Which star signing was most unfairly written off at first?
Booed, benched and branded flops — then they made everyone eat their words. Whose early critics look silliest now?
1Luka Modrić
Voted worst La Liga signing of 2012–13 by Marca readers — then won six Champions Leagues and the Ballon d'Or at Real Madrid.
1000pts
2Dennis Bergkamp
Mocked after seven goalless games for Arsenal in 1995, he became one of the Premier League's greatest ever players.
833pts
3Mohamed Salah
Discarded by Chelsea as a flop, he returned with Liverpool to break Premier League scoring records.
577pts
4Rodri
Questioned as a slow Fernandinho replacement, he became a Ballon d'Or-winning anchor for club and country.
577pts
5Cristiano Ronaldo
Derided as a step-over show pony in his first United season before rewriting football's record books.
500pts
6Andrea Pirlo
Deemed surplus at Inter, he moved on to define the deep playmaker role for Milan and Italy.
500pts
7Olivier Giroud
Perpetually doubted at Arsenal and Chelsea, he ended up a World Cup winner and France's record scorer.
409pts
8Zinedine Zidane
Whistled early at Juventus in 1996 — within two years he was a World Cup winner and the world's best.
409pts
9Virgil van Dijk
Ridiculed as a £75m panic buy, he transformed Liverpool into champions of England and Europe.
409pts
10Granit Xhaka
Arsenal's scapegoat for years, he left as the heartbeat of a title challenge and a Leverkusen invincible.
300pts
11Didier Drogba
Dismissed as an overpriced gamble in his first Chelsea season before becoming their biggest big-game player.
300pts
12Kevin De Bruyne
Sold by Chelsea after three starts, he came back to run the Premier League for a decade at Manchester City.
300pts
13Thierry Henry
Eight games without a goal after joining Arsenal — he left as the club's record scorer.
167pts
14David de Gea
Written off as too lightweight in his first Manchester United months, he became their long-time No. 1.
167pts
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