2021 has already been a crazy year. Just last month, we had one of the biggest events in the history of the stock market with the stock price of video game store GameStop going through the roof. In case you were unaware, a bunch of retail investors from a subreddit known as wallstreetbets noticed that the GameStop stock was undervalued and was one of the most shorted stocks on wall street (shorted, i.e. people bet on the price going down). The retail investors proceeded to buy up GameStop stock in huge quantities which led to the stock price increasing from $20 to $350 in a few days. Yes, I am boring myself as well, but the main point is that Game-Stop was a stock whose price was low for the longest time but eventually increased exponentially over a few days.
Similarly, today we are trying to find out who modern-day football’s version of game-stop is. Which players stocks are incredibly low right now but could be worth holding given that their value could increase rapidly in the future. Players like Luke Shaw and John Stones have already had their GameStop style revival this season, but here are some others that could join them shortly.
1. Timo Werner
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Werner has had a torrid start to life in the Premier League after his big-money move from RB Leipzig in the summer for £45 million. Werner’s stock couldn’t be lower right now after going the last 13 league games without scoring a goal. However, I don’t think you should be selling your Werner stocks right now, despite the incredibly poor run. Werner like the rest of the Chelsea team was underperforming under Lampard, and that does not mean he is a bad player. The German scored 34 goals in all competitions last season for Leipzig and was chased by almost every top European club before being signed by Chelsea. Strikers find it difficult in their first season in England; remember Suarez only scored 11 goals in his first full season at Anfield, before exploding in year 2 and 3. Similarly, Werner’s time could come and he just needs patience from the Chelsea fans.
2. Nicholas Pepe
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Nicholas Pepe arrived at Arsenal for a £72 million fee which came with incredible expectations. Things haven’t worked out the way he has liked thus far in England. However, we believe that there is a serious player in there somewhere, and we may be seeing glimpses of it this season. Pepe’s stock has tanked considerably since his Arsenal move but there might be hopes of a revival. Arteta has recently shifted him from the right to the left-wing, and that may have resurrected his career. He scored in three consecutive away games in January and is showing more hunger without the ball and improved decision making in the final third.
3. Eden Hazard
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It is fair to say Eden Hazard’s time at Real Madrid has been a catastrophic disaster. Hazard has been stuck in the vicious cycle of injury, re-injury and fluctuating fitness levels. The Belgian has only started 20 league games in the 1.5 years he has been at Madrid and missed over 50 games since arriving from Chelsea for over £100 million in 2019. No one in the world can doubt Hazard’s footballing ability, but we simply haven’t seen enough of him on the pitch for Madrid. Hazard is still only 30 years old though and could still have an extremely successful career in Spain if he can stay fit. Hazard also has 2 major international tournaments to look forward to in the next 2 years where he could potentially lead Belgium to their first-ever trophy. We wouldn’t be writing off such a mercurial talent just yet.
4. Jack Wilshere
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Another player whose stock has taken a nose-dive due to constantly being injured is Jack Wilshere. At the start of the 2010s, Wilshere was supposed to be England’s new Xavi. But ankle injury after ankle injury meant that we could never see that potential manifest. After being released by West Ham at the start of the year, Wilshere was only recently picked up by Bournemouth on a short-term basis. Now Wilshere may not ever be the player we thought he was going to be when he was 19. But he can still have a respectable career at a Premier League club provided he can overcome his injury troubles.
5. Daniel James
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Life has not been easy for Daniel James since he signed for Manchester United in the summer of 2019. James arrived at United from Championship Club Swansea and was instantly thrust into the playing XI in his first year at the club. Unfortunately, United’s failure to recruit properly meant James played 33 league games for United at the age of 21, something he wasn’t quite equipped to do. James is blessed with pace but needs to learn how to use it in games to his advantage. United fans have been quick to write James off, but a good loan move where he can develop his game could be the answer to his recent struggles.
Shivaan Shah