This year, the Ballon d’Or nominees list features a whole host of incredibly talented, as well as handsomely paid players. The thirty shortlisted players are pretty much all universally known to football fans, but down the years, there have been those who have been in the running to win the prestigious award who haven’t been particularly well known at all.
In 2003, Tunisian Ajax right-back Hatem Trabelsi was nominated for the award. This was somewhat puzzling given in the 2002/03 season, Trabelsi’s side Ajax did not win the title, that went to PSV. He did play 26 games in the Eredivisie that season, but received no votes in the 2003 Ballon d’Or, before going onto a rather unglamorous stint at Manchester City.
2003 Ballon d’Or nominee Hatem Trabelsi was in the frame for Old Trafford
But the Tunisian found himself at another Manchester club
Trabelsi was a roving full-back, whose play drew some to compare his playing style to Lilian Thuram. In 2003, with his star rising with his nomination, he was in the frame for a move, with the then 26-year-old angling for a transfer to Manchester United.
“If it was up to me I would walk to Manchester right now to sign. When I played in Tunisia I always dreamed about coming to Europe.”
That move never materialised. Nor did a move to Tottenham three years later, as the Tunisian refused to sign a new contract with the Dutch giants. Of course, the full-back didn’t win the 2003 Ballon d’Or. That honour went to Pavel Nedved, who pipped Thierry Henry and Paolo Maldini, to the accolade. Trabelsi failed to receive a single nomination.
Not that not receiving a nomination was any disgrace, with Trabelsi being in good company, as other leading internationals, including Luis Figo, Samuel Eto’o, Patrick Kluivert, Paul Scholes and Patrick Vieira were just some of the players who failed to get a single vote.
Trabelsi made an impact at Old Trafford, but for Manchester City
The Tunisian agreed contract with no fee if he didn’t play
Trabelsi was part of the Tunisia side that won the 2004 Africa Cup of Nations. He also represented his country in three World Cups, the last of which was in 2006 in Germany. That was the year he signed for Manchester City, who were then managed by Stuart Pearce.
On the face of it, he seemed to have earned a very lucrative contract reported to be worth £15,000 for each appearance. However, he would earn no money at all if he did not play. This allegedly resulted in the Department for Employment having to contact City, to instruct them that they needed to terminate the contract because it technically meant he was not earning the minimum wage.
Trabelsi made 23 appearances for City in the Premier League and FA Cup during the 2006/07 season. He got on the score sheet in the Manchester derby, with a brilliant goal, too. Side setting Vidic, Trabelsi’s left-footed strike beats Edwin van der Sar and crashed in off the underside of the crossbar. Sadly, for City, it was a mere consolation, as they lost the game by three goals to one.
Career Stats | ||
|---|---|---|
Club | Appearances | Goals |
CS Sfaxien | 103 | 13 |
Ajax | 145 | 2 |
Manchester City | 23 | 1 |
Those 23 appearances at £15k a go would have meant a season’s salary of £345k, had that type of contract been allowed to stand. His last appearance in a City jersey came in a one-nil win over Newcastle at St James’ Park in March 2007, but that was only a five-minute cameo, coming on for Nedum Onuoha.
He was not in the squad for the following eight league games. That was it for Trabelsi, he didn’t play again after that, with his career over at the age of 30, with a lucrative deal with Al-Hilal falling through with both sides failing to agree on a contract.
Stats via Transfermarkt.