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#7 Marko Arnautovic - €25 million (2019)
Marko Arnautovic is one of those players who felt his talents better suited Chinese football than in Europe. After scoring 22 goals in 65 appearances for West Ham United, the Austrian departed the East London club in the summer of 2019.
Chinese Super League Shanghai Port landed the then 30-year-old, shelling out €25million for the player. Arnautovic scored 20 goals in 39 appearances for the Chinese team before returning to Europe after two years.
He currently plays for Bologna, but doesn't appear to be the same player he once was. The Hammers might feel pretty good about churning out reasonable money for Arnautovic when the time was right.
#6 Samuel Eto'o - €27 million (2009)
Samuel Eto'o is one of the greatest strikers of the 21st century, but made some questionable transfer moves during his career.
After being a hit with Barcelona, Inter Milan signed him in 2009, and the player flourished underJose Mourinho. In his debut campaign in the blue half of Milan, he won the continental treble, playing a key role in winning the UEFA Champions League trophy. That made him the first player to win the continental treble with different clubs in successive years.
Eto'o performed just as well in his next campaign with Inter, so it didn't make sense when he departed the Nerazzurri in 2011. What was even more odd was that the then 30-year-old signed for little-known Russian side Anzhi Makachkala for €27 million. Anzhi had finished a lowly 11th in the Russian Premier League in their previous campaign.
Eto'o went on to score 36 goals in 73 games for the Russian club. but few could understand his reasons for joining Anzhi. He later returned to play in Europe's top-five leagues (Chelsea, Everton, Sampdoria) before retiring in 2019.
Anzhi might argue they got their money's worth, but the Nerrazzuri can also make the same case, given their precarious finances at that time.
#5 Diego Milito - €28 million (2009)
Diego Milito is arguably one of the best signings in Inter Milan history. Jose Mourinho wanted to win big titles with the San Siro club, so he needed an exemplary centre-forward to lead his line. He signed Samuel Eto'o and Milito, who had scored 60 goals in 94 appearances for Genoa.
It was admirable how the Nerrazzuri paid a whooping €28 million for the then 30-year-old, despite Milito having little experience of playing at a big club. However, the move paid rich dividends. The striker played a key role in their continental treble in 2010, scoring 30 times across competitions. He scored twice in the 2-0 victory against Bayern Munich in the Champions League final.
Although his strike partner Eto'o left the club in 2011, Milito spent a stellar five years with the Nerazzurri, bagging 75 goals and 31 assists and winning six titles.
In 2014, the Argentinian international joined boyhood side Racing Club before retiring a few years later. The gifted striker is still remembered fondly by Inter fans for his contributions during some tough times for the club.
#4 Anthony Modeste - €29 million (2018)
Anthony Modeste had the potential to be a big star, but never really realised his optimum potential. The Frenchman had the silky skills of most players from his country, but his attitude was a problem. After impressing at multiple French clubs and Bundesliga side 1899 Hoffenheim, FC Koln signed the striker.
He was very useful to them for a couple of years, netting 45 times, after which they decided to loan him out to Chinese Super League club Tianjin Tianhai. The East Asian club signed the 30-year-old permanently for €29 million in July 2018. However, the move never worked out, and there were considerable problems between him and the Chinese club.
In August 2018, the centre-forward went AWOL, and returned to FC Koln later in the year. The German club were happy to sign him back on a free transfer as Modeste was in the midst of suing the East Asian side, who, in turn, counter-sued. Thus, it was an odd transfer, but the Bundesliga club might only care about the profit they turned on a player who continues to play for them.
