5 players who were sold for ridiculously cheap fees

Transfers in football are an important business and getting the most out of the transfer market is one of the key areas to succeeding as a club and as a manager. Overpay for a player who turns out to be a flop and it can not only cause embarrassment, but it could also cause major damage to the prospects of a season.

Sometimes though, for one reason or another, great players have been sold incredibly cheaply and then gone on to tremendous feats at their new club, winning leagues and cups and ending up with far more success than their initial club figured they would. I’m not talking unknowns who turned out to be bargains here – more well-known players who fell out of favour at a club.

Here are 5 players who were sold at ridiculously cheap prices.

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#1: Eric Cantona - £1.2m

Eric Cantona went on to legendary status at Manchester United - but only cost £1.2m

It remains one of football’s all-time greatest head-scratchers. Why Leeds United decided to sell Eric Cantona to bitter rivals Manchester United for an incredibly low fee of £1.2m remains somewhat of a mystery over 25 years on. Granted, he’d only cost Leeds a paltry £900k to begin with, but even so, to sell him to United – who’d finished second to Leeds in the 1991/92 season prior to the inauguration of the Premier League – was bizarre.

Some would argue that in 1992, transfer fees were much smaller. But even by the standards of the time, £1.2m was remarkably low for a player the calibre of Cantona. While at Leeds he hadn’t quite developed the monstrous reputation he’d go on to earn at United, but he’d still been an important part of the side, and for comparisons sake United also spent £1m on Dion Dublin just months prior to signing the Frenchman.

Of course, history has shown ‘King Eric’ to be one of football’s all-time great bargains. He went on to inspire United to four Premier League titles and two FA Cups and is generally considered one of the Red Devils’ true legends. Cantona for his part has since stated that the reason Leeds allowed him to leave was due to his poor relationship with then-boss Howard Wilkinson, but even so – surely they could’ve demanded more than just £1.2m for him.

#2: Nathaniel Chalobah - £5m

Considering the climate, Watford paid a surprisingly low £5m for Nathaniel Chalobah

Although midfielder Nathaniel Chalobah hasn’t done enough at Watford to be considered a major success just yet – he looked excellent in the early part of the 2017/18 season but suffered a knee injury in September and has been shelved since – but even if he simply goes on to be a serviceable player rather than living up to his potential as a great, the fee he was signed for remains insanely cheap.

Watford paid just £5m for the former Chelsea youth star – a bizarrely low price for a number of different reasons. Firstly Chalobah is just 23 years old, meaning he’s got at least a decade ahead of him; secondly despite not playing all that much at senior level, his youth record is exemplary and he’s the most capped player in the history of England’s age group sides, and thirdly, when compared to fees for similar players in 2017, the low price is literally jaw-dropping.

Consider that in the same summer transfer window, Chelsea spent £40m on Tiemoue Bakayoko and later on, £35m on Danny Drinkwater. Davy Klaassen cost Everton £23.6m, Roque Mesa moved to Swansea for £11m, Jacob Murphy to Newcastle for £12m, and well, you get the picture.

He might not have pulled up any trees just yet, but even if he’s a moderate success, the fee for such a talented youngster remains frighteningly cheap considering the climate he moved in.

#3: Kevin de Bruyne - £18m

Chelsea probably regret only getting £18m for Kevin de Bruyne

£18m doesn’t sound like a cheap fee on the face of things, but when you consider that in the same season that saw Kevin de Bruyne sold by Chelsea to Wolfsburg for that amount – 2013/14 – the Blues also signed Andre Schurlle for the same fee, and players like Stefan Jovetic, Alvaro Negredo, Roberto Soldado and Erik Lamela all moved for more money, suddenly £18m doesn’t sound too bad at all.

At the time of course, de Bruyne was largely untapped potential, a player who’d never been given a fair chance at Stamford Bridge due to their apparent mistrust of young talent. Prior to his move to Wolfsburg he’d been a hit on loan at Werder Bremen, but was still considered surplus to requirements by Chelsea and sold for a relatively cheap fee.

Naturally, de Bruyne has had the last laugh. He turned out to be a tremendous success at Wolfsburg, breaking the record for assists in the Bundesliga in 2014/15 and being named Germany’s Footballer of the Year. A move to Manchester City for £55m followed - £37m more than the cheap fee Chelsea sold him for – and he’s now considered one of the best players in the Premier League and the world. In hindsight, Chelsea likely not only regret selling him so cheaply; they probably regret selling him at all.

#4: Wilfried Zaha - £3m

Player of the Month for April 2018, Wilfried Zaha has probably already paid back his £3m transfer fee!

Recently named Premier League Player of the Month for April 2018, Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha is supposedly a man in demand, with reports suggesting everyone from Manchester City to Tottenham and Liverpool are interested in signing him. The fee that’s been bandied around is somewhere around £50m – and if Palace were to sell for that type of money they’d be making quite the profit.

Why? Because when they re-signed him from Manchester United in the winter of 2015, they only paid a paltry £3m for the winger. That was a crazily low fee even before he’d re-established himself at Palace given United initially paid £10m to bring him over from Selhurst Park. Of course at United, Zaha was never given a fair chance under David Moyes despite being highly rated, and he only played two Premier League games for them.

Since he’s moved back to Palace though, he looks like the bargain of the century. His amazing performances this season – 8 goals and 3 assists in Premier League action – have largely helped keep Palace in the Premier League and that alone has probably more than paid back his tiny transfer fee. Realistically, United are probably kicking themselves that they let the Ivory Coast international move for such a cheap amount.

#5: Teddy Sheringham - £3.5m

Why Tottenham sold Teddy Sheringham to Man United for such a low fee remains a mystery

Of all the current Premier League clubs right now, Tottenham probably have the best reputation for getting their money’s worth when it comes to buying and selling players. They never seem to let a player go for a cheap price, and always somehow manage to pick up bargains – Christian Eriksen for instance only cost £11m when he was signed in 2013. In the past though, they were guilty of letting a true great leave for an incredibly small fee. Step forward Teddy Sheringham.

By the summer of 1997 Sheringham had spent 5 seasons at Tottenham and the forward had always given a great return in terms of goals, even as he eased into his 30’s. But he hadn’t actually won any trophies at Tottenham and that didn’t look like changing, and so he angled for a move to Manchester United, perennial contenders for the Premier League title.

Quite why Tottenham sold him for such a small fee of £3.5m though is a massive question mark. At 31 it was suggested by some that his best days were behind him, but realistically Sheringham was the kind of player who was more brains than physicality and so his age didn’t really matter all that much.

Of course, he was a massive success at Old Trafford, where he won the Premier League three times and the Champions League once, and was also named PFA Player of the Year in 2001. Given the same transfer window saw the likes of Jon Dahl Tomasson, Dean Holdsworth and Oyvind Leonhardsen move for similar fees, surely Tottenham could’ve squeezed United for more cash for Teddy.