Who should top European clubs buy if they had a huge transfer budget?

With just over a month of the ongoing season remaining, the transfer rumour merry-go-round has already started. Real Madrid have made the first big move ahead of the summer transfer window by agreeing terms with FC Portos right back Danilo. It is safe to assume that a battle to get the signature of some of Europes most coveted players will break out between some of Europes biggest clubs.So here is a list of players some of the top clubs from around Europe should go for if they have the transfer budget to do the same.Note: We have omitted FC Barcelona from the list because of the transfer ban they will be serving in the summer. We have also excluded FC Bayern Munich as they already have a well-balanced squad and are unlikely to splash the cash heavily this summer.Market Price of players have been obtained from TransferMarkt.

#1 Manchester United

Mats Hummels

Market Price: £26m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £35m

Manchester United will need experienced centre backs of better quality when they return to the Champions League next season and Hummels could be available after the eventual departure of Jurgen Klopp from Borussia Dortmund. If the German arrives on England's shores, it could also signal the end of Jonny Evans’ spell at United as the Scot has now fallen below Chris Smalling, Marcos Rojo and Phil Jones in the pecking order.

Memphis Depay

Market Price: £11m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £15m

Depay has been linked with a move to the club ever since Louis van Gaal took over and the youngster will be keen to move to a more challenging league to push his career forward. The Dutchman prefers playing down the left flank and will have to challenge Ashley Young for a starting spot which could help bring the best out of both players and help in competing on different fronts.

Gareth Bale

Market Price: £58m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £80m

Gareth Bale’s Real Madrid career is coming under fire following some erratic performances and Manchester United is one of the very few clubs that can afford the Welshman’s transfer fee. United may be tempted to play him down the left wing which brought out the best in him while he was at Spurs. But they already have options there in Young and possibly Depay as well, while on the right United are currently playing Juan Mata, who is not a natural winger and Bale would be a better fit than the Spaniard.

Nathaniel Clyne

Market Price: £9m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £15m

Van Gaal has put his faith in Antonio Valencia as a right back this season, but that is surely not a decision for the long run. The Dutchman will be keen to bring in a right back and Clyne, who is enjoying a great season, is an obvious choice. If the Englishman arrives at Old Trafford, then out of favour full back Rafael could be on his way out.

Total Expenditure: £145m

#2 Arsenal

L to R: Dybala, Rues, Cech and Schneiderlin

Paulo Dybala

Market Value: £17m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £25m

Arsene Wenger will want a new striker so that there is a more than an able player to step in if Olivier Giroud goes out of form or gets injured. Wenger is a manager who has shown incredible faith in young players and nurtured many of them into world class players and so a move to Arsenal could be beneficial to the talented Argentine. The 21-year-old already has 13 goals and 9 assists in the Serie A this season.

Morgan Schneiderlin

Market Value: £18m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £30m

The emergence of Francis Coquelin this season has given the Gunners a much-needed respite after a long period of woes due to their lack of a defensive midfielder, but it would be risky to put too much pressure on the youngster next season and rely on him alone. Therefore, Arsenal will look to snap up Schneiderlin from Southampton in the summer. If the move materializes, that could also signal the end of club captain Mikel Arteta’s career with the club with Mathieu Flamini also on his way out.

Marco Reus

Market Value: £37m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £50m

Arsene Wenger has shown that he is not afraid to splash the cash if it’s necessary by spending heavily on the likes of Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez. The Gunners have Sanchez on the right and Ozil playing in the number 10 role, so if they can get Reus, then the left side of their attack will also be equally good and the trio of Ozil, Sanchez and Reus can feed any striker and score plenty of goals. If such a signing does happen, then Theo Walcott, who is already not getting enough game time, could be on his way out of the club.

Petr Cech

Market Value: £9m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £15m

David Ospina has done quite well recently for the Gunners, but Arsenal may need someone better than the Colombian if they are to mount a serious title challenge next season. Chelsea’s long-term servant Petr Cech has been playing second fiddle to Thibaut Courtois this season and will be looking to leave Stamford Bridge and Wenger will be smacking his lips at the possibility of signing such a seasoned campaigner and it could be Wojciech Sczcesny who could make way for Cech.

New Contracts: Arsenal should also try and give new contracts to Santi Cazorla, Olivier Giroud and Francis Coquelin in the summer.

Total Expenditure: £120m

#3 Liverpool

L to R: Jenikson, Icardi, Pjanic, Pedro and Papadopoulos

Carl Jenkinson

Market Value: £5m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £10m

Carl Jenkinson has enjoyed a good season on loan at West Ham, but the 23-year-old is well below the pecking order at Arsenal with Mathieu Debuchy, Hector Bellerin and Calum Chambers ahead of him. Liverpool, on the other hand, will be without Glen Johnson next season and that leaves the inexperienced Flanagan and Manquillo as their right backs. Adding all this up, a move for Jenkinson to Liverpool will be beneficial for all parties.

Pedro

Market Value: £18m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £25m

Liverpool are in a contract negotiation dilemma with Raheem Sterling and it is possible that he could move away from Anfield. If such a scenario occurs, Liverpool should use the money from his sale more effectively than they did with the money from Luis Suarez’s sale. Pedro has been linked with a move to Liverpool and if he can find his form from the Guardiola days, then Liverpool can build a team around the Spaniard.

Miralem Pjanic

Market Value: £20m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £30m

There is no doubt that the area of the pitch where Liverpool need massive strengthening is the midfield as they will be without Steven Gerrard from the next season. Roma’s Miralem Pjanic will be a great addition to any squad, let alone Liverpool, but the only question is how well he can adjust to the Premier League, as Serie A players have struggled at Liverpool in the past.

Mauro Icardi

Market Value: £18m Estimated Transfer Fee: £25m

One of the major reasons for Liverpool’s struggles this season has been their problem with strikers. The club sold Luis Suarez and continuous injuries to Daniel Sturridge have not helped their cause either. In addition to this Mario Balotelli, Rickie Lambert and Fabio Borini have also struggled in front of goal. Inter’s Icardi was one of the players that was linked to Liverpool last summer and it is possible that Liverpool will try to snap him up in this time around.

Kyriakos Papadopoulos

Market Value: £6m Estimated Transfer Fee: £10m

Papadopoulos was one of the candidates Liverpool looked at following the retirement of Jamie Carragher, but the Greek was recovering from a serious injury and therefore Liverpool dropped the case. He is now enjoying a good season on loan at Leverkusen, but may not have a place at Schalke anymore after the arrival of Nastasic. Liverpool on the other hand will need some cover in that position as Kolo Toure’s contract expires in the summer.

New Contracts: Liverpool need to give new contracts to Raheem Sterling, Jordan Henderson, Martin Skrtel, Joron Ibe and Jon Flanagan

Total Expenditure: £100m

#4 Chelsea

L to R: Varane, Matuidi, Douglas Costa and Gaya

Raphael Varane

Market Value: £18m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £30m

Chelsea need a centre back for two reasons. Firstly; John Terry is ageing and they’ll need someone to step in very soon. Secondly; Kurt Zouma is the only back up to Terry and Cahill, and that’s a risky situation. Varane is one of the best young centre backs today and his rise to fame was under the guidance of Jose Mourinho and he will be eager to progress further under the Portuguese.

Blaise Matuidi

Market Value: £18m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £30m

Jose Mourinho has usually played Ramires alongside Matic if he deploys Fabregas in an advanced role. Even though Ramires has immense energy, he hasn’t been very impressive recently. Matuidi is another box-to-box midfielder with immense work rate and better end product than Ramires. The Frenchman would complement Nemanja Matic very well and could ship Ramiers off to another club.

Douglas Costa

Market Value: £14m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £25m

Chelsea have played Schurrle, Willian, Salah and Cuadrado on their right wing, but none of them have been able to even come close to Eden Hazard’s endeavours on the left. The Blues were interested in Douglas Costa earlier and could tempt him to move to England in the summer to try and add more goals and assists from the right side.

Jose Gaya

Market Value: £11m Estimated Transfer Fee: £15m

Chelsea purchased Filipe Luis last summer for a hefty fee, but the Brazilian has been benched for the major part of the season due to the performances of Cesar Azpilicueta. Luis will be 30 before the next season begins, after which Cheslea are usually reluctant to keep players going by their past history. If Chelsea sell Luis, they will need a player as a back up to Azpilicueta in the left-back position and the Blues have tendency of snapping up talented players at a young age.

New Contracts: Chelsea need to offer a contract extension to Cesar Azpilicueta, Branislav Ivanovic and Nemanja Matic.

Total Expenditure: £100m

#5 Manchester City

L to R: Barkley, Sterling, De Bruyne, Pogba and Kurzawa

Kevin De Bruyne

Market Value: £26m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £40m

Manchester City have an ageing squad and will be looking to revamp their squad with young talent. De Bruyne is having a dream season with Wolfsburg (14 goals and 22 assists so far) and is linked with a move back to England. The Belgian can supply more goals from the City midfield and his arrival could also lead to the departure of Samir Nasri.

Laywin Kurzawa

Market Value: £6m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £10m

City’s first choice left back Gael Clichy will be 30 before the next season and their second choice left back Aleksandar Kolarav has been known to be defensively susceptible. City have been linked with Monaco’s young French international Kurzawa as a possible replacement for one of their current left backs.

Paul Pogba

Market Value: £36m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £50m

Pogba will be one of the most coveted players in the summer of 2015. City will be eager to bring him back to Manchester, but this time in the blue of City as a possible replacement for Yaya Toure who seems to be becoming unhappy at City with each passing day and could be on his way to Internazionale.

Raheem Sterling

Market Value: £22m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £40m

Sterling’s transfer to City will make sense for two reasons. One; City need players to account for the homegrown quota as James Milner could also be on his way out of the club in the summer. Two; City need younger players to step into their attacking positions if they are to mount a title challenge again. Sterling’s arrival could also force Jesus Navas out of the club.

Ross Barkley

Market Value: £12m Estimated Transfer Fee: £25m

Barkley has been linked to City since last summer, but the transfer restriction imposed on them may have made them wait. Pellegrini has said that they’ll be looking to buy English players and the Everton man is among the best talents in England right now. If City sign Barkely, then he may have to settle for a backup role provided City also sign De Bruyne and Sterling.

New Contracts: Man City need to offer new contracts to Joe Hart, Sergio Aguero and David Silva.

Total Expenditure: £165m

#6 Real Madrid

L to RL Vietto, Sterling, De Gea, Pogba and Gaya

Jose Gaya

Market Value: £11m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £15m

Few years ago, Real Madrid spent a fortune on Fabio Coentrao, but the Portuguese has never been able to hold down a regular starting spot at Real Madrid due to form or injuries. Coentrao may move to another club in the summer in search of regular playing time and Madrid will look into young Jose Gaya as a possible understudy to Marcelo with the aim of grooming him for the future.

Paul Pogba

Market Value: £36m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £50m

Real Madrid struggled this season when Luka Modric was injured and used Khedira and Ilalramendi in place of the Croat. But Khedira is close to leaving on a free transfer and Illaramendi could also be on his way out. In these circumstances, Real Madrid will look at a high profile player to step into their midfield right away and Pogba is right up there among the world’s best.

Raheem Sterling

Market Value: £22m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £40m

Zinedine Zidane has openly admitted that Real Madrid are looking at Raheem Sterling and it is possible that they will snap up the prodigy. Even if Bale leaves, Real Madrid still have players like Isco, James Rodriguez and Jese to step in, but they will need someone else to fill the void in the squad while being good enough to warrant a spot in the starting eleven. Sterling’s versatility could also be of use to Madrid as Carlo Ancelloti likes to tweak his formation according to the need of the hour.

Luciano Vietto

Market Value: £8m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £15m

Real Madrid have relied on Karim Benzema as their striker for majority of the games, with Chicharito playing as the backup. The Mexican will leave the club after his loan spell, but Real Madrid will need someone to provide good competition to Benzema and Villarreal’s Vietto is making a name for himself this season (18 goals and 6 assists so far). Madrid could be tempted to sign him before his stocks rise even more.

David De Gea

Market Value: £18m Estimated Transfer Fee: £35m

David De Gea to Real Madrid is a story that has been going around for a while now and a transfer that is possible by all means. De Gea could be tempted to return to his country of birth and to Madrid. But for this to materialize, Real Madrid need to let Casillas go. Casillas has been subjected to heavy criticism for his performances recently and Real Madird may put sentiments aside and strengthen what is deemed to be their weakest link.

New contracts; Real Madrid need to give Luka Modric a new contract.

Total Expenditure: £155m

#7 PSG

Alexandre Lacazette

Market Value: £15m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £25m

PSG will be aiming to revamp their attack next season as Zlatan Ibrahimovic is not getting any younger and Edinson Cavani is not even close to reproducing his form from his successful Napoli days. The Paris side will be keen to add some French players to the side as well and Lyon’s Lacazette who is enjoying a great season (29 goals and 6 assists so far) should be top of their priority list. If Lacazette signs for PSG, then Cavani could be put on sale.

Angel Di Maria

Market Value: £47m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £60m

Before Di Maria signed for Man Utd, there was immense speculation that PSG wanted to sign him, but the spending cap that was imposed on them put off the move for the Argentine. But the Ligue 1 champions could be back for Di Maria in the summer. The winger could provide the French giants with more creativity in midfield, something which they have lacked in the current season. His arrival could also signal the end of Lavezzi’s PSG career.

Arturo Vidal

Market Value: £31m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £45m

There is a great deal of interest in PSG’s midfielders like Marco Verratti and Blaise Matuidi, so Blanc and co may have to look at alternate options to fill in the void. Arturo Vidal is one of the hottest properties in the transfer market and PSG can afford to spend lavishly on him, given their financial prowess and any money they can or will make out of the sale of their high profile players.

New Contracts: PSG need to tie down Marco Verratti and Thiago Silva to new contracts.

Total Expenditure: £130m

#8 Juventus

L to R: Jovetic, Ramires, Verratti and Darmian

Stevan Jovetic

Market Value: £15m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £25m

Jovetic’s Manchester City career has gone from bad to worse after he was omitted from City’s Champions League squad following the arrival of Wilfried Bony. The 25-year-old may need to move in search for regular football and a return to Serie A, where he rose to fame, could do him a world of good. Juventus are likely to lose Carlos Tevez in the summer and Fernando Llorente has not been in great form, so they will need a new striker to move forward.

Marco Verratti

Market Value: £22m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £35m

Juventus have some of the best and most wanted midfielders in their team so they will need to find a replacement for these players if the leave in the summer. Verratti, who is Italian and a Juventus fan, could be tempted to return to Italy and improve his skills under the guidance of the veteran Andrea Pirlo. If Juventus sign Verratti, then he could walk straight into the starting eleven in place of one of their departing players.

Ramires

Market Value: £18m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £25m

There are very few players who do the role of a box-to-box midfielder and Arturo Vidal is one of them. If Juventus lose him in the summer, they will need someone with very good stamina to aid players like Pirlo and Marchisio. Ramires is famous for his incredible stamina and Juventus will look to sign him if the need arises.

Matteo Darmian

Market Value: £6m Estimated Transfer Fee: £10m

Juventus have one of the oldest squads among the Top European clubs and one of their thirty plus players is right back Stephan Lichtsteiner. The Swiss International is 31 already and the Old lady will want to get in a replacement for the full back before it’s too late. Matteo Darmian is quickly making a name for himself and despite interest from other clubs, he could be tempted to stay in Italy and that too in the same City if Juventus can cough up the funds.

Total Expenditure: £95m

#9 Atletico Madrid

Edinson Cavani

Market Value: £36m Estimated Transfer Fee: £45m

Atletico Madrid have a history of great strikers and Edinson Cavani could be next in line if Mario Mandzukic leaves the club in the summer after rumours of him being unhappy. Cavani has been playing out of position at PSG to accommodate Ibrahimovic and the Uruguayan would jump at the chance of playing in his preferred position. Cavani’s form has dipped a little since joining PSG and Simeone could be the perfect man for him to go to and reclaim his goal scoring prowess.

Filipe Luis

Market Value: £13m Estimated Transfer Fee: £15m

It was only in the last summer that Filipe Luis left Atletic Madrid to join Chelsea, but the Brazilian has been benched in favour of Azpilicueta for most of the games. Luis will be 30 before the next season starts and will be hoping to get regular playing time before age starts to catch up to him. Simeone will be happy to resign Luis if there is an opportunity as Siqueira and Ansaldi are no match for Luis.

Ezequiel Lavezzi

Market Value: £12m Estimated Transfer Fee: £15m

Lavezzi is also falling out of favour at PSG and could be on his way out in the summer. The Argentine may not be as good as he was during his Napoli days, but if the manager can show more faith in him, he can prove to be a shrewd signing. Atletico are not well stocked with wingers and strikers and signing Lavezzi can help them in adding quality and squad depth.

New contracts: Atletico Madrid need to offer new contracts to Antoine Griezmann and Koke.

Total Expenditure: £75m

#10 Borussia Dortmund

L to R: Volland, Kramer, Mustafi and Dybala

Kevin Volland

Market Value: £15m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £25m

Dortmund are a side who are going to lose many of their first team players in the summer and they will need good players to replace them. Hoffenheim’s Volland is young, versatile and a very good player and Dortmund could sign him as a replacement for Marco Reus, who is subject to interest from many European clubs.

Paulo Dybala

Market Value: £17m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £25m

One of the major problems for Dortmund this season has been their difficulty in replacing Lewandowski. The German side signed Immobile and Ramos to account for the Pole’s goals and work rate, but both have struggled to perform. If Dortmund are to reclaim their Champions League position next season, then they will need to sign a new striker. Palermo’s Dybala will be a great addition to the squad, but it will be a difficult task to sign the Argentine without the added incentive of Champions League football.

Christoph Kramer

Market Value: £9m; Estimated Transfer Fee: £15m

Christoph Kramer is currently enjoying another good season on loan at Borussia Monchengladbach, following which he will return to his parent club Bayer Leverkusen. Leverkusen already have the likes of Bender, Rolfes and Reinartz in midfield, so Kramer could be persuaded to move with the promise of regular first team football. Kramer could fit into the Dortmund side and prove to be a replacement for Ilkay Gundogan who is a target for many clubs.

Shkodran Mustafi

Market Value: £9m Estimated Transfer Fee: £15m

Dortmund are likely to lose their captain Mats Hummels in the summer and they’ll need to sign a new centerback to replace him. German International Shkodran Mustafi who plays for Valencia is a realistic target for Dortmund and he could be swayed to move to his country of birth.

New Contracts: New contacts for Mats Hummels, Ilkay Gundogan, Pierre Emerick Aubameyang and Sven Bender.

Total Expenditure: £80m