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3. Exequiel Palacios, River Plate to Bayer Leverkusen, €17 million
Following in the illustrious footsteps of Ze Roberto, Arturo Vidal, and Charles Aranguiz, Exequiel Palacios is the latest exciting young midfielder from South America to make his bow on the European stage at Bayer Leverkusen. Signed from River Plate, the 21-year-old Palacios is a versatile central midfielder who can play in front of the center backs, in the middle of the park, and just behind the strikers with equal aplomb.
Palacios is no stranger to the spotlight - he was handed his senior debut by River Plate in November 2015, just a month after turning 17. By the 2018-19 season, he was an established first-team regular and even earned his first senior call-up to the national side in August 2018.
All told, Palacios contributed 10 goals and 11 assists from midfield in 77 competitive outings for River Plate, winning the Copa Argentina three times, as well as the Copa Libertadores in 2018. He will be looking to bring that winning mentality to Germany, helped by the fact that he will be greeted by the familiar face of his countryman Lucas Alario at Leverkusen, with whom he spent two years at River Plate.
