was an over hyped fancy ******, this was also around the time Beckham signed for LA Galax. Beckham then fought his way back into the team and was very much involved with them winning the league that year when he could have sat on his arse collecting a cheque as his future was already secured. Beckham proved me wrong and earned my respect (Im sure hes delighted about it and tells all his friends).

Burial.

I'm sure we all felt Bale was a complete waste of fluffy hair back in his first few outings for Spurs. Even after becoming the best player in England the transfer to Madrid was crazy but he keeps proving it as sound value.

bmcc10

John Stones before he popped up with that goal to show his bottle after more mistakes he makes week after week great young talent great passer of a football.

~Rebel~

eagle eye wrote: »

I don't think I ever wrote off a player and got it wrong but I did have high hopes some and got that wrong.

Yeah, same here, when it comes to footballers i'm a perennial optimist. Have built up my expectations countless times only to have them dashed before too long.

Krisztián Németh, Dani Pacheco, Aquilani, Mark González, Seb Leto... ugh, too too many.

CantGetNoSleep

~Rebel~ wrote: »

Yeah, same here, when it comes to footballers i'm a perennial optimist. Have built up my expectations countless times only to have them dashed before too long.

Krisztián Németh, Dani Pacheco, Aquilani, Mark González, Seb Leto... ugh, too too many.

To be fair most Liverpool fans are similar to that - up to about 12 months ago one of them was still telling me Martin Kelly would be England's best CB. We could make a whole new thread on that.

Jan_de_Bakker

Rafa Nadal ..... he's had about 19 comebacks, at this stage he will be still playing in 20 years time .... oh football ???

thought Drogba was gone before Ancellotti came to Chelsea.

Nerdlingr

Julen Guerrero

The guy had it all, thought he'd be a major player for Spain for years and go on to be one of Europe's best midfielders. He stayed at Bilbao for his career and never really fulfilled his potential.

Edit : Here's an article for the guardian from ten years ago about him, and his partial fall from grace https://www.theguardian.com/football/2005/jan/24/europeanfootball.sport

artanevilla

Jan_de_Bakker wrote: »

Rafa Nadal ..... he's had about 19 comebacks, at this stage he will be still playing in 20 years time .... oh football ???

thought Drogba was gone before Ancellotti came to Chelsea.

14 Grand Slams!

Phoenix Wright

Thomas Muller was a big one for me, was really shocked in 2010 when he started firing them in at the World Cup.

ERG89

Forlan. Remember reading a lot about him in World Soccer & thought after United he'd end up back in S. America but was superb for Villarreal & Atletico.
Jon Dahl Tomasson too was bad for Newcastle but loved him at Milan.
Candreva too. I don't know why but I hated him when he was at Juve, I thought he was fortunate to find himself in Serie A with Parma afterwards. Now he's clearly a superb player
Robben....I thought he'd retire young due to injuries but I never doubted his ability for a moment.

Luap

Lucas Leiva, have wanted him out I don't how many times but to be fair hes been a great signing.

Always give 100% and never moans.

Dirty Dingus McGee

Nerdlingr wrote: »

Julen Guerrero

The guy had it all, thought he'd be a major player for Spain for years and go on to be one of Europe's best midfielders. He stayed at Bilbao for his career and never really fulfilled his potential.

Edit : Here's an article for the guardian from ten years ago about him, and his partial fall from grace https://www.theguardian.com/football/2005/jan/24/europeanfootball.sport

Him and Joseba Exteberria were unbelievably good in Championship Manager 2001/2002.

I think Guerrero was riddled with injuries and I think was basically finished as a quality player by the time he was 26 or 27.

pudzey101

Berbatov Back in 06 when he joined spurs to become the most expensive Bulgarian ever . Just taught hed be too slow and predictable for the premiership did i get that wrong

Also Dennis Bergkamp back in 95 .... Taught Arsenal where crazy spending 7.5 mil on him ( braking the club's transfer fee record set at £2.5 million) but then again look how that turned out

Skylinehead

pudzey101 wrote: »

Berbatov Back in 06 when he joined spurs to become the most expensive Bulgarian ever . Just taught hed be too slow and predictable for the premiership did i get that wrong

Also Dennis Bergkamp back in 95 .... Taught Arsenal where crazy spending 7.5 mil on him ( braking the club's transfer fee record set at £2.5 million) but then again look how that turned out

What have you got against slow guiley technical gods

aidan24326

Deleted User wrote: »

Early in his career, thought C Ronaldo just wouldn't cut it, fancy dan stuff. Got that wrong, he has become one of the greatest of the last 20 years...but suspect I wasn't the only one.

You certainly weren't and there were valid reasons at the time for thinking that Ronaldo would never amount to more than a flash harry sort of player. It was obvious that he had bags of ability but it was style over substance in those days.

It's to his great credit that he worked so hard at improving every aspect of his game to the point where we're now talking about one of the best players of his era and one of the greatest goalscorers ever.

Also it's quite unusual for a player like him to be so good in the air, again it's obviously something he has worked on and for all his talent I think it's that level of application and dedication that has seen him rise from young skillful showboater to world class player.

keano_afc

Phoenix Wright wrote: »

Thomas Muller was a big one for me, was really shocked in 2010 when he started firing them in at the World Cup.

Yeah same here. Its funny because I still cant work out what he does. No pace, not a great passer and looks incredibly awkward. Yet is brilliant.

sky88

keano_afc wrote: »

Yeah same here. Its funny because I still cant work out what he does. No pace, not a great passer and looks incredibly awkward. Yet is brilliant.

nail on the head with muller he never looks like hes doing anything then bam hell have a hatrick out of no were

AndyBoBandy

Probably around 2002/2003 I said that Liverpool would never challenge for the league title or Champions League with players like Jamie Carragher regularly starting. (at this time he was playing full back, thats my defence).

yknaa

Martin Keown when Arsenal bought him back from Everton for £2m. He spend nearly 10 years proving me wrong.

kfallon

AndyBoBandy wrote: »

Probably around 2002/2003 I said that Liverpool would never challenge for the league title or Champions League with players like Jamie Carragher regularly starting. (at this time he was playing full back, thats my defence).

I was the same, tbh he was a poor full back, couldn't believe he kept the likes of Ziege and Babbel out of the team at times!

yupya1

Remember my friend being serious shouting at Pirlo, at an Ireland Match to give it up as he is too old...Pirlo was 30 and as we know he struggled on for a few more years!

keano_afc

yknaa wrote: »

Martin Keown when Arsenal bought him back from Everton for £2m. He spend nearly 10 years proving me wrong.

I met him a few years ago in Oxford. I was bloody delighted, he was one of my favourite Arsenal players.

brianregan09

Anelka was one for me never thought he would replace Ian Wright yet he did (albeit briefly) went on to become a fantastic player

Phoenix Wright

keano_afc wrote: »

Yeah same here. Its funny because I still cant work out what he does. No pace, not a great passer and looks incredibly awkward. Yet is brilliant.

He's a jammy git, but I guess that's part and parcel of being at the right place at the right time. Muller has a sixth sense that allows him to get on the end of things that other wouldn't.

Unearthly

yupya1 wrote: »

Remember my friend being serious shouting at Pirlo, at an Ireland Match to give it up as he is too old...Pirlo was 30 and as we know he struggled on for a few more years!

Actually ill own up to Pirlo to. There was one match Milan lost 4 nil to Man Utd and Park was all over Pirlo. To me he looked done for. Very wrong

eagle eye

Icaras wrote: »

I remember when Capello dropped Beckham I though someone had realised he (Becks) was an over hyped fancy ******, this was also around the time Beckham signed for LA Galax. Beckham then fought his way back into the team and was very much involved with them winning the league that year when he could have sat on his arse collecting a cheque as his future was already secured. Beckham proved me wrong and earned my respect (Im sure hes delighted about it and tells all his friends).

He wasn't just a part of winning that league title, he was the driving force in that team. Imo his best season ever.

Muff_Daddy

jive wrote: »

As per previous post, Harry Kane. And I'm still writing him off.

Nothing but a 3 season wonder, flash in the pan alright.