10 Underwhelming Spurs Signings Who Became Cult Heroes

10. Younes Kaboul

Is it any surprise that Spurs supporters weren't too enamoured about the return of Younes Kaboul considering how poor he had been during his first stint at the club? Having signed from Auxerre in 2007 for a princely sum of £8 million, he showed signs of clumsiness as he struggled to adapt to the rigours of the Premier League. He was even dubbed 'Kaboul in a china shop' such were his error-strewn performances. Indeed, a collective sigh of relief could be heard rippling around the stadium when he was shipped out to Portsmouth the following summer, so there were more than a few raised eyebrows when Spurs boss Harry Redknapp brought back the former flop to the club in January 2010 for a fee of £6.5 million. It seemed that he needed that 18 months at Portsmouth to rid himself of his demons, however, as he returned to White Hart Lane a different beast altogether. Looking calm and composed, Kaboul is a completely different player to the one that stumbled around at the back during his first foray into English football. Stating that he was 'a late developer', Redknapp claimed that Kaboul was 'much improved' from his first spell at the club, and the supporters would surely agree. He has since been instrumental in helping the club to the first Champions League campaign in their history, and has formed rock-solid partnerships with the likes of Michael Dawson and Jan Vertonghen. Oh, and he was just named Spurs skipper. Almost a case of Jekyll and Hyde with his grandiose turnaround in fortunes.