World Cup to forget – who were the summer’s real losers?

Having previously looked at the top points earners from the World Cup in Brazil this summer, let’s turn our attentions for a while across to the other side of the whole performance spectrum – let’s take a look at some of the players who really did not perform at the level expected of them, or perhaps even dented their reputation from turning out on the South American pitches.

Some obvious names will be looked at – Iberian rivals Spain and Portugal both left the competition at the conclusion of the group stages despite much being expected of them, but we will also have a look at one or two players who may have looked low risk at the start, but ultimately ended up costing any fantasy managers who chose them some points, or at least a bit wedge of cash for little in return.

Generally speaking, a good indication to focus on for this article would be the points-to-value ratio, as the lower this number perhaps the worst investment possible. However, that may not always be a fully accurate representation of how things have gone – for example, the lowest P/V ratio in the game this summer fell on the unfortunate shoulders of Cameroon goalkeeper Charles Itandje, who finished with a disgraceful -30. That is quite some statistic considering his asking price was only €2.00m, but no clean sheets and nine goals conceded from only three games gave him a -60 points total – tying him for the worst points total with Australian stopper Matthew Ryan.

Only five points better off than those two was Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas, who despite costing a healthy €7.50m ended up with -55 points – seven goals conceded and a booking contributing to one of the most disappointing tournaments in recent memory for the Spanish players and supporters. The Real Madrid keeper will undoubtedly be keen to forget this one and move on – but his status as the third worst player (at least as far as our fantasy points go) will surely weigh heavy. He is undeniably a great custodian, but things just haven’t gone his way this time around.

The bottom five as far as P/V totals are all goalkeepers (perhaps unsurprisingly), but sixth from bottom sees our first outfield player making an appearance – and he featured for the hosts themselves. Maicon would have cost fantasy managers a cool €8.00m should they have gone for his name on their teamsheet at the start of the tournament, but he finished on -40 – certainly the worst outfield investment from the 20th World Cup.

The 32-year-old former Man City and Inter defender moved back to Serie A with Roma in 2013, and has made 75 appearances for Brazil since making his debut in 2003, and so experience at the top level is not something he will have found too difficult to come by in the past – this was just a poor showing overall. He made three appearances in the tournament, and watched his side ship 11 goals in that time, though admittedly one of those starts came in the 7-1 drubbing to Germany. His defensive partner Dante Costa made only a single start in the tournament, but that was also in the disastrous semi-final and so he finishes on -35 from just a single outing.

Portugal defender Pepe had a rough time of it as well, where his two starts involved five goals conceded by his country, giving him a total of -30 with an asking price of €8.00m – those are some expensive points to ship. His tally was similar to Chelsea and Spain defender Cesar Azpilicueta, who despite a €7.50m price tag ended up losing 25 points as the reigning world champions crashed out after only three games. Things may have been rough for Spain throughout, but Casillas, Azpilicueta and Barcelona defender Gerard Pique – aka Mr. Shakira – were the only three players to finish with negative points totals (and consequently negative P/V columns), with Pique ending on -20 with a €7.50m value.

England and Man City goalie Joe Hart ended negatively as well, -20 points coming from a €9.00m asking price means that ultimately he didn’t fare too much better than the likes of Casillas, with a final value of -2.2 P/V.
Ultimately, there were several players who didn’t fare well for those who dared to include them in their squad for the purposes of this competition, though of course actual performance level may not have always been accurately reflected in their points total, or vice versa.

Just look at the much discussed case of Uruguay striker Luis Suarez – a now-infamous altercation during the game against Italy kept the then-Liverpool striker in the headlines, and he finished on 40 points to the positive – not too bad really, but considering he now faces a nine game international ban and a prohibition from featuring in football related activities for four months mean he has much making up to do when he does eventually return to the fold.