The EPL Flops who Shine in other European Major Leagues
Several EPL players who have been deemed flops can thrive in other major leagues in Europe.
The Premier League has often been considered the best league in the world. The players who compete week in and week out there are naturally considered to be of better quality and are expected to thrive easily abroad, although this is not always the case.
This midweek, the world was stunned by Ademola Lookman, who played a crucial role in the Europa League final in Dublin. The former Everton man netted a hat-trick in the final against the favourites Bayer Leverkusen as his team, Atalanta, smashed them three goals to nil.
Some interesting facts about Lookman might shock you. He is an Englishman who switched sides to Nigeria. He was even part of the England U20 squad that won the 2017 FIFA U20 World Cup alongside Bournemouth's Dominik Solanke and Everton’s Dominic Calvert Lewin, who has sealed his place in The Toffees and helped Everton tickets remain in demand.
Nevertheless, Lookman never had a chance to shine in the English top flight. He has played for five years in the Premier League with Everton, Fulham, and Leicester City, but his total goals were less than ten in each club, despite playing regularly, especially in the last two teams. Consequently, he was loaned out as he was deemed a failure. Now, he is the key man in La Dea.
Lookman is certainly not the only one. Here are some other distinguished EPL flops who managed to shine abroad.
Luis Alberto
The Spaniard joined Liverpool in 2013 for a three-year contract. Yet, he was only part of Brendan Rodgers’ squad in the 2013/14 season, when The Reds were in a title race with Manchester City before losing in the final stage due to Steven Gerrard’s infamous slip in Anfield.
Alberto only got a nod from the first team 12 times, nine of which were in the Premier League, with only one assist in his contribution. In the following two seasons, he was sent on loan to Malaga and Deportivo La Coruna, two lower-table teams in La Liga, to get more minutes on the pitch. His form was better, especially with the latter team, as he helped them avoid relegation and contributed six goals and eight assists in 31 games. Yet Liverpool was not interested in his return, as his style of play did not suit Jurgen Klopp’s man.
Thus, he signed for Lazio, where he finally reached his stardom. The former Barcelona B man has been the key man in the Serie A side ever since, delivered the Coppa Italia 2019 trophy, and helped them qualify for the Champions League. Overall, the 31-year-old attacking midfielder has registered 52 goals and 79 assists in 307 games with Biancoceleste.
Iago Aspas
He was Luis Alberto’s teammate in the Reds, who joined in the same transfer window. Aspas was signed for two years but did not even impress them in the first season. He was only fielded 14 times in the Premier League and managed to make one assist. The Spanish winger was not able to get more minutes due to the fierce competition upfront at that time with Luis Suarez, Daniel Sturridge, Phillipe Coutinho, and Raheem Sterling in the squad, plus his lack of English language ability.
Aspas was eventually loaned out to Sevilla in the following season when he was part of Unai Emery’s squad to win the Europa League in 2015/16. Yet he was once again only a second fiddle in the team. The Moana-born versatile forward eventually moved back to Celta Vigo and has been a key figure in the team ever since. He helped them finish strong instantly in the 2015/16 campaign by sitting sixth to secure a berth in the Europa League. Aspas even led Celta Vigo to reach the semifinals of the tournament before losing to eventual champions Manchester United. Overall, the 36-year-old captain has featured in 491 games, scoring 203 goals and providing 78 assists for his club.
Fikayo Tomori
The England international started off his career at Chelsea with their youth team. He was included in the senior team in 2016 but never had a chance to play regularly on the first team. No wonder that he was loaned out four times to Brighton, Hull City, Derby County (all three were in the second tier), and AC Milan in 2017 and 2021. Tomori eventually impressed the Italian giant during his loan spell and moved permanently in 2021.
The centre-back, who once played for Canada U20 before switching sides to England, has been instrumental in helping Rossonerri win a league title in 2021/22. He has been the key man under Stefano Pioli too, playing in 141 games, registering seven goals and one assist. Such is way more than his appearance in the Premier League, which was only 17 times, with only one goal in his contribution. Tomori has been capped five times in international fixtures since 2019.
Serge Gnabry
The German international was part of the Arsenal squad from 2012 to 2016. Yet he was not able to impress Arsene Wenger or other Premier League clubs. In the first three years at Emirates, he only featured 11 times in the EPL and scored once. Gnabry was then loaned out to West Bromwich Albion in the 2015/16 season but did not get the minutes he needed either.
Thus, he was sold back to Germany and joined Werder Bremen. He slowly began to improve himself after winning a silver medal in the 2016 Rio Olympics with the Germany U23 team. Surprisingly, his form drew interest from Bayern Munich in the following season. He then signed for the Bavarian side, although initially he was loaned out first to Hoffenheim. It was a perfect club for him, as he managed to develop himself under Julian Nagelsmann. He helped the team finish third in the Bundesliga and qualify for the Champions League.
In 2018, Gnabry finally had his call with Bayern and sealed his place in the starting XI. He became the key figure when Die Roten won a triple in 2020, plus the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup in the same year. Since 2018, the 28-year-old winger has bagged 86 goals and made 53 assists in 238 matches for the German powerhouse.
Paulinho
The Brazilian midfielder signed for Tottenham in 2013 and even stayed in North London until 2015. Yet he never made his mark in England despite making 45 games in the EPL and contributing six goals and three assists. Paulinho was sold to Chinese Super League side Guangzhou Evergrande in 2015.
However, in 2017, he joined Barcelona and became part of their main set-up under Ernesto Valverde. He even helped Lionel Messi and Co. win a domestic double in the 2017–18 campaign. Overall, he netted nine times and provided three assists in 49 games with the Catalan side.
