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#3 Chelsea - €1.47 billion
Backed by the magic hat of Roman Abramovich, Chelsea are still cruising despite having spent in excess of €250 million in the 2020 summer transfer window alone. The Blues have not shied away from breaking the bank since the Russian billionaire took over.
They are currently the champions of Europe. They have also won the Premier League twice in the last decade. Suffice to say, a lot of that money has been well spent but they have misfired as well.
Goalkeeper Kepa Arizzabalaga and striker Alvaro Morata were brought in for a combined sum of about €145 million. While Morata flopped and left the club, Arrizzabalaga is still fighting to restore his reputation.
The Blues broke their transfer record by signing Kai Havertz from Bayer Leverkusen for €80 million last summer. Christian Pulisic was signed for €64 million. Jorginho, Timo Werner and Ben Chilwell were all signed for sums in excess of €50 million e.
Mateo Kovacic cost them €45 million and Hakim Ziyech was roped in for €40 million. The list goes on and on but you get the gist.
#2 Barcelona - €1.47 million
Arguably the club with the most number of big-money flops, Barcelona's spending in the last decade is a reflection of how poorly the club was being managed. They did rake in around €222 million through the sale of Neymar. But they squandered that and much more in signing players who weren't a good fit for the club.
Philippe Coutinho was signed from Liverpool for €145 million. Barcelona spent €135 million on Ousmane Dembele. Both players have failed to offer much of note since arriving and are tipped to be offloaded this summer. Antoine Griezmann was signed for €120 million and the jury is still out on whether he has lived up to his billing.
Signing Neymar initially from Santos had cost Barcelona €88 million. Midfielder Frenkie De Jong, who looks set to have a bright future at Barcelona, came for €86 million. Luis Suarez was signed from Liverpool for €81.72 million. Barcelona spent €60 million on Miralem Pjanic, who proved to be yet another big-money flop.
#1 Manchester City - €1.51 billion
Manchester City's transformation into a Premier League juggernaut has cost an insane amount of money. They've outspent every single club in Europe in the last decade and they have the results to show for it. The Champions League title remains elusive but you can't rebuff the argument that they are pretty close.
The Abu Dhabi Group have remained determined to give Pep Guardiola the money he needs to build a team that can dominate Europe. One great thing about Manchester City is that most of their signings have been carefully curated and brought in.
It speaks a lot about a club's recruitment policies and structure when all of their most expensive signings have been hits. Kevin De Bruyne is arguably one of the greatest Manchester City players of all time. He was signed for €76 million in 2015.
Ruben Dias, who won the Premier League Player of the Year Award in the 2020-21 season, was signed from Benfica in 2020 for €68 million. Riyad Mahrez has been a vital cog in Guardiola's setup and he was signed from Leicester City for €67.8 million in 2018.
Joao Cancelo is one of the best right-backs in the world and City spent €65 million to secure his services. Aymeric Laporte, Raheem Sterling and Rodri were all signed for sums in excess of €60 million.
Benjamin Mendy, Kyle Walker, John Stones, Leroy Sane and Bernardo Silva were all roped in for sums in excess of €50 million. Yes, Manchester City do spend heavily but they do it wisely as well.
