2016 was the year that saw the first ever bid over €100 million pounds with Paul Pogba leaving Juventus for former club Manchester United. The Frenchman’s deal broke Gareth Bale’s transfer fee that Real Madrid paid Tottenham Hotspur.
With the influx of Asian money, almost all of Europe’s giants are engaging in bidding wars unlike ever before. And while some of these deals go through, a lot of deals collapse for whatever reasons.
Here's looking at five such failed bids that could've happened:
#5 Paulo Dybala to Barcelona
The fact that Paulo Dybala’s goals were directly responsible for eliminating Barcelona from the UEFA Champions League just makes this rumour that much more sour. The Argentine forward is arguably one of the most sought-after players in the world and the Catalans wanted him before he could blossom into the kind of player he is today.
Luis Enrique’s side reportedly bid in the region of €32 million to try and sign him in the summer of 2016 – doubling what Juventus paid for him the previous summer when they got him from Palermo.
"Juventus rejected an offer from Barcelona for me," Dybala confirmed. "It was a big offer and that means I'm an important player for the club and I have to thank them for that. It is difficult to reject these kinds of offers.
"What I have clear is that I'm at one of the best clubs in the world and I'm happy. If one day I decided to leave, it would only be for the good of the club and not for personal interests."
#4 Toni Kroos to Manchester United
Toni Kroos and Manchester United have been in touch for a few years now teasing each other close to and during the transfer windows. The German is adamant to make a successful living in Real Madrid but sees the kind of money on offer at Old Trafford – and the chance to work under Jose Mourinho – as ripe carrots.
Jose Mourinho is supposedly a big fan of the German and wants to place him alongside Paul Pogba in a two-man pivot in the centre of the field. The Manchester club reportedly bid €37 million in the summer of 2016 for the former Bayern Munich man.
Should the deal have gone through, it’d have been twice in his career that the German moved for fees that didn’t live up to the quality he oozes on the pitch. Now, with a new contract and the wholehearted trust of his teammates, Kroos is likely to see out the remaining of his senior years at the Bernabeu.
#3 Kylian Mbappe to Manchester City
Pep Guardiola and Manchester City were adamant to sign a then-17-year-old Kylian Mbappe from AS Monaco last summer. The teenager was yet to string together 10 senior appearances for the club and City were bidding silly money – a testament to the kind of rare talent he possesses.
Reports claimed that Manchester City went as high as €40 million to sign Mbappe last summer and after being told that the bid was to be turned down did they move on to sign their current young striker Gabriel Jesus.
Barcelona, Real Madrid, Arsenal and Manchester City were the four leading candidates to sign Mbappe in the summer. Now, however, with his explosive turn of form and his rising maturity, clubs will need to bid in excess of double of what the Citizens did just to get into the game.
#2 Diego Costa to Atletico Madrid
Chelsea’s Diego Costa was reportedly extremely close to sealing a move that saw him return to his former club, Atletico Madrid. The Spanish striker has been a success at the West London club but his relationship with Jose Mourinho was seemingly the tick that drove him towards reconsidering his future at the club.
Antonio Conte has admitted that Costa was close to a move back to the La Liga giants but with the club failing to find a suitable replacement in time ensured that the deal had to be postponed by at least a year.
Atletico Madrid reportedly bid as high as €47.8 million to bring back the Spanish striker to the club. This summer, however, with Chelsea showing interest in bringing one of their former stars in Romelu Lukaku, it might finally be the time Costa heads back.
#1 Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to Arsenal
Arsenal’s search for a striker reportedly led them straight to Borussia Dortmund’s all-action forward, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The Gabon international has been one of Europe’s finest strikers in the past few years and was close to making the switch to join the Premier League giants.
Italian agent, Vincenzo Morabito, confirmed that Arsenal had indeed bid for the former St Etienne man in the summer. "Sometime ago, I called Zork, Dortmund’s director of football, to talk about Aubameyang (on behalf of Napoli), but the ‘no’ was absolutely categorical," he said.
"I know that this summer, Arsenal offered €90 million for Aubameyang, but Borussia didn’t want to hear anything about it."
That kind of fee does raise eyebrows, especially when it comes from Arsenal – a club known to be extremely shrewd in the transfer market. But should it have gone though, the Gunners wouldn’t be in the kind of predicament they are in right now.
