After eight successful years at the Stade Velodrome, tricky winger Mathieu Valbuena decided to end his affiliation with Olympique Marseille in the summer of 2014. Nobody could blame the French international star, but his choice to join Russian side Dynamo Moscow did leave fans a little confused. Valbuena is an experienced professional with over 50 European club competition appearances to his name, as well as 48 senior international caps. The 5ft 4in midfielder is a highly regarded player, and even saw his No.28 shirt retired after his departure from Marseille. A long list of suitors were ready to acquire his services and, then 29, he still had plenty of action left in the old boots. He was a member of Frances World Cup squad in 2014 and couldve probably chosen any league in the world as his next destination. The Russian league isnt awful, and Dynamo are a relatively competitive side. Nonetheless, you have to think he could be playing somewhere better. He topped the divisions assists chart last term, underlining his evident ability. Most fans wouldve loved to have seen his deadly combination of great crossing and low sense of gravity tested in La Liga or the Premier League. Unfortunately, it looks increasingly likely that well never get the chance.
