Is this in-form Stoke forward the best value signing of recent times?

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There was a lot of excitement back in the summer of 2014, when Stoke City announced the signing of Bojan Krkic, one of the hottest prospects in European football. The Spaniard had been on the radar for a number of Premier League clubs in years gone by, the most notable being Liverpool.

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So when it was revealed that Stoke had handed over €1.8million for his services, it was certainly seen by many as a coup. After a difficult first season at the Potters, Bojan has been grabbing the headlines for Mark Hughes’ side and has been very impressive so far this season. The question though is this: is Bojan one of the best value signings in recent times?

Well, the low transfer fee that Stoke paid for him would certainly suggest that, but it is worth looking at his track record to decide whether or not he is good value for money.

A product of the Barcelona youth system, Bojan burst onto the scene in 2007 for the Catalan giants. During a four year spell at the Nou Camp, he notched up 26 goals in 104 appearances, while also breaking club records by becoming first the club’s youngest player to feature in a La Liga match and also the club’s youngest goal scorer in a league match.

His impressive record was enough for Italian side Roma to part with €12million in exchange for the Spaniard’s attacking services. In his debut season in Serie A, Bojan found the back of the net seven times from 33 games.

That, though, was not enough to keep at Roma, and the following season he was shipped on loan to fellow Serie A side AC Milan. With fierce competition from fellow strikers Robinho, Mario Balotelli, Alexandre Pato, Antonio Cassano and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, playing opportunities for Bojan were few and far between. Despite that, he still managed to score three goals during his loan spell from 19 appearances.

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After a relatively disappointing spell in Italy, a return to Barcelona called for Bojan, with his former club forking out €13million to bring him back to the Nou Camp. However, after expressing a desire for more game time and with Milan and Roma both deciding against keeping the Spaniard, he was shipped straight out on loan again, this time joining Eredivisie front runners Ajax. Indeed, Bojan did earn himself some more game time, pulling on the Ajax jersey 24 times over the 13/14 Eredivisie season, but only found the back of the net four times.

With Ajax passing up the opportunity to extend his contract, Bojan returned once more to Barcelona, before joining his current team Stoke City permanently on a four year contract.

So from his history, Bojan has racked up €26.8million in transfer fees, and scored 40 goals from 180 appearances before arriving at the Britania Stadium. Looking at those figures, it would suggest that Bojan is not as good value as he first appears.

Let’s not forget that, like any striker, he will be judged on his goal scoring record, which is not too impressive for a striker who came through the ranks at one of the biggest clubs in the world, and was one of the hottest prospects in European football.

However, with him still being only 25 years old, there is still a lot of time left before Bojan hits his peak as a footballer, and he has been very impressive this season in arguably the toughest league in world football.

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Plus, when you consider that Bojan is featuring in a side who’s highest finish in the Premier League is ninth, there may not be as much pressure on him to get amongst the goals as there would be if he played for a team higher up the table, e.g. Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, even Chelsea (despite their current league position).

Let’s also not forget that, like at his other clubs, Bojan is not too high in the pecking order at Stoke City. With it being only his second season in English football, and possibly due to the knee injury he picked up last year which ruled him out for the rest of the 14/15 campaign, he has to compete with the likes of Marko Arnautovic, Mame Diouf, and Jonathan Walters for starting places.

Overall then, it seems that, for a first-team option, Bojan is possibly not one of the best value signings in recent times. However, for clubs who rotate their players or are looking for a player as cover, then Bojan is definitely a player who can be relied upon, and he does step up to the mark when called upon.

If he gets amongst the goals at a more consistent rate, then he will be incredibly good value for money, but as things currently stand he still has a fair way to go before he reaches that accolade.

Featured Image – All Rights Reserved by Tsutomu Takasu.