There are two ways to build a football team. Either the club splurges on the transfer market and assembles a squad of the very best players (while simultaneously adhering to Financial Fair Play regulations) or they lay the foundation years in advance to train youngsters and breed the type of players that will eventually be the perfect fit for their system. A select few clubs have successfully managed to do a bit of both to form a winning team.
Players are now traded like commodities and clubs that manage to both develop and improve their market value deserve plaudits. We look at the 10 best clubs in Europe’s top five leagues that have managed to that with their current squads.
Note: Data courtesy of CIES Football Observatory and Transfer Markt. Market value does not reflect actual transfer fee which is bound to be inflated.
10) AS Roma: Increased by €203m
Expenditure: €201m
Value: €404m
For far too long AS Roma have fallen short of winning the Italian Serie A title. Forever in the hunt, the club from the Eternal City just never had what it takes in the final stretch. Ever since their Serie A title win in 2000/01, they have finished second eight times. This season, too, they find themselves in second place – a point behind Juventus who have a game in hand – with a major chunk of the season left to play
In their current squad, they have the likes of Edin Dzeko, Mohamed Salah, Konstantinos Manolas and Radja Nainggolan to thank. Currently, Nainggolan is their most valuable player at £29.8m while both Salah and Manolas are valued at £25.5m and £23.8m.
Diego Perotti, who was bought for £7.7m, has seen his value increase to £15.3m while Alessandro Florenzi, signed for £1m in 2012 is now valued at £18.7m!
9) Southampton: Increased by €221m
Expenditure: €182m
Value: €403m
The Saints had been doing reasonably well after gaining promotion to the Premier League in 2012 and have seen steady progress in the years since. They finished 14th in their first season back in the top division and followed it up with top half finishes of eighth, seventh and sixth in the last three years.
Under the guidance of stalwarts such as Mauricio Pochettino and Ronald Koeman, there seemed to be hope in spite of other clubs treating Southampton like a shopping destination for their players (hello, Liverpool). This season has seen them struggle under Claude Puel and they currently lie in 11th place.
Dusan Tadic is currently the club’s most valuable player at £14.5m followed closely by centre-back Virgil van Dijk at £13.6m. The club also has other valuable players who are also targets for top clubs such as England goalkeeper Fraser Forster, full-back Ryan Bertrand and Jay Rodriguez whose value has risen considerably following his return from injuries in seasons past.
8) Napoli: Increased by €228m
Expenditure: €200m
Value: €428m
Napoli are another Italian club that have failed to capitalise on the potential of a good squad in recent years. There was a time when the trio of Edinson Cavani, Marek Hamsik and Ezequiel Lavezzi were lighting up Serie A before Gonzalo Higuain joined and set a few personal records. But those days are long gone and even then they never finished better than second. The club have not won a league title in 27 years and find themselves four points behind Juventus having played a game more this season.
After losing Cavani, Lavezzi and Higuain, club skipper Marek Hamsik is now their most valuable player at £34m – a £30m increase in market value since they signed the Slovak midfielder in 2007. Defender Kalidou Koulibaly (£25.5m) and winger Lorenzo Insigne (£21.3m) are the other two players who are valued at more than £20m.
Dries Mertens, the club’s top scorer this season, has also seen an increase in his transfer value and is now valued at £17m.
7) Liverpool: Increased by €237m
Expenditure: €356m
Value: €593m
Once a domestic power and European superpower, the Anfield club has seen better days. Since their second place finish in 2008/09, they have finished in the top four only once more – the season Steven Gerrard let it slip. They have never won the Premier League either.
But under new boss Jurgen Klopp, they seem to have made some sort of progress. Without midweek European matches to clutter their schedule, the Reds have managed to get back in the top four for the time being.
The two Brazilians in attack – Roberto Firmino and Philippe Coutinho (both £29.8m) – are currently their most valuable players. Of course, if Liverpool did sell them, they would easily cost double that price considering they are contracted to the club till the summer of 2020.
Other players whose market values have risen include Jordan Henderson (£23.8m), Sadio Mane (£25.5m) and Georginio Wijnaldum (£18.7m). Again, they will ot be sold so cheap.
6) Arsenal: Increased by €279m
Expenditure: €381m
Value: €660m
Nobody has mastered the art of developing players and selling them at profit and still managing to compete at the highest level more than Arsene Wenger. The Arsenal boss had his hands tied in the last decade after the move to the new stadium but has now received funds to spend big and build a team with world class players again.
Qualifying for the Champions League every season is no mean feat and Wenger managed to do so on a shoestring budget compared to the Premier League elite. And he did so with players he trusted, nurtured and developed at the club even if the loyalty was not always repaid.
It comes as no surprise that their recent acquisitions are still their most valuable. Alexis Sanchez (£46.8m) and Mesut Ozil (£42.5m) would be valued much more if they sign the contract extension. Both their deals run out in 2018.
Other players who have seen a remarkable rise include Aaron Ramsey who is valued at £29.8m after he was signed for just £5m and Hector Bellerin (valued at £17m after signing him for less than half a million). Laurent Koscielny is valued at £18.7m.
5) Real Madrid: Increased by €286m
Expenditure: €635m
Value: €921m
Always criticised for inflating the transfer market and breaking transfer records by the half-dozen, it is safe to say that Real Madrid do know what they are doing. The club is a success both on the field and commercially. Two Champions League titles in the last three seasons underline that point.
The club is guilty of spending big but they do sell big when they get the chance too. Two of the top three world record signings Cristiano Ronaldo (£93.5m) and Gareth Bale (£76.5m) are understandably still their most valuable players. One must note that although Bale cost £86m, his market value at the time was only £55m – which shows how hard it is to bargain with Spurs chairman Daniel Levy.
Three other players are valued at more than £50m – James Rodriguez (£59.5m), Karim Benzema and Toni Kroos (both £51m). Other valuable players include Luka Modric (£42.5m), Alvaro Morata (£34m) and Sergio Ramos (£34m).
4) Leicester City: Increased by €354m
Expenditure: €130m
Value: €484m
One of the greatest fairy tale stories not just in football but all sport, Leicester City’s story will be told for generations to come. Overcoming 5000/1 odds to win the Premier League after miraculously avoiding relegation the previous season, Claudio Ranieri will forever be remembered as the man who made it happen.
The Foxes lost only three games last season as they won the league by 10 points. While they did leak goals, it was thanks to Riyad Mahrez and Jamie Vardy that they simply scored more than the opposition. Mahrez is still the most valuable player at £25.5m (he was signed for £400K) while Vardy is now valued at £17m (he was signed for £1m).
Other players who have seen a major rise in market value include Islam Slimani (£21.3m) and Ahmed Musa (£15.3m).
3) Atletico Madrid: Increased by €497m
Expenditure: €199m
Value: €696m
Atletico Madrid did well to challenge the duopoly in the Spanish La Liga by winning the league title in 2013/14. For far too long, Real Madrid and Barcelona had reduced the league to a two-horse race with the rest of the pack simply fighting for pride and third place.
Diego Simeone deserves a lot of credit for the way the Rojiblancos upset the established order in Spain. However, he was still unlucky on the Champions League front, losing to arch rivals Real in the 2014 and 2016 finals. But it was his squad built on guts and massive cojones that now sees everyone talk about the big three in La Liga.
Among his prized assets is Antoine Griezmann, a player he signed for £25m, who is now valued at £68m. The Ballon d’Or finalist has done well for himself after making the step up from Real Sociedad and he is now one of the most sought-after strikers in Europe.
Other valuable players include midfielder Koke (£51m), defenders Diego Godin (£34m) and Jose Gimenez (£25,5m), Jan Oblak and Saul Niguez (both £29.8m) and highly rated winger Yannick Carrasco (£25.5m) – all players who were either products of the youth system or signed for transfer fees that are paltry compared to their current value.
2) Tottenham Hotspur: Increased by €525m
Expenditure: €274m
Value: €799m
Yet another English club that has failed to win anything of note is Tottenham Hotspur and they, too, seem to suffer a dip in form when it matters most. Last season saw the Spurs run Leicester close in the title race before falling away at the end, even allowing derby rivals Arsenal to leapfrog them on the final day of the season.
Under Mauricio Pochettino, the club have made the step up from flirting with the idea of making the top four to actually qualifying for the Champions League. But their priorities have also been under the scanner after failing to progress past the group stage, preferring to concentrate on the league instead.
The rise of Harry Kane has been instrumental to Spurs’ progress in the Premier League and the Golden Boot winner is their most valuable player at £34m. Considering they paid absolutely nothing for him, the youth product has repaid the club by averaging 30 goals a season in the last two campaigns.
Other players who have only seen their value rise include Christian Eriksen (£26.4m), Toby Alderweireld (£23m) and Erik Lamela (£22.1m). Dele Alli, signed for £5m is now worth at least £17m (or £50m in Levy’s books).
1) Barcelona: Increased by €586m
Expenditure: €485m
Value: €1,071m
Arguably the most successful club of the past decade, Barcelona have reaped the dividends of their esteemed youth academy – La Masia. Their squad is a rich mixture of players raised within the club and signings who have seamlessly dovetailed with the philosophy of the club.
To understand how their squad’s value has more than doubled, one need look no further than five-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi. Signed as a teenager for free back in 2000, the Argentine is now one of the most valuable players in the world and is rated at £102m.
He is closely followed by his partners in the famed MSN trio – Neymar (£85m) and Luis Suarez (£76.5m). Other players who made the step up include Sergio Busquets (£51m), Ivan Rakitic (£42.5m) and Gerard Pique (£34m). Although Andres Iniesta’s value has dropped in recent years (now £25.5m), he was also a product of the system and hence gives the club a handsome profit even if he leaves the club.
Also read: 10 most expensive players in the transfer market today - as determined by statisticians
