Marked to replace legendary goalkeeper David Seaman, Wright’s transfer was an epic failure. In July 2001, Wright joined Arsenal from Ipswich Town for £6 million, a significant sum for a goalkeeper at the time. Seaman’s injury rapidly saw Wright starting, but he turned out to be disappointing: notably, his own goal during a match against Charlton Athletic. Following an injury during a Champions League match against La Coruna, he was replaced by the young Stuart Taylor, who quickly 

Like all the Premier League’s greatest clubs, Arsenal sometimes exchanged millions in return for the industry’s biggest names. While some have gone on to become icons, the gunners have seen more than their fair share of expensive flops.

Here’s a look back at the top 5 worst transfer in the history of the club.

# 5 – Mikael Silvestre

After nine seasons at Manchester United, Silvestre decided to play for the enemy. At less than £1 million, the transfer fee was low and he didn’t even make it profitable: after two ghost-like seasons, Silvestre was dumped by Arsenal and signed to Werder Bremen.

# 4 – Junichi Inamoto

This transfer seemed to be a pure marketing ploy. When 21-year-old Inamoto joined Arsenal from Gamba Osaka, he was steadily successful in his country but the Japanese championship can’t compare to Premier League level… He hardly ever played, even though it cost the club around £5 million to recruit him. He spent one season at Arsenal and then toured Europe (six European clubs in nine seasons), before finally returning to Japan to secure his qualification for the 2010 World Cup.

# 3 – Park Chu-young

The signing of South Korean striker Park Chu-young is still a mystery to many Arsenal supporters. Arsenal had swiped the striker from under the noses of Lyon after the French club had him in a hotel in order to secure his services. But a Wenger phone call had swayed his decision and he legged it to London. He must regret that decision as the South Korean barely got a kick from the time he signed to the time he left. He did score one good goal in the league cup but that was just about it.

# 2 – Richard Wright

Marked to replace legendary goalkeeper David Seaman, Wright’s transfer was an epic failure. In July 2001, Wright joined Arsenal from Ipswich Town for £6 million, a significant sum for a goalkeeper at the time. Seaman’s injury rapidly saw Wright starting, but he turned out to be disappointing: notably, his own goal during a match against Charlton Athletic. Following an injury during a Champions League match against La Coruna, he was replaced by the young Stuart Taylor, who quickly began to establish himself as the Arsenal’s permanent goalkeeper. He finished off the season third in the goalkeepers’ ranking, behind Seaman and Taylor. A year later he was transferred to Everton for the modest sum of £3.5 million.

# 1 – Francis Jeffers

Back in 2001, the 20-year-old French player had superstar potential. He performed four convincing seasons in Everton, followed by a brilliant spin with England U21s (12 goals in 16 matches!). Arsenal didn’t think twice and decided to bet on him, spending £8 million along the way – a huge sum for a player of his age. However, his career with the Gunners was interrupted by multiple injuries and he only managed to score nine goals in three seasons. After touring in the UK, he transferred to Floriana, a little known Maltese football club…