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#3 Ignazio Abate - €8 million
Sexy, handsome, beautiful. Ignazio Abate often landed himself on lists that were constructed on those adjectives. But 448 appearances at club level were enough to prove that the Italian was admired not only because of his looks but also because of his on-field displays.
Abate had to stay strong and put up a fight to become a regular at AC Milan, his one true love. After five consecutive loan spells and 80 appearances in Serie B, he found himself settling into the side. He was a part of the team for 10 seasons and called his time in 2019 while he was still valued at €8 million.
As a right-back, his pace and directness were two of his best attributes and helped him thrive in Serie A. He won the Italian top-flight with Milan in 2011 and also two Supercoppa Italia titles. Abate was also capped 22 times for Italy.
#2 Willy Sagnol - €9.5 million
When he signed for Bayern Munich from AS Monaco, Willy Sagnol was bought for a price-tag of €7.7 million. Interestingly, when he was retiring in 2009, aged 31, he was valued at €9.5 million in the market.
The France international benefitted immensely from the move as he added substantial trophies to his cabinet.
He was a regular in the Bayern Munich side for seven years after joining in 2000. There were evident changes in Sagnol's style of playing when he moved to Germany.
For French clubs Saint Ettiene and AS Monaco, Sagnol was more concerned with defending the rearguard, but with the Bavarians he was more attack-minded.
The Frenchman never registered a goal contribution until he joined the German giants and in those seven years he stacked up eight goals and 50 assists. Of the many titles he won, the Champions League of 2001 and five Bundesliga titles stand out.
He was the first choice right-back for the France team as well and won the Confederations Cup twice. Sagnol was also an important part of France's 2006 World Cup runner-up team.
#1 Philipp Lahm - €11 million
Nicknamed the 'Magic Dwarf', Philipp Lahm was among the most genius brains to play the game. In his highly decorated career that spanned over 15 years, Lahm won it all with Bayern Munich. The right-back was a great reader of the game and anticipated things at quite an astonishing pace.
He was technically gifted, humble and no-nonsense at all. In fact, he never received a red card in his entire career! The former Germany captain was considered the benchmark for defenders by many and a personality one could learn a lot from.
Lahm was as versatile as they came. He filled in at left-back when needed, played as a central midfielder in Pep Guardiola's system and never looked out of sorts. He captained Germany to their 2014 World Cup triumph and won 21 titles with Bayern Munich.
The Bayern Munich legend was the third most valuable player of all time at the time of his retirement. He was valued at €11 million in 2017 when he hung up his boots.
