Hyped-up footballers who faded away as careers imploded – like strip-club lover

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    • Some football stars had the world at their feet – until fate had a different idea for them.

    Talent is something that has never been in short supply in the beautiful game. It may be an ability to do some of the most mind-blowing tricks and flicks, an uncanny knack of being able to score from anywhere or even freakish natural, athletic ability which leaves us mere mortals hoping and praying they do not come near us.

    However, with great football ability comes great temptations – booze, nightclubs, lavish casinos or wages that look more like Elon Musk’s losses on Twitter (sorry, X). Daily Star Sport takes a look at 12 players who seemingly threw their careers away, or simply failed to live up to the hype as the years went by.

    1. Andy van der Meyde

      He looked to be one of the finest players to emerge from Ajax’s talent factory, but the Dutchman’s love for Merseyside strip clubs and drinking curtailed any hopes of him reaching his potential.

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    2. Ricardo Quaresma

      The master of the Trivela was at the same level as Cristiano Ronaldo in 2003. Unfortunately, disciplinary problems saw him get bundled out of Barcelona, where he was expected to become one of their finest ever players.

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    3. Ravel Morrison

      Sir Alex Ferguson thought Ravel Morrison was on course to be one of Manchester United’s greatest ever players. Unfortunately, his lack of reliability and off the field issues has seen him become a journeyman who has played in Italy, Mexico, Sweden and the Netherlands – he now plays for DC United in the MLS.

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    1. Adrian Mutu

      One of the statement signings when Roman Abramovich took over Chelsea in 2003 – unfortunately, he was given the sack after testing positive for cocaine. To make matters worse, he even had to pay Chelsea the £14.3m they spent on him.

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    2. Mateja Kezman

      Another former Chelsea striker who did not make the grade. Kezman went on to leave the Blues and play for Atletico Madrid, Fenerbahce, Paris Saint-Germain and Zenit Saint-Petersburg – and then retired at the age of 32 in China. He went on to become a football agent, where he now represents Serbian star Sergej Milinkovic-Savic.

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    3. Andrei Kanchelskis

      Kanchelskis was a key player for United until he rudely told Sir Alex Ferguson where to go in a heated argument – he was soon shipped to Everton.

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    1. Anderson

      Anderson enjoyed a career that would be the envy of some of the game’s greatest players. But after winning the Golden Ball for Brazil in an Under-17s tournament, he was touted to be one of the game’s heavyweights, instead of a bit-part player for Ferguson’s United team.

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    2. Rafael van der Vaart

      Rafael van der Vaart was outshone at Real Madrid by his Dutch colleague Wesley Sneijder. After an impressive period playing for Tottenham Hotspur, his career had a quick downslide when he moved to Hamburg, where he would go on to warm the bench.

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    3. Mohamed Kallon

      One of the brightest prospects to come out of Africa, Mohamed Kallon left Sierra Leone and moved to Inter Milan at the age of 16. After several loan spells and an up and down spell at Monaco, he found himself in the French third division. He would eventually play for Kallon FC – a club, you guessed it, he formed himself.

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    1. Adel Tarrabt

      A player the streets will never forget, Adel Tarrabt was one of the most talented players in the world. Unfortunately, the other parts of his game let him down and topped him from representing the biggest teams in the world.

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    2. Oscar

      He was one of the first names on the team-sheet at Brazil and Chelsea – then Oscar decided to follow the money to Shanghai Port in 2016 – he has been there ever since.

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    3. Alex Teixeira

      On the subject of following the money to China, Alex Teixeira was one of the biggest players to move to the Far East. He looked set to be Liverpool’s next big signing under Jurgen Klopp. However, he snubbed the German’s big hugs and decided to opt for the larger bank account in Jiangsu Suning FC, and he now plays for Brazilian side Vasco da Gama.

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    • Premier League
    • Champions League
    • Manchester United FC
    • Everton FC
    • China
    • Chelsea FC
    • Sir Alex Ferguson
    • Tottenham Hotspur FC

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