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With fears that Dutch striker Vincent Janssen may never fulfil his potential despite plenty of backing from the fans, we take a look back at nine Tottenham Hotspur stars who didn't make the grade in the Premier League despite the Lilywhite faithful desperately wanting them to.

Sergei Rebrov

I must declare a sentimental connection with the first man on the list. I was sat behind the goal at White Hart Lane on September 5, 2000, when the little Ukrainan striker smashed home his first goal for Spurs after his £11m move from Dinamo Kiev.

He came over and roared his delight in front of my father and I and of course the other thousands of fans in the packed stand. It sparked Tottenham into a comeback from 2-0 down against Everton just before the break and they eventually won 3-2.

It heralded a bright future for the diminutive hitman after a tough first month, but things never really kicked on for him. He struggled to adapt to life in England and when George Graham was sacked, his successor Glenn Hoddle never took to him. Loan spells at Fenerbache followed before Rebrov moved on a free to West Ham and then returned to Kiev.

Jose Dominguez

The Portuguese winger had all the skills necessary to be a star but unfortunately at a time when the English game was even more physical and frenetic than it is now, his 5ft 5ins frame was not a plus.

He could beat a man, but there was rarely an end product after the defender was left behind. His big moment came against Southampton with a rocket of a goal from distance.

Dominguez was signed by Gerry Francis and also played under Christian Gross and George Graham, but never really found favour with any of them.

Goran Bunjevcevic

Any player labelled as the 'Serbian Beckenbauer' is going to bring with him plenty of excitement and some weighty expectations.

However, his first season was injury hit and then his second campaign had him playing all over the pitch as Hoddle struggled to find a place for him. Who would have thought a sweeper needed to play as a sweeper? Yet the system never allowed it.

When Martin Jol arrived it signalled the end for a player who was never strong enough to play in central defence nor mobile enough to compete in a defensive midfield role.

Helder Postiga

The Portuguese striker was heralded as one of Europe's brightest young prospect when Hoddle (yes him again) signed him in 2003. He had been part of Jose Mourinho's treble-winning Porto side.

However he never settled at Spurs with just one Premier League goal in 19 appearances, before heading back to Port in a deal that brought Pedro Mendes back the other way. Postiga has racked up the clubs in a career that has taken him to Spain, France, Italy as well as India.

Jonathan Blondel

Yet another player to struggle under Hoddle. The then 18-year-old Blondel reportedly turned down Manchester United, having had a trial there, to join Spurs and the fans believes they had the next big thing among their ranks.

The Belgian never really broke through though, making just two substitute appearances in his two years at White Hart Lane. He never grew strong enough to compete in the Premier League and although he carved out a long career with Club Brugge back in his homeland, he was rarely far from the surgeon's table with plenty of injuries.

Andy Reid

Signed as the main player in the double deal with Michael Dawson, Andy Reid was meant to be the one who starred under Martin Jol.

In the end though it was Dawson who went on to become a fans' favourite. Reid had a wand of a left foot, but his lack of mobilty counted against him - with many a cruel jibe about his waistline.

He showed glimpses of what he could do, but his first goal did not arrive until the end of the season, against Aston Villa. He lasted just 18 months at Spurs before being sold to Charlton. He stepped back up to the Premier League with Sunderland but saw out his career back at Nottingham Forest.

Stephane Dalmat

The man from Inter Milan was all set to become a Spurs star, but despite a few dazzling displays the Frenchman never fully won the confidence of David Pleat.

A reported fight with Jamie O'Hara in training didn't do him any favours and after Spurs chose not to make the left winger's move permanent he hit out at Pleat and the club.

"I had big problems with the manager and the English players," he said. "I never adapted to their mentality. It was even worse with the English players than with the manager. With some of them, we did not even talk to each other."

Adel Taarabt

The wonderkid of his day. Labelled by those behind the scenes at Spurs as the next Zidane, yet his application never matched his undoubted skill.

His first appearance after moving on loan from Lens came under Martin Jol in the 4-3 win at West Ham and he sparked the comeback, his mazy dribble winning the free-kick that Dimitar Berbatov curled home.

Spurs made his move permanent but he never fulfilled his potential, with Jol, Juande Ramos and Harry Redknapp all struggling to make him fit into their team. His positional sense and lack of desire to track back did not endear him to team-mates.

Had more success with QPR before turning out for Fulham, AC Milan, Benfica and now Genoa and at 27 the Moroccan midfielder is unlikely to ever make his mark on the game.

Roberto Soldado

Where else to finish than with the player known affectionately as 'Bobby' by his supporters and 'Nogoaldo' by his critics?

The Spaniard came as a £26m signing after scoring goals for fun at Valencia, but despite plenty of effort and a penalty in his first game, he just could not find the net regularly.

His confidence eroded ever more with every passing season until eventually, with Harry Kane exploding on to the scene, the popular player returned to Spain with Villareal.

If anyone encapsulated a player Spurs fans were desperate to success but didn't, it's Soldado. All future strikers, including Janssen, will be compared to him until they start hitting the net regularly.