Football is a beautiful sport, 22 players of two different teams chase after a ball for 90 minutes, trying their best to overcome the other team with the sole purpose of giving joy to the thousands of fans who watch them.
However, not all players will play together for the length of their careers. It is common for players to switch to different teams, but in some cases, it can turn sour really quickly, depending on who the player is or the nature of their departure. Let us take a look at some of the most recent transfers that sent shockwaves throughout the football world.
Ousmane Dembélé
Once tipped to be the successor to Neymar, Dembélé had what one could call a very underwhelming spell at Barcelona but not much blame could be put on him as he was injury-plagued for most of his time there.
But, despite all this, one thing Barcelona fans did was continue to support him throughout his time. However, at the beginning of the 2023/2024 season, Dembélé was ready to call it quits and had his eyes set on Paris Saint-Germain.
His departure did not go down well with the Catalonia fan base, who threw jabs at him throughout the season for his lack of output. Nevertheless, the Frenchman had the last laugh, being the man responsible for Barcelona’s exit from the Champions League, scoring two of his three goals this campaign against his former side.
Mason Mount
Mason Mount, who was called “propa chels” and “the boy who had a dream” cut an 18-year-old association with the club that raised him. This came after having issues with renewing his contract and some awful performances during his final performances in London. Mount made the shock move to Chelsea’s rivals Manchester United.
The Chelsea fans were split on whose fault his departure was. When Mount released his departure video with blonde hair after being seen with his natural hair colour at Carrington, Chelsea fans were convinced he was a snake. It did not help his cause after videos emerged of him agreeing with his dad calling Old Trafford home.
In the end, the Chelsea fans had the last laugh. On his return to Stamford Bridge, he was on the losing side as his substitution coincided with United throwing away a win at the very end.
Robin van Persie
Formerly considered an Arsenal hero, van Persie is now considered a traitor at the Emirates. He was once the Arsenal captain so imagine the shock on the faces of everyone on the red side of north London when it was announced that a new contract could not be reached and he had made a £24 million switch to Manchester United.
Van Persie went on to win the league with United, ending up as the highest goal scorer. Yet, what can be considered as the most appalling for Arsenal fans was seeing their own players give the Dutchman a guard of honour when United came to the Emirates after they had officially won the league. It is best to say that van Persie might not be the best name to shout on the streets of North London.
Sol Campbell
On the other side of North London, another captain made the ultimate betrayal. This time it was not to another side of England, it was just down the road. Sol Campbell, once adored by the Tottenham faithful, became a figure in one of England’s greatest betrayals.
Arsène Wenger had called for a press conference at the Arsenal camp, but everyone was shocked to see Tottenham’s very own Campbell walking in right by Wenger’s side. Campbell went on to become an invincible, while Tottenham has still not won the Premier League.
Luis Figo
Barcelona vs Real Madrid is considered by many to be the most fierce rivalry in all of Spain and the world. Thus, Luis Figo switching from Catalonia to the streets of Madrid was considered heinous. Yet Florentino Pérez, who had just been elected president of Real Madrid, had set his eyes on Figo, and was ready to bring him to the Santiago Bernabéu. In doing so, Pérez was ready to ignite chaos to make it happen.
Real Madrid triggered his release clause and Figo became a marquee signing for Los Blancos. However, this did not go down well among Barcelona fans and they made their feelings clear, hurling different items at him including a pig’s head. This has gone down as one of the greatest betrayals in Spanish history.
Players have the chance of either leaving their club a hero or a villain. Sometimes players leave with their fans waving goodbye and happy, while others leave their fans distraught. Their return are most times greeted with boos and insults hurled at them. One thing is for sure: football fans never forget and betrayal in football most times leave scars to last a lifetime.