IDIOTS Abroad?
As Tottenham Hotspur’s Gareth Bale perhaps contemplates a mega-bucks fate of some of his fellow move to Real Madrid, the Wales winger would do well to remember the Brits overseas says DAN RAWLEY
Robert Earnshaw
Israel
Having fallen out of favour with Cardiff boss Malky Mackay, Wales international Earnshaw opted for a loan move to Israeli side Maccabi Tel Aviv in September 2012, encouraged by Jordi Cruyff’s involvement there as director of football.
Despite the difference in culture and being used mainly as a substitute, Earnshaw initially enjoyed life in Israel and made one start and three appearances from the bench, scoring once. That was before an air raid on the capital forced him and his team-mates to run for cover and led the striker to question whether this really was a good move after all. When his involvement in the air raid attracted the attention of the BBC and several newspapers, Earnshaw revealed that the missiles were “literally right above us and they sort of blew up in mid-air.”
He made six further appearances for the side before returning to Wales early – “due to certain circumstances and some family reasons” – only for Mackay to dismiss his future at Cardiff: “I imagine he will be looking to get games, which is not something he is going to get here.”
It was no surprise then, when the forward joined Toronto FC of the Major League Soccer at the end of February. He scored twice on his home debut and subsequently became the first Toronto player to be named MLS Player of the Week for almost a year. It seems likely that Canada will prove a better fit than Israel.
jonathan woodgate
spain
Woodgate’s £13.4m transfer to Spanish giants Real Madrid in August 2004 surprised many – he had gained a reputation as “damaged goods”, having missed large chunks of previous seasons at Newcastle and Leeds, and was even injured at the time of the deal.
Typically, he missed the entire 2004-05 season through injury. Woodgate finally made his debut for the Galacticos in September 2005 against Athletic Bilbao, more than a year after signing for the club, who were already on their third coach since then. And what a debut it was – 25 minutes in, the Madrid fans’ early support for their “new” defender was eroded when he inadvertently headed Joseba Etxeberria’s shot beyond Iker Casillas. It got worse. Woodgate was booked towards the end of the first half for fouling Carlos Gurpegi, and the second half proved no better.
Madrid boss Vanderlei Luxemburgo had realised the danger and instructed backup centre-half Alvaro Mejia to begin warming up, but Mejia had barely started his stretches when Woodgate was sent off for a challenge on his tormentor-in-chief Etxeberria.
His eight other league appearances for Madrid passed relatively uneventfully, and despite emerging as something of a cult hero among the club’s supporters, he was allowed to join Middlesbrough on loan in 2006, with the move eventually being made permanent. Spanish daily Marca’s readers later voted Woodgate the worst signing of the 21st century, while the defender himself has since admitted: “I do not even like talking about Madrid and all that sh*t – it does my head in... I get embarrassed about it to be honest.”
jermaine pennant
spain
Having been released by Liverpool three years after signing for £6.7m, Jermaine Pennant joined Spanish outfit Real Zaragoza in July 2009. Zaragoza struggled in La Liga for most of the campaign, and, although Pennant featured in the majority of their games, his behaviour was far from helpful in a relegation battle – in February 2010 coach Jose Aurelio Gay sent the winger home from training for arriving late for the third time in two weeks.
Half-way through the season Pennant was still using a translator to understand his boss and team-mates, but his communication issues were overshadowed by off-field problems. Wth Gay’s patience at breaking point, Pennant missed one training session after being stopped by police for speeding. The player continued to be a menace to Zaragoza even after leaving the club for Stoke in 2010. In January 2011 Zaragoza officials contacted him, enquiring about a Porsche that had been abandoned at a local train station five months earlier which they believed belonged to the midfielder. However, Pennant claimed not to remember owning the car – despite it bearing the personalized numberplate “P33NNT”.
Rohan ricketts
several
Perhaps the most adventurous Englishman in recent years has been Clapham-born midfielder Rohan Ricketts, who has played for clubs in seven countries since leaving England in 2008. After unsuccessful attempts to hold down a regular place as a young player at Arsenal, Tottenham and Barnsley, Ricketts joined Major League Soccer side Toronto FC and, despite relative success in Canada, the winger was released to free up wages in 2009.
A trial with Aberdeen followed, but when that proved fruitless Ricketts bizarrely joined Hungarian strugglers Diósgyőr VTK, making just one first-team appearance before they were relegated to the second division. So he was on the move again, signing for Dacia Chisinau of Moldova. Four appearances, a wage dispute and a public disagreement later, he revealed on Talksport that he was travelling to Germany to partake in trials. On transfer deadline day in January 2011 he moved to SV Wilhelmshaven of the German fourth division, completing a tour of some of Europe’s most remote clubs. Ricketts netted his first league goal in two years for Wilhelmshaven before leaving at the end of the season to join Shamrock Rovers.
The winger lasted half a season in Ireland before finally completing his return to England, although his homecoming was not one to be remembered. Twenty-two minutes for relegation-threatened Exeter City in a League One defeat at Tranmere was all he managed before jetting off to India at the start of the 2011-12 season. You’ve guessed it – that ended in tears too. After 10 league games for Dempo SC, the club suspended him for a Twitter outburst in which he claimed he was “Not feeling safe [in India]... this experience has killed me.”
Another continent checked off his list, Ricketts completed a move to Ecuadorian minnows Club Deportivo Quevedo in January of this year; he is the only non-native Spanish speaker in the squad....
kevin campbell
turkey
Having started his career at Arsenal in 1988, Campbell moved to Nottingham Forest in 1995, scoring 23 goals in his second season at the club as they won promotion back to the Premier League. It was pretty surprising then, when Campbell opted to leave for Turkish outfit Trabzonspor, and his teammates were just as stunned as spectators. However, Campbell’s strike partner Pierre Van Hooijdonk took it further than most, going on strike before being flogged to Vitesse Arnhem.
On the field things didn’t go too badly for Campbell, netting five times in 17 league outings, but after seven months in Turkey racism began to rear its ugly head. Club chairman Mehmet Ali Yilmaz’s criticism of Campbell’s abilities – “We bought him as a goal machine, but he turned out to be a washing machine” – was surprising but bearable, but what followed caused Campbell to immediately seek a route back to England.
The Times reported that, live on Turkish TV, Yilmaz called his striker a “cannibal” and “discoloured”. Campbell admitted that the comments were “the greatest insult of my life”. He joined Everton on loan in March 1999, immediately scoring nine times in just eight games to disprove Yilmaz’s claims, before joining permanently in the summer. He would never play for a team outside the UK again.