Blackburn Rovers fell flat with £6.75m transfer agreement | OneFootball

Corrado Grabbi signing for Blackburn remains one of the most notorious transfer disasters in Premier League history

Blackburn Rovers' signing of Italian striker Corrado Grabbi from Ternana remains one of the most notorious transfer disasters in Premier League history.

Under Graeme Souness, Rovers had just secured an immediate return to the top-flight as Division One runners-up, finishing behind champions Fulham in the 2000/01 campaign.

The Scotsman had been handed a reported £20m transfer kitty to strengthen the squad for their Premier League return, and he had already secured the signings of Turkish midfielder Tugay Kerimoglu from Rangers for £1.3m and Alan Mahon from Benfica for £1.5m.

Grabbi then arrived in Lancashire for a reported £7m, having netted 20 goals in 34 league appearances the previous season.

How Corrado Grabbi's move to Blackburn Rovers came to fruition

The Turin-born striker had played for various sides in Italy's lower divisions before finding his feet at Ternana, where he became a hero to the local supporters, becoming known as Ciccio.

His 20-goal season attracted attention from some of the nations biggest clubs - with Udinese and Fiorentina two that were keeping tabs on the forward.

However, according to Grabbi himself, his move to England was influenced by alleged interference from Juventus general manager Luciano Moggi.

Moggi, who had previously pressured Grabbi to change his agent and join his agency GEA World, apparently made it impossible for the striker to secure a move within Italy.

The transfer fee paid to bring him to England was a club record for Blackburn. At 25 years old, Grabbi was entering what should have been his prime years, and there was genuine optimism that he could replicate his Serie B form in England.

From the moment Grabbi stepped onto English soil, everything that could go wrong went wrong.

The striker struggled with the physical demands and intensity of Premier League football, something Souness later acknowledged publicly. Speaking in December 2003, the Rovers manager admitted, "He's got the ability to play at the highest level but found the intensity of our league too much."

Grabbi's top-flight debut came in Blackburn's opening fixture against Derby County, which ended in a 2-1 defeat at Pride Park. Rovers only won four of their first 14 games in the league, a run that included seven draws and three defeats.

Despite Souness' faith in him, Grabbi managed just one goal in his first 14 league appearances, scoring against Everton in September 2001.

In truth, Grabbi found it difficult to adapt to both the climate and culture. In an apparent later interview with Italian media, he revealed he was finding it hard to fit in with his teammates, claiming the squad was not welcoming to him.

Blackburn Rovers, League Cup win masked Corrado Grabbi's individual failure

By January 2002 Blackburn were in deep relegation trouble, so Souness secured the signing of Andy Cole from Manchester United for £8m, who went on to score the winning goal in the League Cup final against Spurs.

For Grabbi, watching from the sidelines as Cole achieved what he had been brought in to do must have been painful. He had already been sent on loan to Serie B side Messina before the final - missing out on what would be Rover's first major trophy since winning the Premier League in 1995.

Sky Sports reported that Grabbi was "happy to go to Messina" but frustrated by negotiations that had initially involved Napoli.

How much Blackburn Rovers paid per goal for Corrado Grabbi

The numbers surrounding Grabbi's Blackburn career make for genuinely shocking reading. In three seasons at Ewood Park, he netted just five goals in 41 appearances.

His top-flight record was two goals in 30 matches, meaning the £6.75m transfer fee worked out at around £3.38m per goal - and it was over a year between his two strikes. His second was a header in a 2-2 draw against Liverpool.

Souness confirmed in December 2003 that the club were in discussions with Italian sides about Grabbi's departure. CEO John Williams stated, "We are in discussions with an Italian side about a deal for Ciccio.

"I think they would be quite interested in taking him but there's a long way to go in negotiations yet," he added.

Ultimately, he joined Serie C1 side Ancona on a free transfer in January 2004, which meant that the striker who had cost £6.75m two and a half years earlier was allowed to leave for nothing.

The signing of Grabbi remains a big reminder that expensive doesn't always mean effective - and, of course, that not every promising player who signs from abroad can adapt to English football.