New Delhi: We have often witnessed some of the top names failing to deliver after their ground-shaking moves to a big European clubs. At that point, fans no more expect any sort of come-back from these players but somehow they manage to find their form back and perform after making a move from that club. Alexis Sanchez is one of the players who truly had a miserable time at Manchester United, after his big money move from Arsenal: where he was considered as one of the best players in the world at that time. After just two seasons with the Red Devils, the Chilean icon made his move to Inter with also a short stint at Marseille and managed to find his form back during that time.
Meanwhile, Kepa Arrizabalaga’s £75million move to Chelsea turned out to be a disaster, where he didn’t get the support from the fans only to follow it up with a rather underwhelming spell at Real Madrid last season. However, this season he has turned out to be a massive asset in between the sticks for Premier League’s surprise package AFC Bournemouth, who are having the best ever season in their history. Enough examples to show that it is not over until it is for a footballer, and in this transfer window, there have been a few transfers that suggest that fresh moves for these players would certainly give them the opportunity to revive their careers after an underwhelming few months or even years.
Ben Chilwell (Chelsea to Crystal Palace)
Once one of the best fullbacks in the English Premier League, Ben Chilwell is a forgotten player these days as injuries and lack of game time have completely left him out of recent scenario. His time at Chelsea kicked-off with a season full of heights after he had already established himself as a top class left-back for Leicester City. His abilities on the pitch were never in doubt, as he was making quite an impression with his wonderful vision for a full-back and ability to go upfront and contribute with his pin-point crossing and also score a goal himself, be it from distane of close range. Defensively he was a great asset, with his speed and ability to fall back.
However, in the past few seasons, injuries have affected his game time and despite putting up a decent shift whenever he was fit, it seemde like Chelsea no more relied on the English fullback. The last time he played full 90 minutes for Chelsea was back in March 2024, in a game against Brentford last season. Since then, he has struggled to get the playing time and hasn’t featured for Chelsea in any of their games since October last year.
A fresh move this transfer window has landed him at Crystal Palace, who have recently shown some good form in the league. With the experience that Chilwell has at the age of 28, he will prove to be a true leader in that squad, and can guide the Eagles to a top half finish this season. This might just be the time for the Englishman to revive his career with World Cup 2026 ahead.
Marco Asensio (PSG to Aston Villa on loan)
Marco Asensio is a name that you may not have heard in a while, but the three-time Champions League winner with Real Madrid still has a lot to offer. The 29-year-old burst into the scene after his unbelievable performances for Real Madrid, establishing himself as one of the top talents from 2016/17 season, in a star-studded squad of Real Madrid that had prime Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale. However, he turned up for the Los Blancos and established himself as player who could score some unbelievable goals.
However, in the past couple of seasons, ever since he made his move to Paris Saint-Germain, the Spaniard has completely disappeared from the radar. Asensio suffered a horrible ACL injury back in July 2019, that had kept him out for almost a year. He did come back and managed to keep his performances on top for Real Madrid until he made a shocking move to Paris Saint-Germain. He missed out on a total of 17 games for the Parisians in his two campaigns, where his numbers were nowhere close to how they were in his last two seasons with Real.
The Spaniard has barely had a say in that PSG squad, and now it is time for him to revive his career under the guidance of Unai Emery at Aston Villa. His talent was never in doubt and it seems likely that he would suit the Premier League just fine.
Marcus Rashford (Manchester United to Aston Villa on loan)
Marcus Rashford — Villa’s new no.9 👊 pic.twitter.com/vSjLJUGiY4
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) February 3, 2025
Marcus Rashford will be leaving Manchester United after spending nine seasons with the senior team. On his day, he is probably the most dangerous forward in the league with his tricky feet and blistering pace, that would strike fear in any defender’s heart. However, there’s one problem and it’s his off the pitch controversies that has unfortunately turned Ruben Amorim against him. The Portuguese manager kept him out of the squad for several games despite his brilliant start under the former Sporting CP manager, as he scored the first ever goal of the Ruben Amorim era at Manchester United. However,
Amorim noticed a slump in Rashford’s commitment and training grounds that eventually led him to take such harsh decision and keep him out. The English forward has been one of their successful youth products but at the same time, in his recent few months, he has barely featured for the Red Devils that eventually led to his exit this winter. Although it is a loan move to Villa, the Rashford and Manchester United love story is slowly closing in towards an end.
However, talking about his current club, it is a chance for the forward to show everyone how good he is, and get back to the form that everyone expects from him. With the 2026 World Cup ahead, Rashford would be keen on marking his place in that England squad.
Antony (Manchester United to Real Betis on loan)
Antony was awarded the La Liga Player of the Match on his debut for Real Betis 🥇 pic.twitter.com/K9yjrI63FN
— OneFootball (@OneFootball) February 2, 2025
Brazil have a history of producing some of the most exciting players in the beautiful game, who take it to a new level with their flair and flamboyance. Such was expected of the former Manchester United winger Antony. However, after a promising debut season where he had 11 goal contributions in all competitions, his form has drastically dropped in the last two campaigns. In fact, there was a period of time when he failed to register a goal back in 2023, until he scored against Liverpool in an FA Cup tie back in March 2024, marking a goal drought that was several months long. Besides, his commitment in the training ground was also questioned.
Once an exciting talent at Ajax, where he had 22 goal contributions in 2021/22 season and was considered as one of the most skillful players in the world, just turned out to be a massive disappointment at Manchester United who paid €95 million to get his signatures. The 24-year-old Brazilian still has a lot to prove and his loan move to Real Betis will give him the opportunity to get his Brazilian flair back and get the job done for the Laliga side.
A number of well-known players who had been struggling with consistency and form were given a new beginning during the January transfer window. Let’s have a look at some of these players who will be looking to revive their careers. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
