Everton fans. It’s time to take a trip down memory lane, to 2012 to be more precise, when David Moyes was still your manager.
A big fan of Belgian players, the Scottish manager had already brought Kevin Mirallas and Marouane Fellaini to Goodison Park with relative success.
Trying to bolster his frontline, Moyes turned once again to Belgium and attempted to bring in Vadis Odjidja-Ofoe from Club Brugge.
The then 22-year-old had been pushed to one side at the Belgian side and was told two weeks prior to the end of the transfer window he would be allowed to leave, which is when Everton came in with a loan offer.
However, on the 7th of September, when everyone thought it was pretty much done, FIFA blocked the transfer.
Speaking to Sport Foot in Belgium, Odjidja said: “The transfer was registered four minutes too late. Had I signed for Everton a day earlier, my career would be completely different. On the last day of the window, I was ready to sign somewhere.
“Five minutes before midnight, my agent got the green light. I signed a blank contract. I didn’t even know how much I’d earn or how long I’d be staying. We had to talk with Everton about that. Later, I learnt that someone had deliberately blocked my transfer.”
There is no indication as to who put a spanner in the works, but the failed transfer forced Odjidja to stay at Club Brugge for an extra two years before he joined Norwich for £4.25m in 2014.
Now playing for Legia Warsaw in Poland, the 28-year-old has rediscovered the joys of football, and has even been linked with a return to Belgium, as a replacement for Youri Tielemans at Anderlecht, as he tries to rebuild his career.
Still, who knows what would have happened had he been allowed to play in the Premier League for Everton and developed under David Moyes?
