Top 10 transfer sagas that never got completed

The unfulfilled dreams of world-class players, managers and clubs

In the world of football, transfer windows are periods of frenzied excitement, where dreams are woven, and destinies rewritten. Supporters eagerly await the news of potential signings that could change the course of their favorite team's fortunes.

Yet, within this theater of anticipation, there lies a group of transfer sagas that, despite the swirl of rumors and negotiations, never saw the light of day. These are the stories of dashed hopes, shattered expectations, and dreams that remained tantalizingly out of reach.

Here, we look into the top 10 transfer sagas that never got completed:

10. Wesley Sneijder to Manchester United

Sneijder enjoyed a glittering career spanning 17 years and six different countries, starting off at Ajax before moving to Real Madrid and then Inter Milan in 2009. The Dutch midfielder hit his peak in Milan, helping them to a historic treble in 2010 and guiding the Netherlands to a World Cup final that summer.

Since 2011, Manchester United were interested in signing the midfielder from Milan. After a failed move to United, he decided to stay in Milan for another 18 months before joining Galatasaray in January 2013. Sneijder throughout the second phase of his career was heavily linked with the Red Devils, a move that never happened.

9. Juan Roman Riquelme to Everton

Argentina has a long, largely joyful and sometimes torturous relationship with the No.10, a role which has a deep cultural significance. Riquelme, the Argentine legend wore the number 10 wherever he went to play and was one of the most entertaining players of his time, he currently is the vice-president of Boca Juniors, a club that gave him the recognition he wanted in his career.

There was one transfer that sent Evertonians into overdrive, when in 2007, Everton’s official website announced that Juan Roman Riquelme had joined from Villarreal. The club had accidentally released the statement which forced the Argentine to join his boyhood club Boca Juniors. If only Everton signed him, this would have been one of the best signings in Everton's career.

8. Steven Gerrard to Chelsea

Jose Mourinho tried to sign the Liverpool legend with three different clubs, but his most outrageous attempt was in 2005, while he tried to bring the Liverpool legend to Stamford Bridge. This happened after he won the Champions League with Liverpool in Istanbul.

He was very tempted to make a switch to the Chelsea side but Rafa Benitez insisted him to stay at the club. Ironically, he is remembered for slipping at the half line against Chelsea which led Liverpool to slip away in the Premier League title race.

7. Moises Caicedo to Liverpool

Moises Caicedo has been a player to watch in the Premier League and for Brighton in recent years. The Ecuadorian is just 21-years-old and one of the best young talents in the Premier League, which is why he is been chased by Premier League clubs.

One of the clubs that has after been him is Chelsea but Liverpool also joined the race to sign him and were successful in convincing him to join Klopp's midfield. It was after Klopp's confirmation that the player has now decided to play for only one club and that is Chelsea and the North London club is not so far away from signing the young midfielder.

6. Karim Benzema to Arsenal

Arsenal for a long, very long time thought Benzema was the man they wanted to lead the line and bag all the goals. Arsenal’s interest in the Frenchman dates back to his time at Lyon, they wanted to replace after Emmanuel Adebayor decided to leave the club.

Despite Arsenal signing Lacazette and Aubameyang, Benzema continued to be tenuously linked with a move to the Emirates. The Frenchman decided to stay at Real Madrid and win a lot more trophies than Arsenal did since then and he is one of the best strikers in the world. A multiple Champions League and LaLiga winner finally decided to leave Bernabeau to join Al-Ittihad after his contract expired at Real Madrid.

5. Frenkie de Jong to Manchester United

Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong nearly joined Manchester United after Erik ten Hag was appointed by the club. As soon as ETH stepped into the United's side, De Jong was one of the players he was keen on signing the last summer.

Since then, the Dutchman has been linked with Manchester United every single transfer window, he is a player Erik ten Hag definitely wants to sign even though Barcelona agreed terms to send the player to Manchester United, it was De Jong who didn't want to join United as he wanted to play Champions League. United will play Champions League this season and we'll see if the Dutchman decides to join the Red Devils.

4. Wayne Rooney to Chelsea

Wayne Rooney lodged his first transfer request at Manchester United in 2010, when he expressed that Sir Alex Ferguson's side no longer matched his ambitions. Certainly after that it looked like Rooney would be leaving Old Trafford to join Chelsea with the club being the most likely destination for the England superstar.

Soon, he was not included in Sir Alex's plans after his desire to leave. But the signing didn't happen and he went on to win the Premier League title. In 2013, David Moyes told Rooney that he would be a second choice striker behind Van Persie and Chelsea joined the race to sign him again but United denied the reports and Chelsea went on to sign Samuel Eto'o.

3. David de Gea to Real Madrid

If it weren’t for a fax machine in 2015, De Gea would have got his dream move to Real Madrid. De Gea was all set to join Los Blancos, with Keylor Navas moving in the opposite direction, only for the two clubs to miss the deadline to complete the required paperwork.

The Spaniard then signed contract extension with Manchester United which made him the only player post Sir Alex era to continue in the club till 2023. He was the number one choice goalkeeper for United all these years but United signed a new goalkeeper in Onana this summer which has made De Gea a free agent and Courtois injury in training means David De Gea could possibly end up playing for Real Madrid. What a full life circle moment this would be!

2. Cristiano Ronaldo to Arsenal

The obvious player that comes to mind is Cristiano Ronaldo as Wenger once admitted when asked about players Arsenal almost signed. It must be the one which leaves Gunners fans wondering what could have been. The future five-time Ballon d’Or winner was close to joining Arsenal as a young prospect at Sporting Lisbon.

But a friendly against Manchester United changed Ronaldo's mind and he ended up signing for Manchester United. This was the beginning of quite some journey that everybody anticipated after watching the Portuguese play, I can't imagine him pairing up with Henry which could've been quite some attacking pair.

1. Kylian Mbappe to Real Madrid

The ongoing transfer saga of PSG star striker Kylian Mbappe remains uncertain after PSG has excluded the Frenchman from their future playing plans and he has been told that he won't play a single minute for the French champions now. Real Madrid have been chasing him since two-three seasons and Mbappe has shown interest in joining the most prestigious club in the history of football.

Mbappe wants to join Madrid next summer on a free transfer which PSG obviously don't want because he has proved himself and could actually benefit PSG in getting some money. It is uncertain when will he join Madrid but one thing is for sure that we can expect a deadline day move and if not that then maybe next season is when Mbappe joins Madrid and becomes a part of the talented young squad that Madrid have created this season.