Spaniards Sure Are Quick To Judge

With just over 150,000 people voting, Spanish daily Marca has published an online poll that has Jonathan Woodgate as the biggest la Liga bust of the 21st century. Currently, the former Real Madrid man has a shade over 37% of the vote. He's far ahead of the next vote getter, Bosnian Elvir Baljic (again, a Real signing), who's at just over 10%.

Now at Middlesbrough, the 27-year-old defender was plucked from Newcastle's backline for the ridiculous sum of $25M in August of 2004. Because of a chronic thigh injury, he would not make his debut for the Madrid giants until a year later. And what a debut it was.

Eventually, Woodgate scurried back to England and his hometown club, Middlesbrough, after playing only 14 games for Real. The Woodman made his move permanent earlier this year, for a mind-boggling $14M. Middlesbrough have been keeping cleansheets ever since...

Real nightmare for Woodgate debut [BBC]
Woodgate voted the worst signing of the century (in Spanish) [Marca]

-ac