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The Premier League is, without a doubt, the most cash-rich league in the world. Total expenditure in the English top-flight exceeding figures of £1 billion in the space of one transfer window is not uncommon these days.
With an even distribution of revenue, smaller clubs in England are now able to dish out larger sums of money, with clubs like West Ham paying £24 million for Marko Arnautovic. Bournemouth paid Chelsea £19.5 million for Nathan Ake.
Average players these days cost well in excess of £20 million. In fact, the market has become so inflated that you can only get teenagers anywhere close to a reasonable fee (even so, Kylian Mbappe is set to cost PSG an eye-popping £166 million).
But there are a few players plying their trade in the Premier League who cost their respective clubs next to nothing.
So, how would the best Premier League XI with only players with transfer fees of less than £10 million look like? Let's take a look:
Goalkeeper
Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea)
Chelsea signed a teenage Courtois for €9 million in July 2011 from Genk.
€9 million is a reasonable fee for a promising young goalkeeper, but its still got to be one of the best deals Chelsea have pulled off in recent times.
He spent that season on loan at Atletico Madrid, who signed him as a temporary replacement for the departing David De Gea. He had a pretty successful campaign, helping his team finish 5th in La Liga and win the UEFA Europa League.
His form persuaded Atleti to extend his loan for another season (and then subsequently for the 2013/14 season, as well), when they ended up winning the Copa del Rey and the UEFA Super Cup.
When he eventually returned to London, he wasted no time in establishing himself as Chelsea's number 1, ousting Petr Cech in the process.
Defence
Right-back: Joe Gomez (Liverpool)
Joe Gomez had a very shaky debut season at Anfield, but he's matured a lot under Jurgen Klopp.
The Reds paid just £3.5 million to sign him from Charlton Athletic in 2015. After being sidelined for a long time with an injury, he's become the first choice right-back whenever Liverpool play with a four-man defence. His adaptability also allows him to play at centre-back if needed.
Premier League teams signing Championship players don't always work out, but it has turned out just fine for Gomez so far.
Centre-back: Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea)
The Spanish utility man has got to be one of the most underrated players in the Premier League.
The £7 million that Chelsea paid Marseille for him back in 2012 seems to be dirt cheap now. A strong, physical, quick defender who can play anywhere across a back four, he was predominantly used as left-back under Jose Mourinho.
He even managed to keep Filipe Luis out of the first team, with the Brazilian signing for the Londoners on the back of a very impressive personal season with Atletico Madrid.
Under Conte, however, he's adapted extremely well as a ball playing centre back in a 3-4-3 or 3-5-2 formation, and is a vital cog in the Italian's rock-solid defensive system.
Centre-back: Eric Dier (Tottenham Hotspur)
Dier was another player who endured a very shaky start to life in the Premier League, before eventually becoming a regular starter for both Spurs and England.
Dier's versatility is perhaps the single biggest factor that enables Tottenham to seamlessly shift from a 4-3-3 system to 5 at the back when transitioning from attack to defence.
Even though he is primarily a midfielder, Dier's unique set of characteristics allows him to function as the prototype of the modern-day ball-playing centre-back. Absolute value for money, considering he cost Tottenham a paltry £4 million.
Left-back: Sead Kolasinac (Arsenal)
Probably not the most eye-catching signing of the summer, but in terms of value for money, the Bosnian is up there with the likes of Mohamed Salah, Alvaro Morata and Romelu Lukaku.
After spending six seasons with Schalke, Kolasinac chose to run down his contract and signed a deal with Arsenal for free, making him the Gunners' first summer signing of 2017.
His omission from the starting lineup in Arsenal's humiliating 4-0 defeat to Liverpool drew a lot of criticism from the fans, and he's been a regular first-team player since them.
His incredible physique is unusual for a fullback, and it allows him to dominate opposition attackers in a way very few left backs can. He has all the makings of a world-class defender, and he's still only 24.
Midfield
Central defensive midfielder: Emre Can (Liverpool)
The Bayern Munich academy graduate signed for Liverpool from Bayer Leverkusen for £9.75 million in 2014.
While the Turkish born midfielder primarily operates in a holding role, he sometimes ventures forward to join the attack, and does so quite impressively. He's almost always the first choice for Liverpool in midfield, and also has 20 caps for Germany at just 23 years of age.
He's been linked with both Juventus and Manchester United for a while now, and a January move to Italy seems very much on the cards.
Central midfielder: Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal)
Ramsey came through the youth ranks at Cardiff, and Arsenal had to fend off a lot of competition to sign him for £5 million in 2008.
It took him a while to get into the Gunners' first team, becoming regular only in 2011. For the incredible potential that he had as a teenager at Cardiff, some might argue that he hasn't quite hit his peak yet.
But Ramsey can provide flashes of brilliance when needed, combining his excellent technical skills with a very high work rate. He's still only 26-years-old, and has formed a good midfield partnership with Granit Xhaka this season.
Central attacking midfielder: Dele Alli (Tottenham Hotspur)
Tottenham's scouting network uncovered another gem in Dele Alli when they signed him for £5 million back in 2015. He was immediately loaned back to MK Dons for the remainder of the season, but made an instant impact after linking up with the Spurs squad in the summer.
Over roughly two and a half seasons, he has a very impressive return of 31 goals in 84 matches, with 18 of those coming last season. He's also known for having a very short temper, but he's still only 21, and will only mature further with age.
When Wayne Rooney's decline began for both club and country, Alli is quickly establishing himself as the national team captain's long-term successor, earning 22 caps in just 3 years.
Attack
Left-wing: Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool)
Coutinho's £8.5 million move from Inter Milan to Liverpool would probably fall under the category of football robbery.
Blessed with insane dribbling skills and a sniper's right foot, Coutinho's Brazilian flair has terrorised and captivated the Premier League for six seasons now.
While he hasn't hit the heights of previous seasons so far this year (thanks to Barcelona's on-and-off interest in signing him), he does have 4 goals in just 8 matches, and he hasn't yet gotten used to playing second fiddle to the front three of Mane, Firmino and Salah.
But when he gets into the groove, expect a lot more fireworks to come.
Right-wing: Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City)
Mahrez's career will probably forever be remembered as an uneventful one, with the blip on the radar being the incredible title-winning season of 2015/16.
As Leicester romped home to the most memorable title win in Premier League history, the Algerian genius guided the Foxes home with 17 goals and 11 assists.
The £450k that Leicester paid for him is less than the weekly salary of some footballers. He's still being continuously linked with moves to Arsenal and Chelsea, but he has to consider the possibility of lesser game time if he chooses to move to a bigger club.
Striker: Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Manchester United)
The Swedish striker arrived on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain after he ran down his contract at the French capital.
Having touched down in Manchester at the age of 35, he went on to become the oldest player to score 15 goals in a Premier League season with typical arrogance and showmanship.
An ACL tear would have ended the career of any other 35-year-old, but not Zlatan. He's all set to play an important role in United's chase of that elusive league title, with Mourinho confirming that his participation in the upcoming Manchester derby highly likely.
