Every club has had got that ‘dud’ signing, the one everyone was so hyped about and turned out to be a massive flop and disappointment.
But then there are those who defy expectations and become a club legend.
Ringing any bells?
Over at the Everton page we conducted a little opinion poll to find out who you thought were the best and worst signings of the past 30 years.
And here are the results: *drum roll please*
Opinions from the ‘Everton Page’
Opinions from the ‘Everton Page’
Opinions from the ‘Everton Page’
Sorry I couldn’t share all your opinions but once again you haven’t let me down Blues!
I have compiled all the names and here are the most voted for!
Best Signings –
Tim Cahill – photo courtesy of ‘O-posts’
- Tim Cahill
- Leighton Baines
- Seamus Coleman
- Mikel Arteta
- Kevin Campbell
- Phil Jagielka
- Tim Howard
And the worst signings –
- Alex Nyarko
- Per Kroldrup
- Andy van der Meyde
- Diniyar Bilyaletdinov
- Nuno Valente
- Scott Gemmill
- Claus Thomson
I’d like to share my opinion with you, although I am going to restrict my thoughts to the last 13 years (of which I have been a season ticket holder) as it would be unjustified of me to pretend I know exactly how they players were previous to the last 13 years and make a decision based on this. Don’t worry I do ‘know my history’ and have heard of the stories behind the players but as I say it makes sense for me to stick to the time zone I am more aware of!!
So my top 5 best signings are:
- Leighton Baines
- Tim Cahill
- Mikel Arteta
- Seamus Coleman
- Landon Donovan
Leighton Baines, signed from Wigan for just £6m and is now worth triple that! He can take a pretty decent penalty, make a decent tackle and score some decent goals!! What’s not to love?! Ah Tim Cahill, our favourite Aussie! He came from Millwall for just £1.5m and instantly took his place among legends. Mikel Arteta graced Everton in 2005 and I instantly fell in love! He was quick, fluent and took some cracking corners! Seamus Coleman came to Everton for just £60,000 and look at him now! He is one of the best right backs in the country! And finally, Landon Donovan, he joined the Blues in January 2010 on loan and straight away he made his mark in Everton history. He returned a year later also and I think he really picked us up and added a fresh perspective at a time in the season when we needed it!
And my 5 worst signings are:
- Diniyar Bilyaletdinov
- Andy van der Meyde
- Scott Gemmill
- James Beattie
- Alex Nyarko
Considering we paid almost £9m for Billie, what did he really do? He scored a few goals yes, but that’s about it, he was lazy, sloppy and bad mouthed us after he left! As did my next culprit Andy van der Meyde. Where do I even start with him? He made the headlines but not for his antics on the pitch, no no, just airing his dirty laundry! Scottie Gemmill was another disappointment, what exactly did he do?! Just pissed about with the reserves! Now onto James Beattie, bless him, I don’t know why but in naming him on this list I feel like I’m kicking a puppy! He’s a little sweetie, but was so overrated! At the time he was our record signing and he was plagued by injuries, got sent off for that head-butt on William Gallas and not much else…Finally Alex Nyarko, well, as a centre midfielder you’ d expect him to score a few goals, not one. Yes one goal. He was another bone idol player. I mean who requests to be substituted?! Gah!
Here is David Bernard’s top 3:
“Best – Tim Cahill, Seamus Coleman, Nigel Martyn.
Worst – Per Kroldrup, Stephen Hughes, Vinny Samways.”
And finally Dan Griffith’s comments:
“Best Signings: Timmy Cahill and Seamus Coleman were picked up for virtually nothing and both players developed into £10m+ players within their careers and I’d say Nigel Martyn. We were in a position where we had never really found a good keeper after Big Nev left. Martyn came in and was phonominal when we really needed him. Worst: Earl Barrett, Jason Keirton, Per Kroldrup..”
Until next time Blues…
The Toffee Lady 