Top 10 Premier League Judases of the Modern Era

There was once a time when top players stuck to their clubs no matter what the circumstances. A time when one-club legends like Ryan Giggs and Jamie Carragher won major honours with their respective clubs and never left hunting for new opportunities in the Premier League.

Football in the modern day is governed by two aspects – success and money. While success is something that propels one to perform right to their limits, it is the other aspect that often tempts a player to switch allegiances.

We take a look at some of the Premier League players who not only switched to other Premier League clubs but signed the dotted line for their sworn rivals.

10. Frank Lampard

No, it’s not his move to Manchester City from Chelsea that’s earned him a place in this list but his move across London from West Ham United to Chelsea. It was a cash-strapped Chelsea in the pre-Abramovich era that spent £11 million on him. At that time in 2001, both clubs were mid-table contenders and hence, rivals.

Lampard was never a crowd favourite at Upton park due to the fact that he made it into the first team when his father and uncle, Harry Redknapp, were in the coaching staff. After Redknapp and his father got the sack, Lampard decided to end things with West Ham which angered the Hammers faithful.

9. Jack Colback

The boyhood Newcastle United fan was discovered as a ground breaking talent at the Sunderland Academy. He played a total of 136 games for Sunderland before moving to their cutthroat Tyne and Wear rivals Newcastle. He had been a first team regular for three seasons in the Sunderland squad before he decided not to renew his contract with the North-Eastern outfit.

Sunderland continued to pursue his signature after a number of unsuccessful efforts before it was finally confirmed that he would be joining his boyhood club Newcastle United. The move took the fans by shock and he has been heavily booed ever since even after the player admitted that he loved his time at the Stadium of Light. He became the first player since 1998 to switch between the two sides.

8. Samir Nasri

The first of many Arsenal players on this list, Nasri was bought as a young attacking midfielder from Marseille and was straight away put into the first team and a string of impressive performances cemented his position in the starting eleven. His last season at the Emirates was his best in an Arsenal shirt after he was deemed as one of the best attacking midfielders in Europe.

Immediately after that season, he left Arsenal for Manchester City ‘to win trophies’, something he couldn’t as an Arsenal player. The fans were heartbroken by the news as Manchester City had again stolen one of their key players. The French International has suffered the wrath of Arsenal fans every time they face off and his career has suffered a huge downfall to the delight of most Arsenal fans.

7. Carlos Tevez

The Argentine Carlos Tevez has played for many clubs throughout his career including three Premier League clubs. Registration problems with West Ham saw him being loaned out to Manchester United for two seasons where he won the Premier League twice and the Champions League in 2007. He was offered a full time contract at United on the back of a hugely successful season.

But he thought otherwise. Instead he turned down the contract to sign for rivals Manchester City, signing a bumper contract with them. The move is said to be the most bitter move across town between the two clubs as the prominence of Manchester City had just started.

6. Emmanuel Adebayor

It was the time when Arsenal shifted to their new world class stadium that Adebayor was brought in from Monaco for £7 million. During his stay, the club’s financial situation deteriorated to the extent of bankruptcy, so the club had to sell their key players to keep the club’s books balanced. He was loved by the fans and the manager and was a key player in the squad.

Well, until he left Arsenal to join Manchester City. Even then the fans weren’t so angry at the Togo international because they knew what the situation at the club was. But after ‘that’ celebration in his first match versus Arsenal, he incurred the wrath of Arsenal fans. His career never really took off at Manchester City as he was loaned off to Real Madrid and Tottenham before signing up with Spurs permanently which intensified the hatred many-fold.

5. Ashley Cole

Perhaps the only ex-Arsenal player in this list to achieve major honours with the club and to have a successful career after leaving them. Cole was Arsenal’s first choice left-back and won the League with them in 2002 and 2004 while also winning three FA cups and playing in the Champions League final versus Barcelona. He was a brilliant defender for the North London outfit.

But then he wanted to seek new pastures and so it all began. He made illegal contact with Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho and club officials over a move to Chelsea for which he was heavily punished. He signed a contract extension with the club but forced a move the very next season. His public criticism of the club angered the fans but Arsene Wenger regrets selling him to Chelsea right to this day.

4. William Gallas

The Frenchman was a great defender during his time in the Premier League, one of the best. He was a great servant to Chelsea during his time at Stamford Bridge but contract talks triggered a dispute between the player and the club so much so that Gallas refused to play for the Blues and threatened to score own goals if he was forced to play. He was soon offloaded to Arsenal in a player & cash deal which saw Ashley Cole go the other way. The behaviour didn’t go down well with the Chelsea faithful at all.

His four years at Arsenal were excellent as he galvanised the team’s defense and displayed strong individual performances. During that time, he became the club captain but was stripped of it due to controversial reasons. His last season for the Gunners was marred by injuries and it saw him leave the Emirates as his contract expired.

But again, Gallas was not done with his Premier League career. He signed up with North-London rivals Tottenham on a free transfer, a decision that infuriated the Gunners faithful and they couldn’t bear the sight of him leading the defence for their sworn rivals. Gallas didn’t have a much fruitful time at the White Hart Lane though.

3. Fernando Torres

The Spaniard was a spot of light during Liverpool’s fall from grace in Europe and the Premier League. He was consistently the top scorer for them during his time but as Liverpool failed to challenge for major honours, he grew frustrated. A loss of form and the arrival of Luiz Suarez and Andy Carroll compelled him to call time on his Anfield career but the timing of the move left the Scousers distraught.

It was common knowledge that Chelsea had been following him since his days in the Spanish League and a British transfer record smashing fee saw him move to Stamford Bridge in the January transfer window. Liverpool were seventh in the league back then and needed him more than ever but he left anyway. To the delight of most Liverpool fans, Torres never really clicked at the Blues and sometimes became a laughing stock for his failed finishes.

2. Robin van Persie

Arsene Wenger is known to bring out the best out of young talent and has done it on many occasions. Van Persie was one of those young players whom Wenger had been patient with for most part of his Arsenal career but in his final two seasons, he showed exactly what he had to offer. Ever since he donned the No. 10 jersey for the Gunners, he became unstoppable but was unable to help his club find glory. At the peak of his powers and at the back of scoring 30 league goals for Arsenal, he left them heartbroken and that too after joining Manchester United.

The prolonged saga began when Van Persie turned down a new contract saying that his ambitions did not match with that of the club’s. He played in Arsenal’s pre-season games but grabbed the chance to sign for the Red Devils when they came calling. Many thought that Arsenal were in a good position after strengthening their squad in the summer but the loss of Van Persie was too hard to handle as the Gunners succumbed to a 4th place finish.

The Dutch International played in both of the encounters versus his former side and scored a goal in each, making matters worse. The Guard of Honour given to Van Persie and his Manchester United teammates in the 1-1 draw at the Emirates is a memory that still haunts the Gooners.

1. Sol Campbell

The transfer of Sol Campbell to Arsenal from North London rivals Tottenham has been named as arguably the most controversial transfer in the history of English football. The Bosman move between the two clubs whose rivalry is among the biggest in world football was a huge gain for the red side of London.

Campbell started his youth career at West Ham and then moved to Spurs to pursue his senior career. He was the rock at the back who kept the Lilywhites in the Premier League. For most of the 90s, Spurs floated around the relegation zone and Campbell was a constant in their squad. But it all started when Campbell was in the last 12 months of his contract. At the start of the season, he assured the fans that he would stay in North London but refused extensions whenever offered. After several attempts, the Spurs Chairman claimed that his terms were simply unacceptable and so he ran down his contract.

The Spurs faithful were resigned to losing him with Barcelona, Real Madrid and even Chelsea fighting for his signature. He did well to fulfill his promise of staying in North London but it was something no one would’ve expected. In the summer of 2001, Sol Campbell signed the dotted line for Tottenham’s arch-rivals Arsenal.

Tottenham fans took it upon themselves to abuse Campbell in every way possible, leading to many lifelong stadium bans and a Judas flag was waved everytime Campbell played at White Hart Lane. Unfortunately, for the Spurs supporters, Campbell was a huge success at Arsenal.