Ipswich Town will forever rue £3.1m transfer mistake | OneFootball

Ipswich Town made a major transfer blunder in 2001

Ipswich Town will always hold a tinge of regret over their decision to sign Finidi George.

In recent times, the Tractor Boys have enjoyed a period of relative success, climbing from League One to the top-flight in successive seasons, granting them the opportunity to regularly battle it out with English football’s elite once more.

The last time Ipswich had operated out of that division was 22 years prior, at a time when George Burley was manager.

Remarkably, the Suffolk side had finished the 2000/01 campaign fifth in the Premier League and just four points behind Arsenal in second. This marked a point of real improvement for Ipswich and a platform they could build on in the ensuing years.

Burley had received the Manager of the Year prize for his performances in the dugout that term and with the added complication of UEFA Cup football to contend with, was looking to make several key additions in the transfer market.

The likes of Matteo Sereni, Marcus Bent and Pablo Couñago all made moves to Portman Road, with excitement building that they could enjoy another campaign fighting towards the top of the division.

However, one signing Ipswich made proved to be quite the error and one that optimised their 2001/02 campaign as a whole.

Ipswich Town made transfer blunder by signing Finidi George

In an attempt to add some strength to his flanks, Burley explored the Spanish market and landed upon Mallorca star Finidi George.

George arrived with an impressive pedigree in the game, having played over 120 times for European giants Ajax. During his time with the Dutch side, he scored 24 goals, provided 30 assists and won a host of Eredivisie titles as well as the 1994/95 Champions League.

After his spell with Ajax, the Nigerian made over 150 appearances for Real Betis before moving to Mallorca. This meant that the winger’s reputation was sky-high and capturing his signature was seen as a real coup for Ipswich.

When completing the deal, Burley described George as a “world-class” player and was more than happy to offload £3.1m to make him an Ipswich Town operator.

Given his pedigree in the game, the former Ajax man was seen as the type of signing that could elevate the level of the Tractor Boys’ squad and help sustain their competitiveness, both in the Premier League and in Europe.

However, this didn’t turn out to be the case. George would manage only eight goals in 46 matches for Ipswich and couldn’t prevent them from slumping to relegation during his first term with the club.

George operated on the right wing for Ipswich and kicked life in Suffolk off perfectly, scoring twice on his debut to beat Derby County 3-1.

However, injury problems soon limited his impact on the side. A fractured cheekbone ruled George out of action for two months, whilst persistent fitness problems prevented him from playing at his best, by his own admission.

Jim Magilton and a young Darren Ambrose eventually began filling in for the Nigerian international due to these injury woes, which limited how pivotal he was to their success even when fit.

After a year in the Championship, the Nigerian was released in June 2023, marking the end of a wholly unsatisfying partnership.

Despite the previous glory he had experienced in the past, George got nowhere near competing at the levels he had once previously shown himself capable of and ended up being a massive waste of money from Ipswich.

Given that the Portman Road outfit only finished four points shy of safety, it could be argued that investing this money more wisely may have been the difference between Ipswich retaining or losing their top-flight status.

Relegation from the Premier League proved costly for Ipswich Town

Although they didn’t know it at the time, Ipswich’s relegation from the Premier League in 2002 would mark the start of an extremely long top-flight absence.

It would be 22 years before the Tractor Boys returned to the division, a period of time which saw them relegated to League One and repeatedly fail to challenge for promotion at the top of the Championship.

Recent times have been kinder to Ipswich, with Kieran McKenna leading them from the third-tier back up to the Premier League, but over two decades outside of English football’s biggest stage is far too long for a club of Ipswich’s magnitude.

After just finishing fifth and attracting talent that had won the Champions League with Ajax, the Tractor Boys appeared to be on top of the world in 2001.