4. Cesc Fabregas
Manu Fernandez/AP/Press Association ImagesLast year, Barcelona midfielder Cesc Fabregas was at the centre of one of the most protracted transfer sagas of the summer as Manchester United made repeated attempts to lure him back to England following an eight-year spell at Arsenal.
Fabregas rejected the overtures however, in favour of staying at the Nou Camp to fight for his place. The Spaniard had struggled to regularly oust the aging Xavi and Andres Iniesta from the starting berths in Barcelona's midfield and made only 14 starts in 32 appearances for Barca in 2012-13. However, he opted to remain at the La Liga club, though later came to regret it when Barca went on to stutter through their
first trophy-less campaign in six years. Worse still, Fabregas still had to settle for limited appearances in 2013-14,
starting just 13 of his 36 games. Fabregas would have surely walked straight into United's starting XI had he joined 12 months ago, and probably wouldn't have had to make do with being second-choice.