10 Most Controversial Transfers Of The Premier League Era

3. John Obi Mikel To Chelsea

John Obi Mikel's transfer to Chelsea in 2006 was as confusing as it was controversial. In April 2005 Manchester United announced that they had reached a deal with Norwegian club Lyn to sign the Nigerian, with further claims on their official website stating at the time that Mikel had signed a contract. What happened next was bizarre. Mikel vanished off the face of the earth for nine days with Nigerian media reporting the defensive midfielder had been €œkidnapped€ by Chelsea.

When Mikel finally turned up, he insisted he had been pressured into signing a deal with United when his preference was to join the Blues and, in 2006, Chelsea reached an agreement between Oslo and United that would see the Londoners pay the Red Devils £12 million and the Norwegian outfit £4 million for Mikel€™s services.

Mikel remains at Chelsea to this day, and has made over 200 appearances for the London side, winning four FA Cups, the Premier League and the Champions League.

Contributor
Contributor

Joseph is an accredited football journalist and has interviewed nearly all of the current 20 Barclay's Premier League managers. He is also a correspondent for Bleacher Report and has written for Caught Offside and Give Me Football.