A £27m arrival from Liverpool in the summer of 2016, Christian Benteke may have been seen by Crystal Palace as the man who could consistently fire in the goals for the club.

Speaking after the announcement of his signing, then Eagles manager Alan Pardew said: “I’m pleased the board have been brave with this move. He’s someone I know very well because I wanted to take him to Newcastle. I thought he’d be a fantastic fit for that club. He got the move to Liverpool and it hasn’t quite worked out. For us, we need to get him back to doing what he does best. His style of play, the way he feeds off crosses. He’ll enjoy that with the wide players we have.”

Unfortunately for Pardew and Palace, Benteke has been nothing short of a monumental disaster.

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In 111 games for the London side, he has found the back of the net a paltry 22 times, whilst also only providing a further ten assists. To put that into context, Benteke has been worth a staggering £1.2m per goal. Hardly the biggest evidence of him being an astute financial investment.

His miseries have extended to this season too, with current Palace boss Roy Hodgson struggling to get the best out of him. As per Transfermarkt, he has managed to score just once in 21 games across all competitions, and that it was in the Eagles’ 3-1 defeat away to Everton.

Calling all Eagles fans: Can you get 90% on this quickfire Palace quiz?

Benteke’s struggles are no doubt a painful memory for Steve Parish and co, a symbol of the kind of consequences they stand to face if a big-money signing doesn’t work out. Palace aren’t like Manchester City or Manchester United in having a bottomless pit of money, and so when they do make a splash in the transfer market, there really is no room for failure.

The Belgian’s nightmare time at Selhurst Park is a damning verdict on Pardew’s decision to bring him into the club in the first place.

Meanwhile, here’s FFC’s verdict on whether Palace should sign this ace.

Football clubs can be an integral part of the lives of those who follow them, whether that person goes around the country watching them or do so from the comfort of their own home.It is much easier for them to have an impact when they are on the pitch, but with the Premier League currently suspended, one Crystal Palace fan, who goes by J__CPFC has shown on Twitter how the club did that for their grandfather.Someone phoned to check on him, and while that may seem like something small, it has clearly made its mark on that person.

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Football clubs are pillars of their communities, and even when a ball is not being kicked, they can play an important role in supporting their fans.

The Eagles have shown a way of doing this, which should definitely be commended, and other Premier League clubs should be taking notes.

The Palace fan’s original post can be seen below:

Meanwhile, Palace fans have been showing their love for one man.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsCarlton Baugh’s 40 was not enough for Jamaica to stretch Trinidad and Tobago•Anthony Harris/West Indies Cricket Board

Trinidad and Tobago may have narrowly missed making the finals of the Caribbean T20, but they put in a thoroughly disciplined performance against a listless Jamaica to settle for third place. The seamers, led by Kevon Cooper, restricted Jamaica to an inadequate 94 in a match initially reduced to 14 overs, before the openers strolled to the revised target of 89 in just 10.1 overs.T&T had the incentive to give their home fans something to cheer about, but Jamaica failed to derive any kind of inspiration. With the exception of Carlton Baugh, none of the batsmen batted with motivation, and it was a continuation of their performance in the semi-final yesterday.Jamaica captain Tamar Lambert won the toss and chose to bat under bright skies, but a sudden downpour forced the players indoors for more than 90 minutes. The Trinidad seamers hit the deck hard and got good carry off a moist surface, getting rid of the attacking opening pair of Chris Gayle and Xavier Marshall early. Gayle, who had a disappointing tournament, holed out to the trap at deep midwicket, before Marshall had his middle stump flattened by a Cooper yorker.Marlon Samuels failed to assume the role of senior pro and was dismissed in embarrassing circumstances. He squeezed the ball to cover and set off for a single but his partner Danza Hyatt was rooted to his end watching the ball. Samuels was stranded at Hyatt’s end giving T&T an easy run-out. Hyatt himself failed to make amends as he lost his off stump to Dave Mohammed trying to pull a ball which wasn’t short enough.Baugh gave the innings some impetus sweeping and cutting Sherwin Ganga for consecutive boundaries. He swept Mohammed over deep square-leg to bring up the first six of the game, and then picked up two crisp boundaries past point off the seamers. But the pressure increased on him as he lost a couple of partners and when Lendl Simmons served up a short delivery, he failed to clear Bravo at deep midwicket. Bravo bowled a fine final over, delivering three dot balls to Lambert as Jamaica limped to 94.Adrian Barath and Simmons made easy work of the target, which was reduced to 89 off 13 overs following a brief shower after 3.2 overs. The pair also ensured they kept with the Duckworth-Lewis par score and didn’t lose any wickets by the end of five overs, the minimum required to constitute a match. The persistent drizzle didn’t help the Jamaican bowlers as they struggled to grip the ball. Simmons used the opportunity to recover some form by going on the attack, often making room and clearing his back leg to muscle the ball away. Barath was powerful off the front foot, lofting and driving square on the off side to pick up five fours in his 39.The match was nowhere close to the intensity of the first semi-final yesterday, but the home fans weren’t complaining as T&T delivered the knockout blow.

A player doesn’t have to stay very long at a club to make an impact.

Indeed, sometimes, just one season is enough. Think of Ronaldo at Barcelona; he scored 47 goals in 49 games across a single season before departing a legend.

The Premier League has had its fair share of players come and go, of course, and many have left a lasting impact.

Here, Football FanCast takes a look at the players who were only in England for a fleeting period, but stamped their authority on the league nevertheless.

Esteban Cambiasso

Before Leicester City were miraculous Premier League title winners, they were fighting for their lives at the very foot of the Premier League table. Keeping them slightly afloat, however, was former Real Madrid and Inter Milan star Esteban Cambiasso, who moved to the King Power Stadium on a free transfer in summer 2014 – four years after lifting the Champions League title.

Cambiasso turned 34 at the start of the campaign but the quality he provided in midfield became talismanic; in fact, it was his goal against Everton in February that earned Leicester a first point in five games and his opening goal against West Ham that secured the Foxes’ first win in eight.

The Midlands outfit completed their great escape with 22 points from their final nine games, with Cambiasso featuring in all of them.

Seemingly feeling he’d done all he could for Leicester, Cambiasso decided to leave on a high and headed for Olympiacos. If only he knew what’d happen next.

Fernando Hierro

When Fernando Hierro lifted a third Champions League title in 2002, he can’t have imagined he’d end his career with a twilight campaign at Bolton Wanderers, but that’s the magic of Sam Allardyce for you.

After spending a year in Qatar, the 89-cap Spain international signed for the Trotters on a free transfer in 2004, partnering up with former Real Madrid team-mate Ivan Campo and joining the curious rabble of ageing one-time world beaters Allardyce had somehow lured to the Reebok Stadium.

One can only imagine what Hierro thought of Anthony Barness and Ricky Shakes (a then-youthful striker whose career has gone on to be as obscure as you’d imagine), but Hierro was key as Bolton went on to record their highest finish of the Premier League era and qualify for the Europa League.

Despite incredibly thorough attempts to convince him otherwise, Hierro hung up his boots at the end of the campaign.

Jurgen Klinsmann (second spell)

Jurgen Klinsmann breaches our cameo criteria somewhat, having already enjoyed one affluent spell at Tottenham Hotspur during the 1994-95 season.

Yet, it was the German icon who the Lilywhites were forced to turn to two years later as the genuine threat of relegation loomed over them, signing him on loan from Sampdoria in January for the second half of the season.

Upon his arrival, Spurs were in 18th-place and staring at life in the second tier, but Klinsmann’s run of nine goals in 15 games – including four in a 6-2 win over relegation rivals Wimbledon – steered the White Hart Lane outfit clear to safety.

After Spurs had secured a 14th-place finish, the 82-cap striker decided to hang up his boots – although he later went on to enjoy a brief swansong in the MLS in the early 2000s.

Asamoah Gyan

Asamoah Gyan varies slightly to the rest of our cameo heroes in that he’s not remembered too fondly by those at former club Sunderland, largely because he took the audacious step of forcing a move to Al-Ain in Abu Dhabi where he picked up a small fortune (even by football’s ridiculous standards) as a weekly salary.

But for his single season on Wearside, the Ghana international was an invaluable asset, his 10 goals in 31 appearances pushing the Black Cats to the dizzying heights of 10th place – their highest finish in the Premier League barring two consecutive seasons of second place in the 1990s.

That was the 31-year-old’s final stint in European football until signing for Turkish outfit Kayserispor during the summer.

Christophe Dugarry

A World Cup and Euro winner with France and a one-time member of AC Milan and Barcelona’s illustrious midfields, Birmingham City’s shock swoop for Christophe Dugarry in 2003 certainly caught the Premier League world off-guard.

At that point, Birmingham had just gained promotion from the championship and were fighting for survival at the bottom of the top flight, but Dugarry’s mid-season arrival on loan added class to an attack that also included such dignified talents as Geoff Horsefield, Stern John and Clinton Morrison.

He bagged five goals in 15 appearances to ensure top-flight survival for Steve Bruce’s side, and even signed a permanent contract at St. Andrew’s. Dugarry’s next 15 outings weren’t quite so successful, scoring just once before terminating his contract, but he now takes pride of place in Birmingham City’s Hall of Fame.

Journalist Manu Lonjon says that Southampton are interested in signing Club Brugge man Emmanuel Dennis.

The Eurosport reporter says that a number of clubs are interested in the forward, including Borussia Dortmund, Napoli, RB Leipzig and Bayer Leverkusen.

He adds that the striker should leave the club in the summer, and the above sides have been in contact to enquire about the conditions for a potential transfer, as have Southampton. However, he indicated that Dortmund were at the front of the queue and said that they had even started discussions with the Belgian club.

Dennis has caught the eye this term thanks to his brace against Real Madrid in the Champions League for his current club. However, he has managed just nine goals in 35 games in all competitions despite being a centre-forward – not exactly prolific.

In fact, his best tally so far during his career came in the 2017/18 campaign, when he managed 12 strikes in 38 games. That is not miles better than Shane Long. The former Republic of Ireland forward has managed three goals this campaign in all competitions, but his five last year was just two behind Dennis, and the 10 he mustered up during the 2015/16 Premier League term is more than Nigeria international has ever managed.

Considering that he is being courted by so many top clubs and has a Transfermarkt value of £12.15m, he would likely not come too cheap. What would be the point of signing a player who does not have too much more to offer than what they already have? Matt Crocker can do better than this, surely.

Should Saints sign Dennis? Let us know in the comments!

The police are investigating a complaint of Islamophobic abuse during the ODI between England and South Africa.It is understood that teenage Muslim spectators were verbally abused by a spectator following an argument over who should be occupying a certain seat. A complaint was made at the time to stewards and later to the police. It is understood that the stewards at the time merely asked the spectators involved to return to their seats.A statement from Hampshire said: “The Ageas Bowl can confirm it is working in conjunction with Hampshire Police regarding an allegation, made to the police, of racial abuse at the ground following the NatWest Series one-day international on Tuesday 28 August 2012.”As this police investigation is ongoing, the venue cannot comment on specifics but wishes to re-iterate that it takes allegations of this nature very seriously indeed. The Ageas Bowl fully endorses the ECB’s ‘One Game’ policy and the venue’s ground regulations – which are issued along with all tickets, are visible at the point of purchase at the ground and are also available on the venue’s website – make it very clear that any racial, homophobic or discriminatory abuse, chanting or harassment is strictly forbidden and will result in ejection from the ground and/or arrest.”Anybody who was a witness to the incident or who is able to assist the police with their enquiries is being urged to contact Hampshire Constabulary by dialling 101 and leaving their details for PC 3291 Jason Steel at Hedge End Police Station quoting reference 44120337713 or emailing him directly on [email protected]”Both South Africa and England have fielded Muslim players over recent years. Indeed, the Man of the Match in Southampton was Hashim Amla, one of the Muslim players in the South Africa team, who made a polished 150.

Arsenal haven’t always covered themselves in glory in the transfer market over the years, with arguably more flops than successes coming through the Emirates Stadium doors.

Even great manager Arsene Wenger wasn’t immune to signing the odd flop, although he often got it right as well, with Thierry Henry, Robert Pires and several others going on to do great things for the Gunners.

Unai Emery bought his fair share of flops during his short spell, too, and no doubt Mikel Arteta will make mistakes during his tenure, too.

So we’ve taken a look at back at the 20 biggest Arsenal flops in the Premier League era, although admittedly it could’ve been a lot more…

Mikael Silvestre

We start with a great player who the Gunners just decided to prise away from Manchester United way too late in his career, versatile French defender Mikael Silvestre.

The 31-year-old at the time of his Emirates Stadium arrival really struggled to have the same impact he had at Old Trafford in north London and featured a mere 43 times in two years.

Andre Santos

Arsene Wenger scouted the former Brazil international at Fenerbache and decided to take a near £5m punt on the left-sided star, it was one that failed to pay off with Santos only able to provide three goals and no assists in 33 outings.

He also hardly endeared himself to the red army, see Robin van Persie incident.

John Jensen

Curly-haired Danish 1992 UEFA European champion John Jensen became something of a cult hero at Highbury right at the beginning of the Premier League era.

However, that doesn’t really take away from the fact that he never really delivered in the tricky pre-Wenger period for the North Londoners and he was signed as a result of an agent giving George Graham a back-hander – at least he’ll always have that seminal goal against Queens Park Rangers to remember.

Denilson

When the Gunners forked out £3.4m to sign little-known 19-year-old Brazilian Denilson in the summer of 2006, there was a feeling of excitement and bemusement around the club.

The latter one turned out to be the more appropriate reaction.

Despite making over a century-and-a-half of Arsenal appearances, the central defensive midfielder never really lived up to his potential and comfortably makes it onto this list.

Sebastien Squillaci

Taking about easily being one of the Gunners’ worst signings in Premier League history, Sebastien Squillaci is right up there and could even be the worst.

The ill-disciplined ex-France centre-back never really settled into English football, struggling from the off and the fact that his international career was brought to a halt after he moved to north London says it all really.

Denis Suarez

Denis Suarez’s loan from Barcelona to Arsenal in the second half of 2018/2019 was certainly one of the most pointless transfers of the Premier League era.

The agile attacking midfielder played just six times, a cameo role from the bench on each occasion, before picking up a groin injury a month before the end of the campaign and spending the rest of it on the sidelines.

Junichi Inamoto

There was definitely something fishy about Japan legend Junichi Inamoto’s switch to Highbury in 2001 as he was plucked out of the microscopic J-League on loan only to ever feature four times in cup competitions.

Looking back now it very much appears that there were other motives behind this move, perhaps the Gunners wanted to raise their profile and sell more shirts in Japan ahead of the 2002 FIFA World Cup? And maybe the transfer was successful in that sense?

Nevertheless, Arsene Wenger’s face above doesn’t in the least suggest suspicion…

Yaya Sanogo

Former Golden Boy nominee Yaya Sanogo is a classic example of that player who impresses hugely in pre-season and turns out to be a flop when they start to sink their teeth into some competitive action.

The French youth prodigy did what Arsenal’s official social media accounts are still referring to as a “madness” against Napoli in the Emirates Cup in just his second pre-season, scoring four times in a 5-1 victory.

However, his form competitively was a world apart from this as Sanogo pathetically never scored a Premier League goal in four years before a free transfer back to his homeland with Toulouse.

Richard Wright

It’s simply laughable that not only did the Gunners spend £2m, some sum in 2001, to bring goalkeeper Richard Wright in from Ipswich Town, Arsene Wenger saw him as the long-term replacement for ageing club legend David Seaman.

Wait, it gets better, Wright actually managed to earn a Premier League winners’ medal during his mistake-laden Highbury spell but unsurprisingly, he didn’t even come close to establishing himself as the new first choice in north London.

Andrey Arshavin

Andrey Arshavin is a man who will always polarise opinion in world football – there was no doubting his talent though he could never really get over his frustrating inconsistency.

The fact remains, however, that the Gunners never really got anything more than THAT performance against Liverpool at Anfield out of the controversial Russian for their lofty £14.85m.

Celtic secured their biggest win under Ange Postecoglou on Saturday as the Hoops demolished their weekend opponents.

It was as comfortable a win as they come for the Bhoys who swept aside St Johnstone 7-0 at Parkhead.

It was a mightily positive victory for Postecoglou’s men but it’s not all sunshine and rainbows after Celtic were dealt with a crushing injury setback.

What’s the word?

Giorgos Giakoumakis found the net for the 13th time early in the clash on Saturday but shortly after he found himself back in the dressing room, limping off injured.

Sadly, there is no chance that he will now be fit to face Rangers in the Scottish Cup semi-finals next Sunday.

Speaking about the issue in his post-match press conference, the Hoops boss said: “I’m not too sure at the moment. He didn’t think it was too bad but he could feel something.

“It’s always a concern when players do that. He’s had an enormous load the last few weeks.

“It’s unfortunate for him but I’m hopeful he’ll still be available for us in the run-in.”

Major blow

This is a devastating blow for Celtic, primarily due to the timing of the Greek striker’s setback.

They may have defeated Rangers last week but there is no guarantee that they will do again without the summer signing next weekend.

After all, Kyogo Furuashi has only just returned from injury and Giakoumakis has been in stunning form this calendar year.

The 27-year-old has scored eight times throughout 2022, which rather incredibly includes two hat-tricks.

With Kyogo out and Daizen Maeda adjusting to life in Scotland, he needed to inject a spark into his Celtic career and that’s precisely what he’s done, playing a key part in the club’s bid for success.

The Glaswegian giants have already won the League Cup and are now favourites to win the Premiership but without Giakoumakis in seven days time, it could derail and flatten their hopes of securing a historical treble in Postecoglou’s first campaign at Parkhead.

What makes it even worse is that the Greece international has already been plagued with injury since arriving, missing several games in the first half of the season.

Celtic will be hoping for a swift recovery sooner rather than later.

AND in other news, Get rid: Ange must brutally axe Celtic’s £14k-pw “terrible flop”, he’s Shane Duffy 2.0…

Match facts

October 19, 2012
Start time 1730 (1530 GMT)Morne Morkel is the leader of an attack that can otherwise look weak•AFP

Big Picture

Delhi Daredevils have looked the best IPL side in the tournament, and they will be the favourites against Auckland Aces, but many a team has learned the hard way that you take Aces lightly at your own peril.If Daredevils win, though, and win it big, they will be pretty close to qualifying for the semi-finals. They have carried good net run rate from the big win against Kolkata Knight Riders, and a second win will put them in a strong position in the group. Kevin Pietersen, who had left for meetings with England team director after the win against Knight Riders, is expected to be back in time for this game, and he will be buoyed by having settled his differences with the England team.Aces, on the other hand, had their excellent run of wins rudely interrupted when they came up against group leaders Titans. They have won many a fan by winning both their qualifiers, and also their first game, but they can ill afford a defeat. Having camped in the Highveld well before the tournament, they have played there as if it’s their own backyard, but they struggled in Durban. They will hope they catch their opponents similarly unawares when Daredevils play their first game at Kingsmead.

Watch out for…

Azhar Mahmood, with 137 runs at 68.5 and 10 wickets at an economy rate of 6.57, has been Auckland’s highest wicket-taker and their highest run-getter, and easily one of the best players in the tournament. Auckland will look to him to provide inspiration against the much-fancied opposition.Daredevils’ top order has been the talk of the town, but Morne Morkel is equally important to their chances in the tournament. He leads an attack that can look weak without him, and will be pretty handy under the lights in Durban.

Stats and trivia

• This is Simon Taufel’s 92nd match as a Twenty20 umpire, more than anyone else.
• With 10 wickets, Mahmood is the leading bowler in the tournament.

Quotes

“Keep it simple, focus on our strengths and try and execute a good game plan. And results will take care of themselves. We need to focus. We are not going to win matches by just turning up, we need to keep performing, we have to be consistent and win that. So we have to try and do that.”

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Everton were beaten 1-0 by Watford on Saturday afternoon, and the Goodison faithful can’t quite believe what Marco Silva said after the match.

Silva’s Everton went on a superb run of form in October and November, beating Fulham, Leicester City and Crystal Palace before a hard-earned draw at Chelsea.

Things have gone off the deep end quickly since the last second heartbreak at Anfield though, and the latest performance at Vicarage Road was absolutely woeful.

Check out Neymar’s controversial new haircut for 2019 and Xherdan Shaqiri as you’ve never seen him before in the video below…

The Toffees mustered just four shots on target on Saturday as Andre Gray’s second half goal was enough to give the Hornets all three points, and once the score was 1-0 Silva’s side looked dead and buried.

This lack of fight and passion has perhaps infuriated the fans more than the actual results themselves, and they can’t believe Silva’s verdict on the match.

“We created enough chances to achieve a different result today,” the boss claimed, per Phil Kirkbride of The Liverpool Echo.

Needless to say, fans don’t exactly agree with the gaffer’s judgement on this one, and you can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below, look away now Marco…