Premier League Transfers: 15 Talented Imports Who Completely Flopped

3. Diego Forlan

You€™ll struggle to find a more popular high profile flop than Deigo Forlan. The Uruguayan had drawn the attention of Middlesbrough whilst playing for Argentinian side Independiente, and it appeared that he would be on his way to the Riverside when Manchester United hijacked the deal. With all due respect to Boro- the choice must have been a no brainer, and with the opportunity for trophies and larger salary in his sights Forlan decided to take his chance with the Red Devils. It was a difficult challenge for the striker to take on; he had Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in his way, but clearly he backed his own talent to carry him through. Sadly we didn€™t get to see this talent on a regular basis; his goal scoring was patchy at best and he looked nowhere near good enough for such a big club. Whatever the reason maybe for the failure - it certainly wasn€™t though lack of effort, his determined attempts to find his form earned the affection of the United fans. Eventually Sir Alex Ferguson had to bite the bullet and cut his losses: Deigo Forlan went on to La Liga, where he finally proved his worth. His time at Villarreal and Atletico Madrid was very successful, with Forlan winning the Golden Boot for each club, and he also showed his goal scoring worth at international level by being named the best player and joint top scorer at the 2010 World Cup.