Alvaro Carreras’ €50 million transfer to Real Madrid from Benfica has been deemed one of the worst signings in European football this season, according to analysis by FootballTransfers. Despite being an academy product returning to his boyhood club, the 23-year-old has struggled to establish himself as a consistent starter for Los Blancos, often finding himself behind Ferland Mendy and Fran Garcia in the pecking order.
Carreras’ difficulties reportedly peaked with a dressing room altercation with teammate Antonio Rudiger, and concerns over his attitude led to him being dropped by former manager Alvaro Arbeloa. He also failed to earn a place in Spain’s squad for the 2026 World Cup, highlighting the work needed to improve his game.
Elsewhere, Lois Openda’s loan move to Juventus with a €43 million obligation to buy has also been a disaster, with the Belgian forward scoring only one goal in 24 Serie A appearances. Juventus are now looking to move him on quickly after a previously encouraging career took a downturn.
Christopher Nkunku’s €37 million transfer to Milan from Chelsea has similarly failed to deliver, with the 28-year-old continuing to struggle with form and injuries, scoring seven goals in 32 Serie A games as Milan finished fifth and underwent a significant overhaul of their coaching and directorial staff. Milan are now hoping to recoup some of their investment.
Milan’s other expensive signing, Ardon Jashari (€36m from Club Brugge), also underperformed due to injury and a struggle to adapt to Serie A. Bayer Leverkusen’s €32 million acquisition of Eliesse Ben Seghir from Monaco also proved disappointing, with the 21-year-old making limited appearances and failing to impress.
Lucas Chevalier’s €40 million move to Paris Saint-Germain from Lille has also been a letdown, with the goalkeeper being dropped after a series of errors, casting doubt on his long-term future at the club. Yoan Wissa’s €57.7 million transfer to Newcastle from Brentford has been a disaster, with the 29-year-old suffering an injury shortly after arriving and managing only one goal in 19 Premier League matches.
Perhaps the most glaring failure was Alexander Isak’s €145 million move to Liverpool from Newcastle, described as an unnecessary luxury given Liverpool had recently signed a similar player for significantly less. Finally, Anthony Elanga’s €61 million transfer to Newcastle from Nottingham Forest also fell flat, with the winger failing to score or assist in 32 league games. Liam Delap’s €35m move to Chelsea from Ipswich has also been deemed a failure, with the striker proving ineffective and accumulating more yellow cards than goals.
