Five Premier League Wonderkids Who Failed To Live Up To Expectations (Part 4)

David Tully

3 years ago

Categories: Galleries, West Ham United News

Tags: Arsenal, aston villa, Chelsea, Everton, Leeds United, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Sheffield United, Southampton, Spurs, West Ham, Wolves

We are now onto week four of our series of articles looking at the wonderkids who never quite reached the heights that many expected of them.

It is not always easy to predict which young players will make the grade and it is sometimes surprising to see some fall by the wayside while others, sometimes unexpectedly, grab the limelight.

Mentality certainly plays a role but injuries can also stop a player’s career before it even gets going. There is a mixture of luck and determination that decides who reaches the top of the game.

Press the next page as we look at another five youngsters who were not quite cut out for the Premier League.

Phil Jones (Manchester United)

The defender was in demand before he opted to sign for Manchester United in 2011. Despite being capped 27 times by England, though, his career really has never got going.

Jones’s time at Old Trafford has been overshadowed by injuries and, when he has been fit, his defending has left a lot to be desired, with numerous errors. The fact that he has spent almost ten years with the Red Devils says more about the Manchester club’s poor recruitment rather than a testament to his ability.

Neil Mellor (Liverpool)

The striker’s career at Anfield started so promisingly, with a fantastic long-range strike to win a league game against Arsenal in injury time. He went on to score and provide an assist as the Reds secured qualification for the Champions League knockout stages with a famous comeback victory versus Olympiakos.

Unfortunately, Mellor was unable to capitalise on a fantastic start. He went on loan to Wigan before spells at Preston and Sheffield Wednesday. The forward’s career was ended prematurely due to injury and he has been working as a reporter and pundit for Sky Sports in recent years.

Micah Richards (Manchester City and Aston Villa)

The right-back broke into City’s first team in 2005 and he spent the next seven seasons as a first-team regular. He did win a Premier League title, a FA Cup and League Cup during his time with the Citizens.

However, things began to unravel for Richards in his late twenties. The defender was loaned out to Fiorentina before moving to Aston Villa where he barely played due to knee injuries. He retired in 2019 at the age of just 31 and he is now a pundit.

Jermaine Pennant (Arsenal and Liverpool)

Arsenal paid a record £2m for a trainee when they signed the winger from Notts County in 1999 but he only played 26 times for the Gunners. After three loan spells, he moved to Birmingham where he impressed enough to get a switch to Liverpool.

From there, though, things went downhill. Pennant spent three years at Anfield but never established himself as a first-team regular and, once he left in 2009, he became a journeyman, playing for nine more clubs before he retired in 2019.

Lucas Piazon (Chelsea)

The Brazilian was signed by Chelsea for a fee rising to £10m in 2012 with much expected of him. However, he has only played for the Blues’ first-team three times in nine years.

Remarkably, Piazon is still on the club’s books. The midfielder is now 26 years of age and is on his seventh loan spell away from Stamford Bridge.