A player previously dubbed a ‘flop’ during his time in the Premier League is now thriving in another European league.
Several players with healthy reputations have arrived in England for big transfer fees only to struggle with the pace, power and relentless nature of the Premier League.
Many high-profile examples, such as Juan Sebastian Veron’s 2001 transfer to Manchester United and Andriy Shevchenko’s 2006 switch to Chelsea, spring to mind as exciting transfers of then-world-class players that ultimately went wrong.
And some stars never recover after failing in England’s top-flight, but others go on to develop into top players elsewhere and sometimes return to the Premier League, such as Arsenal’s Mikel Merino and Nottingham Forest’s Matz Sels, who both previously struggled during their time with Newcastle United.
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However, another former Magpies player has proved his worth since leaving the Northeast club back in 2017.
The name Florian Thauvin may not bring back many good memories for Newcastle supporters.
Thauvin, now 32, signed for Newcastle from Marseille for a fee of £13million back in 2015, penning a five-year deal with the Premier League side.
But his spell at the club was disappointing, with the Frenchman registering just one goal and three assists in 16 appearances before rejoining Marseille on loan in 2016.
The 32-year-old made his move back to France permanent in 2017 and helped Marseille reach the Europa League final and finished as the second-highest scorer in Ligue 1 behind Edinson Cavani with 22 strikes during the 2017/18 campaign.
Thauvin left Marseille for Mexican side Tigres UANL in 2021 and enjoyed two years in North America before returning to Europe when he joined Italian outfit Udinese in 2023.
And after two seasons in Italy, the 32-year-old returned to his native country, signing for Lens in August.
Since then, Thauvin’s excellent performances have impressed France national team head coach Didier Deschamps so much that he was called up to the Les Bleus squad for the October internationals.
The Lens man even got on the scoresheet in the 3-0 World Cup qualifier win against Azerbaijan.
Just when Thauvin may have been thinking that things could not get any better for him, the Union Nationale des Footballeurs Professionnels (UNFP) named the winger/forward as McDonald’s Ligue 1 Player of the Month for September.
Thauvin has registered two goals in seven games so far in the 2025/26 campaign.
Topics: Football, Premier League, Newcastle United, Ligue 1
Luke Davies