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In 2001, Real Madrid signed Zidane for €77.5m. This record stood for 8 years until Real Madrid signed Kaka and Cristiano Ronaldo for €67m and €94m. In 2017, Paris Saint Germain signed Neymar from Barcelona for mind blustering €222m which is the world record transfer fee for a football player.
Due to the prevalence of modern riches in football, transfer fees are inflated. As you may have noticed above, every single one of the players mentioned is a proven world beater. They have proven their worth at their respective teams. Apart from club level, they have each proven themselves at the international level.
The market is highly inflated and to get a squad player, you need to dish out at least €10m. Just one decent season in a league of lower quality is enough to warrant a hefty price tag. Not even an international call-up is needed to justify a €30m + tag. This is the most expensive XI who hadn’t made an international appearance when they were signed.
Ederson - Goalkeeper (€40m)
On 1st June 2017, Manchester City signed Brazilian goalkeeper, Ederson for €40m from Benfica. He has appeared for Brazil only once after that. Agile, courageous, energetic and physically imposing goalkeeper with excellent reflexes. He is great with the ball on his feet and is a penalty-saving specialist. He is renowned for his long kicks which find his target deep in the opposition half. Pep Guardiola loves him and he’s here to stay at Manchester City though he will have a hard time usurping Alisson from Brazil’s national team.
Clement Lenglet - Centre Back (€35.9m)
Clement Lenglet is now a Barcelona player after making a €35.9m move from Sevilla. The French centre-back has yet to appear for France but has made 52 appearances for Sevilla and 77 appearances for Nancy. At 1.86 cm, he is positionally sound, comfortable on the ball and reads the play well, all of which is necessary to be a Barcelona centre back. He has a lot of potential but will be on the bench for a while on both club and international level as he still has a long way to go to usurp Umtiti, Varane and Pique.
Aymeric Laporte - Centre back (€65m)
Another young French back on the list, Manchester City under Pep Guardiola got their man for €65m from Spanish club Athletic Bilbao. One year older than Lenglet, he has made over 160 appearances for Bilbao over a 6-year period.
At 1.91 meters, he is not the tallest centre-back, but he is powerful and can play out from the back. He is a perfect player for Pep’s style of play and was a target for Barcelona for a long time. Though he has high potential, he is injury prone and it needs to be seen if he can reach his full potential in the Premier League. He is yet to play for the senior national team.
Abdou Diallo - Centre Back (€28m)
Our third French centre-back, the Monaco academy player was signed by Borussia Dortmund from Mainz for €28m on a five-year deal on 26th June 2018. He has made only a career total of 84 appearances scoring 6 goals. He has been described as a natural leader and was the captain of the U-21 France national team. A left-footed central defender and like his compatriots he likes building from the back. He is a set piece threat at 6’ 2”, he puts his height and agility to good use. He is yet to make an appearance at the senior level.
Malcolm - Right Wing (€41m)
Malcolm was signed for €41m from Bordeaux by Ro…Barcelona. The winger who can operate as an attacking midfielder is only 21 years old, but he has made 51 appearances for Corinthians and 96 appearances for Bordeaux. He is yet to make an appearance for Brazil but has represented Brazil at the junior levels.
He was supposed to be signed by Roma with fans waiting at the airport. Barcelona swooped in at the last moment and Roma are considering legal action. He is yet to play for the senior team.
Arthur Melo - Center Midfield (€31m)
Arthur was signed by Barcelona from Gremio for €31m. The 21-year old Brazilian has made only 70 appearances in total in his career scoring 6 goals. Dubbed as the next Xavi, he is a highly technical player, high passing accuracy, find key passes and finish when needed. He is a massive talent and has already shown brightly in the preseason. He is yet to make an appearance for the senior Brazilian team.
Fabian Ruiz - Centre Midfield (€30m)
Signed for €30m from Real Betis, the Spanish midfielder is only 22 but he has made over 100 career appearances scoring 7 goals. Signed as a replacement for Jorginho, he has big boots to fill. He may not be able to be as effective as Jorginho, he is a good signing. He has caught the eye for creative as well as combative performances. He has yet to make an appearance for the senior Spanish team but has featured heavily with the U-21 team.
Richarlison - Left Wing (€45m)
This is a transfer that shook the Premier League. Everton signed relatively unknown Brazilian, Richarlison from Watford for €45m. The former Fluminese player has just played one season for Watford. He didn’t set the Premier League alight either, but Marco Silva thinks he is worth it. He made 41 appearances scoring 5 goals. He is yet to appear for the senior national team and hasn’t featured much at the junior levels either.
Alex Teixeira - Centre Attacking Midfielder (€50m)
Signed in 2016 for an astounding €50m by Jiangsu Suning from Shakhtar Donetsk after snubbing interest from Liverpool who had even placed a bid for him. The attacking midfielder has represented Brazil at the U-20 level and never at the senior level. At 28 years, it seems unlikely he ever will. He has made 74 appearances and scored 33 goals for Jiangsu. He would have been a very good signing for Liverpool and might have had a chance of getting into the senior team and unless he moves to a better league, his international career looks finished even before it has begun.
Vinicius Junior - Forward (€45m)
The next big thing, he is still only 18. Signed for €45m by Real Madrid from Flamengo on 23rd May 2017 at the age of 16. That is how good Real Madrid thinks he is. He has featured heavily with the junior international sides. Though he is only 18, he has already made 69 career appearances and scored 14 goals. He is fast, skilled and technically strong and described as a zippy left winger or second striker. Likened to Neymar, there is no doubt he will be a star in the future and a Brazilian legend.
Anthony Martial - Forward (€40m)
Amid a lot of fanfare, Anthony Martial was signed by Manchester United from Monaco for an initial €40m that could rise to 70m in 2015. He was the Golden Boy of 2015. Likened to the legendary Theirry Henry but he disagrees he feels his game is based more on power and technique rather than pace, but he is a mix of all of it. He has faltered lately at United under Jose Mourinho which cost him his place in the World Cup squad. In his last 3 years at United, he has appeared 136 times in all competitions scoring 36 goals. He has everything it takes to be a top player and will be a regular for the French team before long.
