Matt Stanger sorts the chaff from the wheat in warning Premier League bosses which players to avoid.
Lukas Podolski (FC Koln)
The striker would be a sizeable risk for anyone willing to take a punt. Yes, he's incredible for Germany, but are Germany in the Premier League? No, no they are not. Following his last big move from FC Koln to Bayern Munich in 2006, Podolski scored only 15 goals in 71 Bundesliga matches. His first year back at Koln didn't go to plan either, with only two strikes in 27 games. Essentially, that's four years in a row where Podolski wasn't delivering the goods in domestic competition. The last two seasons have been a lot rosier, but would you really want to splurge £20million on a player who is ultimately a gamble? Go grab yourself a Yakubu for £1.5million, plus a truck-load of cream cakes.
Yoann Gourcuff (Lyon)
As a youngster at Rennes, Gourcuff was seen as France's bright new hope, compared somewhat inevitably, and perhaps unfortunately, to Zinedine Zidane. A move to AC Milan didn't go to plan and it wasn't until a loan spell at Bordeaux in the 2008/09 season that Gourcuff really lived up to expectation. His wonderful creativity helped Les Girondins, managed by Laurent Blanc, to their second ever league and cup double. Gourcuff hasn't reached the same heights of performance since, suffering several injury setbacks in a permanent spell at Bordeaux and following a €22million move to Lyon. Further reason for clubs to be wary of the French midfielder are comments made by Milan legend Paolo Maldini to L'Equipe in 2010. Gourcuff's former captain at the San Siro referred to the playmaker as lacking discipline and being distant with his teammates. The last thing Arsenal need is another Samir Nasri rocking the boat.
Ganso (Santos)
If you're Manchester United, and don't have much money to spend, you want (and need) to bring in someone who can take the team to the next level immediately. Despite a hatful of plaudits for his displays in Santos' glorious Copa Libertadores campaign, Ganso is far from being the finished article. He was poor at the Copa America in the summer and has also struggled with injuries over the past 12 months. At 22, Ganso still has plenty of time to mature, but why wager £15million at this stage on a player who still needs to develop? It's worth mentioning that Kleberson was the best thing since Guaraná Antarctica when he signed for United from Atletico Paranaense back in 2003, and we all remember how that worked out.
