4. Denilson Is One Of The 10 Worst Arsenal Signings Ever
Despite making over 150 appearances for Arsenal but the Brazilian midfielder could never meet his lofty expectations. Many believed that he was destined for greatness but was proven otherwise after 7 seasons at the Emirates.
Denilson was brought in from Sao Paulo in 2006 for £3.4m. At the time, that was a hefty fee for a teenager but the South American showed a lot of potential as the captain of the U17 Brazil team.
Unfortunately, he faded out of the limelight, unable to cope with the physicality of the Premier League or the intelligence to break into the starting squad. His final seasons at North London were spent out on loan before he eventually decided to cancel his contract.
3. Sebastian Squillaci Is One Of The 10 Worst Arsenal Signings Ever
Squillaci was signed from Sevilla at a time when Arsenal were spread thin in the centre-half position. After 3 seasons at the Emirates, the £6.5m transfer did not turn out to be the player Wenger had hoped him to be.
He made plenty of errors and quickly slid down the pecking order when Per Mertesacker was signed in 2011. Squilacci played 3 seasons with Arsenal and was released in 2013.
2. Park Chu-Young Is One Of The 10 Worst Arsenal Signings Ever
Park Chu-Yong was one of the strangest transfers in Arsenal’s history. In somewhat peculiar circumstances on 30 August 2011, the Gunners signed the striker for £5.5m from AS Monaco.
It was reported that Chu-Young became aware of Arsenal’s interest and fled his hotel room without finishing the medical he had scheduled with LOSC Lille.
He was not exactly a scoring machine at AS Monaco, managing 26 in 103 appearances but Wenger still decided to go after the South Korean. Chu-Young let it be known that he wanted to leave the French outfit after their relegation from the top-flight.
What was even more strange was that the striker was immediately handed over the number 9 shirt right, upon his arrival to the Emirates. A season later his jersey number was reassigned to 30 when Lukasz Podolski came in from Mainz.
Chu-Young spent three seasons with the Gunners during which he had two loan spells with Watford and Celta Vigo. After 7 appearances for the senior side and a single goal, he was released by Arsenal in June 2014.
As a result of his flop at Arsenal, Daily Telegraph reporter, John Duerden went on to compare Park’s move to North London as “the worst call to answer since Colin Farrell picked up a New York public phone in Phone Booth and endured a few hours of misery.”
