Joao Felix is on the verge of making a €120 million transfer from Benfica to Atletico Madrid. The Madrid team triggered the 19 year old second striker’s recently signed release clause. Antoine Griezmann could also enter the record books this summer. The Frenchman’s move from Atletico to Barcelona provides the cash to Diego Simeone and Atletico to spend on the aforementioned Portuguese. It is a good time to take a look at the current top 10 most expensive transfers.
Neymar tops the list as the then 25 year old moved from Barcelona to PSG for €222 million. The forward has had a somewhat injury riddled two seasons but has scored 51 goals in 58 games, in all competitions. The French team haven’t gotten much closer to their aim of winning the Champions League. The transfer is probably a B- at best.
Kylian Mbappe had everybody reaching for the Financial Fair Play rule book when he made a €180 million move to PSG, in 2017 and initially on loan. Once again PSG haven’t won more with the French international but he has provided the goals and plenty of them. His transfer is a B+.
Philippe Coutinho made a move to Barcelona from Liverpool for around €118 million. The perception of the transfer and it usefulness to the Catalans has been questionable at best. He could be on the move again this summer having been expected to provide more. Few would be willing to give this transfer anything above C.
Ousmane Dembele falls into the same category as Coutinho. His €105 million transfer from Borussia Dortmund to Barcelona was initially injury interrupted. He has scored 18 times in 65 games since 2017. Another C for this transfer.
Manchester United spent a lot to get Paul Pogba back from Juventus, years after he left to Italy for free. The €105 million was a record in 2016. United have won little since and have not adjusted to the post Alex Ferguson era. The player himself has not had a constant place in any given formation the team has played since his arrival. The expense and the return make this a poor transfer. A D is not too harsh.
Eden Hazard spent seven years at Chelsea helping the team win two Premier League titles and two Europa league titles. Often the star with a few dips in form he nevertheless was the creator and the star of the London team. His €105 million move to Real Madrid this summer is a success for both the player and his now former team. This gets an A for now because Real are getting an under 30 player with more years in him.
Cristiano Ronaldo moved from Real Madrid to Juventus for €100 million in 2018, nine years after he moved from Manchester United to Real Madrid for €94. The earlier transfer has of course been a big success and put the player fully on the map. Two La Liga titles are less than the impression one has of the recent Real Madrid. Four Champions League titles however are Ronaldo and Real Madrid’s to brag about. He moved to Juventus in 2018 hoping to replicate the Champions League success in Turin. The failure to do so can still be rectified. The transfers both get an A grade.
Gareth Bale moved from Tottenham to Real Madrid for €100 million. In his six years there he has sometimes fallen out of favour with coaches but has scored 102 goals in a total of 231 appearances. The player was not a major influence in the 2016-2017 La Liga winning season as he spent months out with an ankle injury. The Welshman provided decent returns in the four Champions League titles while at Real but he won’t be remembered as much due to Ronaldo’s contributions in the same competition and period. This transfer gets a C.
Gonzalo Higuain spent two full seasons at Juventus after moving from Napoli for €94 million. The season before moving, 2015-2016, he had been Serie A’s top scorer (aka capocannoniere) with 36 goals. He scored 24 and 16 goals in the two subsequent seasons where Juventus won the title. The transfer gets another C.
Leave a Reply