The Premier League season is over and thus it’s time to reveal the flops of the season.
These guys haven’t necessarily been the worst performers at their clubs, nor did they have to be signed last summer to be considered; they’re the players we expected more of, often naively.
Arsenal: Gabriel Martinelli
Upon hearing rumours of multiple alternatives being linked with their position, any professional worth their salt would take an ‘I’ll show them’ attitude into their work to prove doubters wrong.
We don’t necessarily think Martinelli shirked the challenge put forward by Andrea Berta and Mikel Arteta as they scoured the transfer market a year ago for a new left winger, and he certainly proved his worth in the Champions League group stage with six goals in seven games.
But no further goals in the knockout stages and just five goal contributions in the Premier League this season suggests Berta and Arteta are right in their belief that a player good enough for the journey to the top doesn’t quite have the quality now they’ve got there.
Aston Villa: Harvey Elliott
Unai Emery insisted the clause which saw Elliott play 284 minutes this season as Villa would have had to pay £35m if he made ten appearances was “embarrassing” for everyone involved, though we’re not quite sure why Liverpool have been included in those recriminations. It was Villa who agreed to those terms. Just a stunning waste of a season.
Brentford: Reiss Nelson
“He’s at a different level right now,” Arteta said in March 2023 when Nelson came off the bench for Arsenal to score a 97th-minute winner against Bournemouth to keep them in the title race, proving that the Hale End graduate could “still be special” for the Gunners.
Less than three years later Nelson is still trying to find his level after featuring for just 339 minutes for Brentford. It’s hard to imagine another Premier League club taking a punt on him.
Bournemouth: Bafode Diakite
The second-most expensive signing in Bournemouth’s history at £30.3m, behind Evanilson (£31.7m), Diakite has started just 15 Premier League games this term and hasn’t featured in any of the last 14 having been mercilessly shoved down the pecking order by the brilliant James Hill.
This is less about Diakite flopping than Hill excelling, and the Frenchman looks set for his chance next season after Marcos Senesi jumps ship in the summer, as is the way with Bournemouth centre-backs.
