2. Dean Ashton
As a 16-year-old in 2000, Dean Ashton burst onto the scene as a striker for Crewe Alexandra, exhibiting an exciting combination of power, technique and an eye for goal - the kind of attributes associated with established England internationals at the time such as Alan Shearer and Teddy Sheringham. Ashton spent five years at Crewe before being snapped up by Norwich City in January 2005 for a then club-record
£3 million. Despite a string of impressive performances, which featured some outstanding goals, he could not keep Norwich in the top flight at the end of the 2004/05 season. He opted to stay with the Canaries in order to fight for promotion back to the Premiership, rejecting the overtures of a number of clubs. That is, until January 2006, when he moved to West Ham United for around £7 million. Later that year, Ashton received a well-deserved call-up to the senior England squad. However, it was in a training session on international duty that he suffered the injury that would ultimately destroy his career. He was the recipient of a crunching, ankle-breaking tackle by Shaun Wright-Phillips (of all players), and was forced to sit out the entirety of the 2006/07 season. Ashton made his competitive comeback at the start of the following campaign, and continued to impress with the Hammers, maintaining a respectable (considering West Ham were towards the bottom of the table) goals-to-games ratio of approximately one in three. Some of his goals were simply outstanding, and showcased his abundant confidence and technique - traits that were perhaps best encapsulated by a stunning bicycle kick against Manchester United. However, he never quite recovered from the ankle injury sustained on duty with England, and was forced to retire in December 2008 at the age of 26.