Five Players Who Signed For Clubs But NEVER PLAYED A Single Game

David Tully

2 years ago

Categories: Galleries, Manchester City News, Transfer News

Tags: Arsenal, aston villa, Chelsea, Everton, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Sheffield United, Southampton, spurs, West Ham

Sometimes transfers simply don’t work out. For whatever reason, a player comes in and fails to make an impression so it is decided that it is best for all parties to go their separate ways.

However, there is a strand of rather bizarre signings where the player never makes a single senior appearance.

In our list today, we will be looking at five examples. There are various reasons why it can happen; work permits, loans, and panic buys all play their part.

Press the next page as we look at the players who never played a single match for their teams after being signed.

William Saliba – Arsenal

Arsenal signed the centre-back from Saint-Etienne in 2019 for £27m. The Frenchman was loaned back for the rest of the season in view to becoming part of the first-team squad for the 2020/21 campaign. However, during that time, Mikel Arteta was appointed as manager.

After spending six months on the sidelines, Saliba was loaned out to Nice in the 2021 January transfer window, before going on a third loan spell to Marseille last campaign. While the Frenchman could yet still play for the Gunners, all the signs do suggest that the defender is pushing for a permanent move away from the Emirates this summer.

Ben Davies – Liverpool

The 26-year-old was a panic buy during the 2021 January transfer window when the Reds had an injury crisis in the centre of defence. His contract was set to expire at Preston so they snapped him up for £500,000.

Davies did not make a single appearance in the second half of the 2020/21 campaign with manager Jurgen Klopp opting to play the inexperienced Rhys Williams instead. Sheffield United offered to take him on a season-long loan last summer and he is due back on Merseyside in the coming weeks, with a decision yet to be made on his future.

Douglas Luiz – Aston Villa

Manchester City do sign a fair number of young players who never go on to play for the first team. Luiz was an odd case, though, as he was signed from Vasco da Gama and sent straight out on loan to feeder club Girona. He spent two years in Spain before he was sold on for a profit to Aston Villa in 2019.

The Citizens did reportedly have a £25m buyback clause on Luiz, which expired last year, but they retain a sell-on clause that could come into play this summer, with the Brazilian attracting interest from Arsenal.

Matej Dalec – Chelsea

The Croatian was famously the Blues’ longest-serving player at one point, despite having not played for the first team. After moving to Stamford Bridge from Inter Zapresic in 2010, he went out on loan on TEN separate occasions.

Delac had spells at Vitesse, SK Dynamo Ceske Budejovice, Vitor Guimaraes, Inter Zapresic, Vojvodina, FK Sarajevo (three times), Arles Avignon and Mouscron. He left for Danish club AC Horsens in 2018 and he has spent the last four years there.

Taiwo Awoniyi – Liverpool

This is a slightly different case to Ben Davies, with the player unable to obtain a work permit after arriving from Nigeria’s Imperial Soccer Academy in the summer of 2015.

Awoniyi had loan spells at six different teams before finally leaving on a permanent basis to Union Berlin last year. The Reds sold the forward for £6.5 million and have a 10% sell-on clause.