Anelka, Wright-Phillips, Platt... our guide to 10 cracking bits of business

18 December 2008 01:03
One year after joining Portsmouth [LNB]for £5.5million, Lassana Diarra is set to join Real Madrid for £22m after the Spanish champions won a bidding war against Manchester City[LNB]! Credit crunch? Forget it.[LNB]So, here are 10 other great pieces of football business...[LNB]Nicolas AnelkaJoined Arsenal [LNB]from Paris Saint-Germain for a measly £500,000 in 1997 - 91 matches and 28 goals later, the France striker joined Real Madrid for £23m.[LNB][LNB][LNB] Bargain: Anelka (left) celebrates scoring for Arsenal alongside Marc Overmars and Ray Parlour[LNB]Shaun Wright-PhillipsDeemed not good enough by Nottingham Forest at 15, Wright-Phillips joined Manchester City. Scored 31 times in 181 appearances during his first spell for City before joining Chelsea [LNB]for £21m in 2005. Three years later, he re-joined City for £9m.[LNB][LNB]Thierry Henry Henry took time to settle at Arsenal after being converted from a winger into a striker. Joining Arsenal for £10.5m in 1999, Henry played 369 games and 226 becoming Arsenal's captain and record goalscorer before selling him to Barcelona for £16m in 2007 when his best football was arguably behind him.[LNB][LNB][LNB] Changing colours: Shaun Wright-Phillips (left) goes back to Manchester City and Thierry Henry moves to Barcelona after a magnificent career at Arsenal[LNB]Sami HyypiaSigned by Gerard Houllier in 1999 for £3m from Dutch side Willem II. Hyypia  has appeared 454  for Liverpool [LNB]winning 11 trophies in his nine years at the club.[LNB]Robbie Keane Left Wolves in 1999 for Midlands rivals Coventry for £5m. Keane spent a season at Coventry before joining Inter Milan for £13m. He moved to Leeds for £12m in 2001 after an initial loan deal. And a year later the Republic of Ireland's record goalscorer joined Tottenham [LNB]from the cash-strapped Elland Road club for £7m. Six years, 254 appearances and 107 goals later Keane signed for Liverpool for £20.3m. Good business for Spurs and Coventry, not so good for some of his other buyers.[LNB][LNB][LNB] Team-mates now: But while Hyypia (right) has been a Liverpool hit, former Inter Milan striker Robbie Keane has struggled to score for his new club[LNB]Jean-Alain BoumsongAfter seeing out his contract at Auxerre, Boumsong joined Rangers [LNB]on a free. But after six months at Ibrox, Boumsong joined Newcastle [LNB]for £8m. He was subsequently pretty awful at St James' Park and left for Juventus a season-and-a-half later for fewer than £4m.[LNB]Darren Bent Joined Charlton from Ipswich for £2.5m in 2005. Two years and 31 Premier League goals later Bent joined Tottenham for a whopping £16.5m, where the jury is still out on his credentials.[LNB][LNB][LNB] Something to prove: Jean-Alain Boumsong (left) struggled after leaving Rangers and Darren Bent has not yet lived up to his £16.5m price-tag at Spurs[LNB] [LNB] In the shop window: David Platt scores his legendary goal against Belgium at Italia 90 before securing a move to Bari[LNB] David Platt Signed for Aston Villa[LNB]from Crewe for £200,000 in 1988. Three years and 145 matches later Platt joined Bari for £5.5m, one year after impressing at the 1990 World Cup.[LNB]Marc Overmars Joined Arsenal for £7m in 1997 from Ajax. After three impressive seasons at Arsenal, winning the Double in 1998, Overmars joined Barcelona for £25m.[LNB]Dimitar BerbatovBulgarian striker joined Tottenham for £10.5m in 2006. After two seasons at White Hart Lane Berbatov made a controversial £30.75m move to Manchester United[LNB]. It was another big pay day for Spurs, who enjoyed almost £16m of profit when selling Michael Carrick to United for £18.6m in 2006 after he had also spent just two seasons in north London.[LNB][LNB][LNB] New beginnings: Marc Overmars (left) signs on at Barcelona and Berbatov toils at Manchester United after a big-money move from Sprus[LNB][LNB] [LNB]  

Source: Daily_Mail