Liverpool FC have made some incredible signings in the past few years, but the current European Champions grabbed the headlines for all the wrong reasons just a decade ago, their transfer policies and signings becoming a joke in the league.
The club has made some disastrous investments, especially after the post-Suarez era, splashing the money on unknown players. The club’s finances were known to be in turmoil, almost on the verge of bankruptcy during the start of the decade under American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillet, which highlights the transformation, even more, Liverpool FC has gone through in recent times. Here we look at some of the worst signings Merseyside-club has seen across its history.
TOP 10 WORST SIGNINGS FOR LIVERPOOL FC
#10: IAGO ASPAS
Signed: Celta Vigo
Year: 2013
Fee: £7 million
With Liverpool FC lacking any Number 9’s after the departure of Andy Carroll, Iago Aspas was brought from Celta Vigo in the summer of 2013 where he had previously contributed crucially in earning promotion to Spanish top-flight.
This was the season however where Luis Suarez grabbed headlines with his terrific performances, and with players such as Sturridge, Sterling, and Coutinho upfront, Aspas never really could break through to the first team.
The final nail in his career at the club came when he took the worst corner the Kop had ever seen in recent memory, with him practically gifting the ball to Willian who scored Chelsea’s second goal and effectively dashed the collective hopes of everyone around the stadium of finally winning the Premier League.
He was sent out to Sevilla on a season-long loan and went back to playing for Celta in a few years, putting in some decent performances and even earning some international caps during the World Cup in 2018.
STATS:
SEASON APPEARANCES GOALS
2013-14 15 1
#9: ALBERTO AQUILANI
Signed from: AS Roma
Year: 2009
Fee: £17.1 million
Brought in for 17 million pounds (a hefty sum at the time) to replace the legendary Xabi Alonso as Liverpool FC’s primary playmaker, he made his first league start for the club against Wolves in December 2009, earning a standing ovation from the Kop for his performances. He put on quite a few man of the match performances in his next few appearances, and there can be no doubt that he certainly had talent.
The injury-prone Italian however was plagued by injuries and fitness issues in the second half of the season and his inability to settle down at Merseyside saw him restricted to just 18 league appearances. He was sold to Fiorentina virtually free of cost by 2012 and is probably one of the worst trade deals for the club in recent memory.
STATS:
SEASON APPEARANCES GOALS
2009-10 26 2
2010-11 2 0
Total 28 2
#8: FABIO BORINI
Signed from: AS Roma
Year: 2012
Fee: £10.4 million
The Italian became the first signing of manager Brendan Rodgers, with Borini later revealing that his compatriot Balotelli was responsible for urging him to join Liverpool FC, as “they have the most exciting fans” (Of course, Balotelli himself would arrive at the club a few years later).
Having played under Rodgers in his Swansea years, Borini was still 21 and was seen as a promising young talent up front, and even scored in his debut match against FC Gomel in the Europa League. A broken foot injury saw him sidelined for a few months, however, and a dislocated shoulder in 2013 saw him remain out for the remainder of that season. He never made an impression on the manager scoring just twice in the league in a Reds shirt and was ultimately loaned out to Sunderland after a year for Liverpool FC, the move made permanent for £8 million the following year.
STATS:
SEASON APPEARANCES GOALS
2012-13 20 2
2013-14 0 0
2014-15 18 1
Total 38 3
#7: SEAN DUNDEE
Signed from: Karlsruher
Year: 1998
Fee: £2 million
Brought on to the team as a backup to Michael Owen and Karl-Heinz Riedle, Dundee had a decent reputation as a striker before joining Liverpool FC. Originally a South-African, his performances in Bundesliga were so highly rated that he was pressurized to become a German citizen so that his services could be utilized by the national team. He had a decent tally of 33 goals in 61 games in German top-flight and was seen as a good backup to the main bigwigs upfront.
His horrible performances both on the pitch and during training however saw him restricted to make just 5 appearances for the club (all of them as substitutes), and in just 3 months of his arrival was told to look elsewhere for employment by the end of the season. Roy Evans even went so far as to say that Dundee was his worst signing at Liverpool FC, owing to his lack of discipline and any regard for team tactics. A year later he was sold to Stuttgart.
STATS:
SEASON APPEARANCES GOALS
1998-99 5 0
#6: EL-HADJI DIOUF
Signed from: Lens
Year: 2002
Fee: £10 million
Probably one of the most hated players in Liverpool FC’s history alongside being the worst, Diouf was signed on from French club AC Lens after impressing for Senegal during the World Cup that year. He scored twice in his debut against Southampton at Anfield, earning praise from the manager for having the potential to be one of the best strikers in the league.
His training pitch antics however was not received well by teammates including Carragher and captain Steven Gerrard, who openly despised the Senegalese for his attitude and bad behavior. He was booked and fined by the club after he spat on a Celtic fan post-match and rather than feeling apologetic, Diouf claimed he would have beaten him up had he not been on the pitch.
The two-time African footballer of the year also holds the record being the only No. 9 for Liverpool FC who went goalless throughout a whole season, and the club eventually got rid of him by finally loaning him out to Bolton, a move that was made permanent in 2005.
STATS:
SEASON APPEARANCES GOALS
2002-03 47 6
2003-04 33 0
Total 80 6
#5: PAUL KONCHESKY
Signed from: Fulham
Year: 2010
Fee: £3.5 million
One of the first (and worst) signings under Roy Hodgson as manager of the club in 2010, Paul Konchesky previously had played under him at Fulham.
The 29-year old was utterly incompetent as a left-back, to say the least, and with him, at the team, the Reds had their worst start in the league in 57 years. He was heavily criticized over his performances in the coming months, and his mother calling Kopites “scouser scum” certainly not helping his cause. He was loaned out to Nottingham Forest after just five months into his Reds career, three weeks after Roy Hodgson himself was sacked from the helm. He was sold to Leicester City by the end of the year for a reported fee of about £1.5 million.
STATS:
SEASON APPEARANCES GOALS
2010-11 18 0
#4: MARIO BALOTELLI
Signed from: AC Milan
Year: 2014
Fee: £16 million
Balotelli had a mixed reputation preceding him at Anfield. The Italian-native was seen as a promising young talent in his youth years at Inter Milan but was mired in controversies, and later on, during his Manchester City days became known for his impulsive and arrogant behavior and a poor disciplinary record. He was signed as a direct replacement for departing Suarez, with Brendan Rodgers acknowledging that it was a bit of a gamble from his side putting faith in the then 24-year old.
Balotelli surely lived up to his infamous reputation, by not only being absolutely useless on the pitch but also by being publicly involved in dubious behaviors off the pitch. He was fined by the club for posting anti-Semitic content and was criticized by the manager himself for swapping shirts with Pepe during half time. He scored only a single goal in 16 appearances and was loaned back to Milan after just one year, eventually being sold off to Ligue-1 side Nice.
STATS:
SEASON APPEARANCES GOALS
2014-15 28 4
#3: LORIS KARIUS
Signed: Mainz 05
Year: 2016
Fee: £4.7 million
With underwhelming displays from Simon Mignolet and without any decent goalkeeping backups, Karius was signed from Mainz for a decent bargain. The 23-year old had put an impressive display for his German team that season and was voted the second-best goalie in the league just behind Manuel Neuer.
He put up some confident displays initially and quickly replaced Mignolet as Liverpool FC’s No.1, but his performances started dipping by late December that season, with Karius fluffing some routine saves against Bournemouth. He was dropped soon after, but his errors were mostly forgiven due to his youth and inexperience in the league, and Mignolet was reinstated as the shot-stopper.
With neither goalkeeper putting in any assuring displays, Karius clawed back to the team, and with Liverpool’s attack firing on all fronts that season, his individual errors were mostly overlooked as they didn’t really cost the team much, up until that (un)fateful night at Kyiv.
Karius put in a career-breaking worst performance in the Champions League final against Real Madrid, with the German directly responsible for Madrid’s opening goal after throwing the ball straight into Benzema’s feet, and fluffing a long-range effort from Bale. He was dropped immediately from the team and loaned out to Besiktas next season with an obligatory buy-out clause, but recently terminated his contract with the Turkish side due to unpaid wage issues.
STATS:
SEASON APPEARANCES CLEAN SHEETS
2016-17 16 6
2017-18 33 16
Total 49 19
#2: ANDY CARROLL
Signed from: Newcastle United
Year: 2011
Fee: £35 million
The towering Englishman was the most expensive signing for Liverpool FC at the time, with the Reds scrambling to replace Torres upfront. His prior experience in the league with Newcastle coupled with his strength and heading-ability was seen as a safe bet.
His performances never lived up to expectations, however, and barring a couple of goals at crucial moments, Carroll was a flop in front of the goal, scoring just 11 in 58 appearances. With the arrival of Brendan Rodgers to the club, the Englishman was informed that he did not feature in the manager’s game plan and subsequently departed after just 18 months to join West Ham.
STATS:
SEASON APPEARANCES GOALS
2010-11 9 2
2011-12 47 9
2012-13 2 0
Total 58 11
#1: LAZAR MARKOVIC
Signed from: Benfica
Year: 2014
Fee: £20 million
Among the plethora of players signed during the season following the post-Suarez era, Markovic was just 20 when he joined the Reds. His European debut against Basel saw him earn a straight red card for flicking his fingers on the face of an opponent player, and this was a somber indication for his time at Anfield.
He was extremely slow and gave away the ball cheaply in compromising positions, and was always at the fringes of the first team during his entire career. He managed to score just three goals and was called up by Brendan Rodgers only when the manager had no other choice or no one else to field.
A player once remarked to be “one of the best talents he has ever seen” by ex-Chelsea manager Avram Grant, Markovic was loaned out to Fenerbahce by the end of just a year to gain some experience as he was still young and the club did not want to see the 20 million invested in him go down the drain. After a variety of loan spells at clubs ranging from Hull City to Sporting Lisbon, with no club willing to meet the £16 million price tag Liverpool FC had set for him, he saw his contract with the Reds expire in 2019 and joined Fulham on a free transfer.
STATS:
SEASON APPEARANCES GOALS
2014-15 34 3
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