Scottish football has earned a PHD in shock and awe over the years and our beautiful game retains the ability to catch supporters out.
And out the blue signings fall into two distinct categories. There's the box office moves that cost a pretty penny that punters cannot believe their teams get over the line. And then there is the ones which leave fans tearing their hair out because they are convinced their club is making a major blunder...and are often proved correct.
It's the latter for vexed Manchester United fans who have been left open-jawed as their club pursue Marko Arnautovic this summer. The ex-Stoke City has never been regarded top class and the current Bologna striker also has a dark cloud over his head, in the wake of his vile slurs aimed at North Macedonia fans during Euro 2020. Plus he’s 33 years of age.
But have your club ever caught you out, in a good or a bad way after making a signing move out of nowhere? Record Sport runs the rule over some of Scottish football's shock moves over the years.
Fabrizio Ravanelli (Dundee)
The White Feather was arguably the most iconic looking player of an era filled with stars dripping in charisma. The White Feather and his iconic snowy top was unmistakeable and his deadly double act with Gianluca Vialli at Juventus headlined one of the finest teams in world football. But Ravanelli's legendary status only grew as he headed to Middlesbrough, where he Juninho and Emerson provided glitz aplenty on the Riverside. But, perhaps. Ravanelli's most unexpected voyage was when he landed on the shores of the City of Disovery during the 2004.
Dundee were a dab hand at tempting big names to their club with Claudio Cannigia, Georgi Nemsadze and Fan Zhiyi landing at Dens Park. Ravanelli's stay was brief as his contract was ripped up as Dundee's era of excess hit the skids and the top earns were binned. A sad end to one of the most unexpected deals in Scottish football history.
Robbie Keane (Celtic)
"That's just won us the league, so it has", roared a buoyant Celtic fam singing in the rain after the club had secured the signing of Robbie Keane on deadline day. Spoiler alert, Keane's arrival did not lead to the title landing in Glasgow's east end. Walter Smith's Rangers were too much for Tony Mowbray's imbalanced squad headlined by the Republic of Ireland's January arrival.
The 2009/10 season was a dud for Celtic and their madcap January deadline day splurge was the zenith for excitement in Glasgow's east end as Edson Braafheid, Diomansay Kamara and Paul Slane were all secured before the clock struck midnight. Keane's impact on the pitch was sizeable, as he netted 16 goals in 19 games but it wasn't enough to stop Rangers cruising to the title.
Eric Djemba Djemba (St Mirren)
A former Manchester United star rocking up up in Paisley is not a daily occurrence, however, that's how things transpired when former Old Trafford man Djemba-Djemba was signed by the Buddies as he aimed to reignite his flagging World Cup hopes with Cameroon.
Danny Lennon lauded the coup as the club's biggest signing but the midfielder only mustered three appearances and didn't make the plane to Brazil. The playful joke was he showed up more in the town's nightspot Vienna's than on the pitch, as he left well before the light came on during his St Mirren career.
Aaron Ramsey (Rangers)
Kris Boyd was purring like the Rangers cat who got the cream as he lauded the signing of Aaron Ramsey as the biggest to hit Scottish football since Paul Gascoigne had swapped Serie A for these shores 17 years later. That is a debate for another day, however, there's no doubt Ramsey's out of nowhere move to Rangers was a bonafide coup.
But a series of injury setbacks, similar to the ones which had stalled his Juventus career, left him on the sidelines for much of Rangers' rousing run to the Europa League Final, where missed penalty proved crucial. Cue Ramsey becoming the meme of choice before Juventus ended his stay with the Old Lady 12 months early. He's now with Nice as he aims to change perceptions after his Ibrox misfire.
David Goodwillie (Raith Rovers)
A saga which may will go down as the most unsavoury in recent Scottish football history, Raith Rovers and their unapologetic board defied wishes from supporters, their women's team and even led to superfan Val McDermid ending her financial backing of the Fife club. David Goodwillie was judged to be a rapist in a civil court in 2017 and a pending move from Clyde in January 2022 was met with fury. Defiant Raith made the signing and anger erupted and a raft of resignations followed. Rovers' board believed they could do what they want then quickly realised they couldn't. Goodwillie was axed and returned to Clyde.
Carlton Cole (Celtic)
Ronny Deila's two-year Celtic stay can be split down the middle – a rousing first season which was one handball away from a potential Treble to a second year which was all wrong and made worse by a host of transfer misfires. Colin Kazim-Richards is often regarded as low in term of recruitment but the striker was well ahead of Carlton Cole who was miles off the pace during an ill-fated eight month stay in Glasgow.
The former England striker was once a West Ham star but was nearing the end game by the time he rocked up in Glasgow. And there were fears before his signing from supporters that it was the wrong choice, and those doubts were soon realised when they watched Cole lumber around the pitch during his five appearances in green and white. A total flop.
Rodney Sneijder (Dundee United)
The signings of Wesley's brother offers a fascinating reminder into the misfires that ultimately led to Dundee United losing their top flight status. Ryan Gauld and Stuart Armstrong were stars but their replacements, including Sneijder, were anything but. Rodney and Wesley had a similar appearance but that's where it ended.
A viral infection put paid to stay after only one game in Tangerine. An utterly bizarre chain of events and punters were offered a free refund over their Sneijder tops. Rodney resurfaced in the Netherlands and his career remains unfulfilled with the now 31-year-old never able to live up to his superstar brother's triumphs.
Guillermo Amor (Livingston)
Arguably the most underrated big name arrival in Scottish football. Guillermo Amor doesn't possess the box-office name of Ramsey and Ravanelli, however, the 54-year-old spent a brief stint in West Lothian following an incredible career which included 400 appearances for Barcelona and 37 caps for Spain. But despite the hype, his stint with Livi proved ill-fated, with only a handful of appearances before returning to his homeland. The man from Beniform didn't have time to unpack his suitcase before he was heading home. But there's few who have graced our game that can boast a CV like Amor.
Francis Jeffers (Motherwell)
Eleven years ago Motherwell signed the former Everton and Arsenal striker ... and England cap. Well fans were shocked – and they weren’t the only ones. OK, so Jeffers had just turned 30 when he rocked up to Fir Park but he wasn’t over the hill. Far from it.The forward, who had also spent a loan spell at Rangers six years before, was seen as a huge coup, just like John Spencer before him. But it didn’t work out all that well. Jeffers managed to net just one league goal for the top-flight side plus a strike in the Scottish Cup during a campaign that saw the Lanarkshire club reach the Final, although they were to lose to Celtic at Hampden.
Having arrived in a whirlwind, he left with a whimper at the end of that season. Unbelievable, Jeffers.
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