Top 5 worst signings in Real Madrid history
If we do a quick review of the great history of Real Madrid, names like Di Stefano, Zidane, Cristiano Ronaldo or Luka Modric will come up. All of them great signings that were and have been very profitable for Los Blancos, however, the signings do not always have this result, sometimes, the investments turn out not to be good because the player does not have the expected performance. Many times, the price of the player ends up condemning him, something that is not necessarily his fault but that is decisive in this analysis.There are cases of players, as we will see in some of this list, that what condemns them is not their price but some other things. By the way, speaking of Modric, in 2013, at the end of his first season with the club, he was named by the Spanish press as one of the worst signing not only for Real Madrid but in La Liga, that is the reason why we do not consider any player who is currently at the club. Without further ado, the worst signings in the history of Real Madrid.
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Kaká, Brazil
The Brazilian stood out from a very young age at Sao Paulo, to the point of being called up by Scolari for the 2002 FIFA World Cup where Brazil was crowned champion. In 2003, he arrived at AC Milan with a rather low profile but quickly became one of the best and hottest players in the world, even leaving the established Rui Costa on the bench. He had a way of playing that seemed to float over the pitch at a slow pace, but despite that the defenders could not stop him.In 2007, he won the Ballon d'Or and in 2009, when Florentino Perez returned to the presidency of Real Madrid, the Brazilian signed for Los Blancos for 67 million euros. Recurring injuries were the reason why Kaká never reached his best level at Real Madrid, a level that due to his physical condition he was unable to regain in the rest of his career. His behaviour at the club was always exemplary and he never had any controversy in his 4 years as a player for Real, but the big money that Real Madrid spent on him, and the poor result they got out of the investment, brings him to this list.
Elvir Baljic, Bosnia and Herzegovina
His name may not be very well known despite having played for Real Madrid, although Turkish or Bosnian football fans of a couple of decades ago will surely be familiar with him. Baljic was a skilled winger or second striker who had a knack for scoring goals and who started playing for Zeljeznicar football in his native Sarajevo, although his professional debut would be with FK Sarajevo. His breakthrough was such that after less than 20 professional games, he was signed by Bursaspor of Turkey, where he stood out enough to earn a move to one of the powerful clubs in the Ottoman country, Fenerbahce.At Fenerbahce he continued to show his great goalscoring ability and after just one year, in 1999, Real Madrid paid 3.5 billion pesetas (around 26 million euros) for him. A figure that at the time was a lot if we consider that the record at that time was held by Christian Vieri who that same summer moved from Lazio to Inter for 35 million euros. Madrid's outlay was due to a request from the club's coach that season, John Toshack, who had just coached Besiktas for two years and had already faced the Bosnian several times.
A torn ligament at the start of the season and the departure of Toshack as Madrid coach in November 1999 prevented him from getting any playing time and just a year later he returned on loan to Fenerbahce and, except for a year at Rayo Vallecano, he would spend the rest of his professional career in Turkish football, although without reaching the level he had before going to Madrid.
Julien Faubert, France
The Frenchman was a versatile and fast right-back or right midfielder who stood out in his country with Cannes and then with Girondins de Bordeaux (curiously, the same clubs where Zinedine Zidane began his career). In 2007 he signed for West Ham United where, after a period of adaptation to English football, he managed to establish himself as a decently successful player. In the winter transfer market of 2009, just one day before the window closed, surprisingly, Faubert signed on loan for Real Madrid.The club, due to its size, is used to signing important and talented players, which is why the demands on each new player are so high. In the case of the Frenchman, not only did he not perform well in the few minutes he played, but he also had moments such as missing team training because he thought he had the day off or a famous image where he seemed to have fallen asleep on the bench in the middle of a match. Real Madrid had an option for Faubert to stay permanently at the club, which, to no one's surprise, they did not use.
Eden Hazard - here while playing for Chelsea
Eden Hazard, Belgium
In 2019, Real Madrid were looking for a replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo, who had left the club a year earlier to go to Juventus. With the backing of coach Zinedine Zidane, who always acknowledged his preference for Eden Hazard, the club paid 100 million euros for the Belgian, making him the second most expensive signing in its history, just one million less than Gareth Bale. The signing included variables that could make him the most expensive signing in Real Madrid's history.Hazard had been a champion in France with the modest club Lille and had won several titles at Chelsea as well as being awarded the best player in the Premier League. With these players, expectations at the Santiago Bernabeu were high regarding his signing, however, injury problems and even being overweight never allowed him to establish himself. Hazard himself explained that he was never a player who trained very hard, and that at Real Madrid he tried to do so and that this had repercussions on his continuous injuries.
Jonathan Woodgate, England
Woodgate began his professional career at Leeds United, where he was considered one of the best players to come out of their academy. He was part of the Leeds United side at the turn of the century that played in the UEFA Champions League with players such as Harry Kewell, Mark Viduka, Robbie Keane och Alan Smith. Financial problems led the club to sell him to Newcastle United in January 2003 and only six months later, Real Madrid paid around 15 million euros for him, looking to form a solid centre-back partnership with Walter Samuel, understanding that defensive problems were what had plagued the team in the previous season.His career had been marked by continuous interruptions due to injuries and in fact, when he signed for the Madrid club, he was injured, to the point of not being able to recover that season. His debut with the club would take place a year after his signing against Athletic Club de Bilbao, where he would score an own goal and be sent off for a second yellow card. Despite this, he did have a brief spell where he showed his level at Real Madrid, however, injuries cut short that performance again. In 2006, he would return to England on loan to Middlesbrough and then stay in his home country for the rest of his career.