10 Arsenal Players Who Weren't Worth The Hassle
8. Eduardo
Possibly the cruellest addition to the list, is the Croatian hot-shot who suffered that horrific leg break at St. Andrews in February 2008. So harrowing and traumatic were the images of his smashed tibia, it completely derailed the Gunners season, as their form alarmingly nosedived. When he was eventually sold to Shaktar Donetsk in 2010, it was reminiscent of everybodys favourite racehorse being shot in the head. Sad and poignant as it was for the fan favourite, deep down everybody knew that he had never quite recaptured the magical touch he had possessed pre-injury.
It took 12 months for Eduardo to return to action following that eye-watering leg break, and scored two goals as he was eased back into the fray. While the Croatian had attracted sympathy nationwide during his slow recovery, he was suddenly a villain in the eyes of the media, castigated for a perceived dive in a Champions League qualifier against Celtic.
Eduardo scored 12 goals in 31 appearances in his debut season, which wasnt bad considering it was cut short in February. Sadly, his final season at Arsenal showed just how much of an impact career-threatening leg injuries can have, as he mustered just six in 32 appearances. It was a paltry return for a player they had invested £7.5 million in just three years previously.
What would his fate have been were it not for that ghastly break in 2008? Could he have prospered in Thierry Henrys absence, and struck up a rapport with the on-form Emmanuel Adebayor? We will never know just how well Eduardo could have performed in a Gunners shirt, and we can only lament that dark afternoon in Birmingham, when Martin Taylor clumsily lunged over the ball. What is certain, however, is that Eduardo should count himself fortunate that he was even able to walk again, let alone continue to have a top-flight professional footballing career.
In this cutthroat world of football business, and through no fault of his own, the former Dinamo Zagreb hotshot simply didnt represent a good return on his investment. Arsene Wenger knows exactly who to thank for that, too.