Top of the flops

'Armless: Keane has been about as effective as a wilting daffodil

13 April 2012

There have been some stunning footballing letdowns this season. Players signed for the GDP of a small African nation have been woefully unimpressive, while some of last year's stars seem to have forgotten how to play the game. Here we look at some of the biggest flops of the season...

10 Emmanuel Adebayor

The Arsenal striker has been a shadow of his former self this season. Last year he was on fire, scoring 30 goals in all competitions and attracting the attention of Barcelona and AC Milan. Unhappy with the Arsenal pay structure it looked like Adebayor would be involved in a £30 million move away from North London, but in the end he resolved to stay. He probably wished he hadn't. Booed by the fans at the beginning of the season, his form formed dipped and he had to watch as Arsenal began to implode.

9 Micah Richards

Richards was a giant for City last season. Solid as an ox, he could play anywhere in defence and was unbeatable in the air. The England international also had the ability to go forward with confidence, with his quick feet and great pace making him an auxiliary midfielder. This year he has been accused of being fat and off the pace. Alan Hansen once said that if he could come back as anyone, it would be Micah Richards. Bet he regrets that now.

8 Didier Drogba

The Ivorian has had a torrid time this season. After being Chelsea's star striker since his arrival in 2004, Drogba has watched from the sidelines as Nicolas Anelka has become the Blues' top marksman. Plagued by injury and reports that he wants to join former boss Jose Mourinho at Inter Milan, Drogba's form on the pitch has been poor. When partnered with Anelka the two have failed to click, leading Scolari to opt for one or the other. More often than not, he's gone for Anelka.

7 El-Hadji Diouf

Diouf looked to be a good signing when Roy Keane brought the controversial Senegalese forward to Sunderland in the summer. Keano knew that Diouf was a mite unpredictable, but thought that he could get the best out of the player. Unfortunately Diouf's appearances for Sunderland have been woeful - so bad that he has failed to score in the 13 Premier League matches he has been involved in. For an attacking wide man this is a fairly shocking record, but on the plus side, at least he hasn't spat on anyone yet.

6 Deco

When he first arrived at Stamford Bridge in the summer, Deco seemed unstoppable, scoring in his first two league games. His neat, incisive passing tore sides apart and the Portuguese midfielder was one of the most exciting players in the league. Then Ballack returned from injury and Lampard starting playing again. How did Deco respond? He didn't. Scolari moved him out wide, but to no avail. He then tried him behind the striker but the Chelsea midfield became compacted. Since then he hasn't had a consistent run in the side and failed to stamp any authority on the league. What a letdown.

5 Dave Kitson

Tony Pulis spent a whopping (for Stoke) £5.5 million to bring Kitson to the Britannia Stadium - shattering the club's transfer record to do so. Kitson repaid his manager by scoring one goal in the Carling Cup and missing a hoarde of chances. The "ginger ninja" has been one of the let downs of the season, with his failure to find the back of the net something of an embarrassment in the Potteries.

4 Jo

City were "done" when they paid £18 million to CSKA Moscow for Jo. The Brazilian may be, well, Brazilian, but his lacklustre appearances have been so disappointing that he has only completed three full matches this season. Proof that not all Brazilians are phenomenal, Robinho has made him look like a right clown.

3 Roque Santa Cruz

The Paraguayan was marvelous for Blackburn Rovers last season. Signed for £3.8 million from Bayern Munich he was one of the players of the season, netting 22 goals in 40 competitions. This year Santa Cruz has barely got going, scoring a meagre three league goals, less than both Jason Roberts and Benny McCarthy.

2 David Bentley

A sensational 2007/08 saw Bentley catapult himself into the England team and at one stage was touted as the natural successor to David Beckham. Oh how times have changed. For most of the season Bentley has been fairly anonymous, putting in mediocre displays littered with examples of erratic crossing. He has had the odd moment of genius, but ultimately has failed to recreate the form that warranted his £15 million move from Blackburn.

1 Robbie Keane

The ultimate letdown – by a country mile. Keane has been so bad this season that he has even made Dirk Kuyt look good. To say that the Irishman has failed to settle at Liverpool would be an understatement. His partnership with Torres has been virtually non-existent and when he has played up-front on his own he has been isolated and out of his depth. Rafa has tried him on the wing, through the centre, behind the striker and leading the line, yet he has found his best form on the bench. If Robbie Keane does go back to White Hart Lance, six months after his transfer to Liverpool, it will only underline what a disaster he has been.

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