Worst Charlton Transfers - ( Where We've paid a Transfer Fee)

Ormiston_Addick

hoof_it_up_to_benty said:

North Lower Neil said:

That two year period after Curbs left we wasted so much money (that sadly Curbs would have spent wisely):

Faye £2m
Traore £2m
Diawara £3.7m (and a £900k loss in a year)
Varney £2m (loaned out and lost £1m a year later)
McLeod £1.1m

Diawara was a cracking player - had an excellent career after leaving Charlton.

He was awful for us, couldn’t handle the aerial stuff in the English game, got bullied for fun by the aggressive number 9s.

By the end of the season was dropped for HH an the Elk.

McBobbin

I liked diawara, but remember a few stories about him turning up for training pissed. Dowie described him as "the best defender you've never heard of" and whilst he was good, maybe no thought went into settling him in? 

MrOneLung

Traore went from champions league winner to Charltonised in15 fucking months 

MrOneLung

I really thought Andy Jones from Port Vale was gonna be the bollox. So many teams were linked with him. 

O-Randy-Hunt

Rocket Ronnie all day long. Or maybe he just didn't get the service 🤣

Manic_mania

Traore... worst ever ECL winner ever surely? Imagine being part of the starting line up of a champions league winning team and being valued at what? 5 million? Liverpool knew... then mugged us off on the shelvey price a few years later... 

Siv_in_Norfolk

Taxi_Lad said:

1.5m for Andy Gray from Barnsley I think

That was my first thought 

Manic_mania

Also.. not sure we paid a fee but biggest let down? Jesper Blomqvist.. I remember being at school among Man U, Spurs etc fans... when we signed him I finally had an excuse to give it the big un for the first time ever.. my counterparts were suitably impressed.. what a fucking let down that was.

jonseventyfive

Addick Addict said:

Jeffers wins but didn't we pay the same (£2.5m) for Marcus Bent?

Glad someone else mentioned Marcus Bent, drove me up the wall, unluckily after meeting him up at old Trafford he simply confirmed my low opinion. 

SoundAsa£

McBobbin said:

I liked diawara, but remember a few stories about him turning up for training pissed. Dowie described him as "the best defender you've never heard of" and whilst he was good, maybe no thought went into settling him in? 

I think you’ll find it was Murray who described him as that.

Rock Spectacle

It was. Beaten to it but Marcus Bent, Faye, McLeod,  Traore, Bullivant, Jeffers take some beating. So will throw in Tony Towner. 

Callumcafc

Because I'm late and all the obvious ones have been mentioned... Left field, I'll go with Igor. Don't blame him too much, we made him play injured and basically ruined him.

But I remember that pre-season and first couple of months. Five goals in his first five league games including a double at Brighton. Shame it didn't last.

MarcusH26

Callumcafc said:

Because I'm late and all the obvious ones have been mentioned... Left field, I'll go with Igor. Don't blame him too much, we made him play injured and basically ruined him.

But I remember that pre-season and first couple of months. Five goals in his first five league games including a double at Brighton. Shame it didn't last.

Remember an absolutely outrageous goal he scored at Pompey in a friendly , thought we'd found someone very very special after how he started and then he was completely mismanaged and we never saw that player again. Oh what could have been. 

superclive98

Callumcafc said:

Because I'm late and all the obvious ones have been mentioned... Left field, I'll go with Igor. Don't blame him too much, we made him play injured and basically ruined him.

But I remember that pre-season and first couple of months. Five goals in his first five league games including a double at Brighton. Shame it didn't last.

That doesn't make him one of the worst buys.
He did well for us but, like you point out,  had his injury problems exacerbated by our handling of him.

thai malaysia addick

Jack Burkett was a bit of a flop after being an ever-present at West Ham. I think the fee was small, but he moved on to Millwall and Southend (twice) without playing a game.

kodfish

Ralph Milne

Lordflashheart

I give you, £80,000 from Millwall

Dave Mehmet

We have a winner, close the thread

Todds_right_hook

Callumcafc said:

Because I'm late and all the obvious ones have been mentioned... Left field, I'll go with Igor. Don't blame him too much, we made him play injured and basically ruined him.

But I remember that pre-season and first couple of months. Five goals in his first five league games including a double at Brighton. Shame it didn't last.

Igor was on fire 🔥 when he first joined before the injury happened. On that basis, he would be on my didn't fulfil potential list rather than rubbish list.

I have family in Ireland and was over there at the time when he was scoring. I was walking along the local high street and a guy stopped and shouted iggoooorrrrrr at me.

edit

I was wearing a Charlton top

Elthamaddick

SantaClaus said:

Bradley Allen signed for quite a big fee (by our standards) and did very little.

always thought he'd have been more successful if he played in boots instead of flip-flops 

Melrose

kodfish said:

Ralph Milne

Was trawling through the posts wondering why Ralph Milne' s name hadn't been mentioned. On signing he was described as a combative midfielder with a ferocious shot on him. Ha ha, I remember watching him lurking out wide, very occasionally getting the ball, then doing nothing with it. I swear he had one leg shorter than the other. I reckon we bought an insurance write off.

swordfish

Melrose said:

kodfish said:

Ralph Milne

Was trawling through the posts wondering why Ralph Milne' s name hadn't been mentioned. On signing he was described as a combative midfielder with a ferocious shot on him. Ha ha, I remember watching him lurking out wide, very occasionally getting the ball, then doing nothing with it. I swear he had one leg shorter than the other. I reckon we bought an insurance write off.

Who went onto play for Man Utd 😎

Richard J

Lordflashheart said:

I give you, £80,000 from Millwall

Dave Mehmet

We have a winner, close the thread

Iirc we got him off Tampa Bay. He had already left Millwall the previous year.

Chunes

SoundAsa£ said:

McBobbin said:

I liked diawara, but remember a few stories about him turning up for training pissed. Dowie described him as "the best defender you've never heard of" and whilst he was good, maybe no thought went into settling him in? 

I think you’ll find it was Murray who described him as that.

Yeah and he meant it sarcastically at the time, if I'm not mistaken.

Neil Redfearn is my shout. Very excited we signed him at the time, and I have a lot of memories of our first year in the prem, but I don't remember him doing anything. 

hoof_it_up_to_benty

Ormiston_Addick said:

hoof_it_up_to_benty said:

North Lower Neil said:

That two year period after Curbs left we wasted so much money (that sadly Curbs would have spent wisely):

Faye £2m
Traore £2m
Diawara £3.7m (and a £900k loss in a year)
Varney £2m (loaned out and lost £1m a year later)
McLeod £1.1m

Diawara was a cracking player - had an excellent career after leaving Charlton.

He was awful for us, couldn’t handle the aerial stuff in the English game, got bullied for fun by the aggressive number 9s.

By the end of the season was dropped for HH an the Elk.

Diawara made a couple of mistakes as he adjusted to rhe hoofball game that was being played - don't remember him being bullied. A class player compared to HH etc..

Lordflashheart

Richard J said:

Lordflashheart said:

I give you, £80,000 from Millwall

Dave Mehmet

We have a winner, close the thread

Iirc we got him off Tampa Bay. He had already left Millwall the previous year.

Having checked Valiant 500, you are indeed correct - I doff my cap to you sir 

Bedsaddick

Ormiston_Addick said:

hoof_it_up_to_benty said:

North Lower Neil said:

That two year period after Curbs left we wasted so much money (that sadly Curbs would have spent wisely):

Faye £2m
Traore £2m
Diawara £3.7m (and a £900k loss in a year)
Varney £2m (loaned out and lost £1m a year later)
McLeod £1.1m

Diawara was a cracking player - had an excellent career after leaving Charlton.

He was awful for us, couldn’t handle the aerial stuff in the English game, got bullied for fun by the aggressive number 9s.

By the end of the season was dropped for HH an the Elk.

Did we sign another Diawara ? because the one that i saw who played for us was class. 

Melrose

swordfish said:

Melrose said:

kodfish said:

Ralph Milne

Was trawling through the posts wondering why Ralph Milne' s name hadn't been mentioned. On signing he was described as a combative midfielder with a ferocious shot on him. Ha ha, I remember watching him lurking out wide, very occasionally getting the ball, then doing nothing with it. I swear he had one leg shorter than the other. I reckon we bought an insurance write off.

Who went onto play for Man Utd 😎

Yep. Think he went there after a stint at Bristol City. For me, still one the most unlikely/bizarre transfers in modern times.

Ormiston_Addick

Bedsaddick said:

Ormiston_Addick said:

hoof_it_up_to_benty said:

North Lower Neil said:

That two year period after Curbs left we wasted so much money (that sadly Curbs would have spent wisely):

Faye £2m
Traore £2m
Diawara £3.7m (and a £900k loss in a year)
Varney £2m (loaned out and lost £1m a year later)
McLeod £1.1m

Diawara was a cracking player - had an excellent career after leaving Charlton.

He was awful for us, couldn’t handle the aerial stuff in the English game, got bullied for fun by the aggressive number 9s.

By the end of the season was dropped for HH an the Elk.

Did we sign another Diawara ? because the one that i saw who played for us was class. 

Class? We were relegated and by the end of the season he was so bad he was not even in the match day squad.

A particularly vivid memory was him absolutely shitting the bed vs Sheffield United at home and being subbed for Bougherra in the last 15 minutes.

No doubt he had quality in the French game but he wasn’t cut out for English football.

Garrymanilow

Bedsaddick said:

Ormiston_Addick said:

hoof_it_up_to_benty said:

North Lower Neil said:

That two year period after Curbs left we wasted so much money (that sadly Curbs would have spent wisely):

Faye £2m
Traore £2m
Diawara £3.7m (and a £900k loss in a year)
Varney £2m (loaned out and lost £1m a year later)
McLeod £1.1m

Diawara was a cracking player - had an excellent career after leaving Charlton.

He was awful for us, couldn’t handle the aerial stuff in the English game, got bullied for fun by the aggressive number 9s.

By the end of the season was dropped for HH an the Elk.

Did we sign another Diawara ? because the one that i saw who played for us was class. 

I think how bad he was has been overstated a little bit but he definitely wasn't class for us. He played 26 games in a defence that conceded 60 goals and finished 19th. I think if we'd been less bad overall he might have had a bit more time to adapt but he was a long way from class sadly

cafcwill

Marcus Bent

It's not even a contest