The English Premier League has always been a treasure trove of world-class soccer players. Unsurprisingly, non-English powerhouses are drawn to these superstars, agreeing to pay crazy prices to prize them away from England.
At the time of writing, Atletico Madrid is pushing hard to sign Julian Alvarez from Manchester City. According to reports, Los Rojiblancos are set to splurge around £83 million ($105.37 million) to take the 2022 FIFA World Cup winner to the Spanish capital, which would make Alvarez City’s biggest sale in history. However, when it comes to the most expensive Premier League departures of this century, Alvarez is quite a long way off the top spot.
Continue reading to check out the seven most expensive Premier League exports and discover how they fared outside of England. Let’s begin!
Valuation: The Mirror
#7 Romelu Lukaku (Manchester United to Inter Milan): £60 million ($76.17 million)
Only two years after signing him from Everton, Manchester United green-lit Romelu Lukaku’s departure to Serie A side Inter Milan. The Nerazzurri paid £60 million ($76.17 million) for the Belgian’s services, making him the second most valuable departure in Red Devils’ history. In his two years at Old Trafford, Lukaku played 96 matches across competitions, scoring 42 goals.
Lukaku unlocked his best form at Inter Milan, emerging as a force to be reckoned with. Across the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons, Lukaku scored 64 times in 95 matches. His goals helped Inter Milan to the Serie A title in the 2020-21 season and a UEFA Europa League runners-up spot in 2019-20. Chelsea loved what they saw from the center-forward and paid a massive £97.5 million ($123.77 million) to bring him back to England. Unfortunately, the move has not worked out, with the Blues currently contemplating his sale for a massive loss.
#6 Luis Suarez (Liverpool to Barcelona): £70 million ($88.86 million)
In July 2014, Barcelona splurged a massive £70 million ($88.86 million) fee to sign Luis Suarez from Liverpool. Based on raw numbers, the move made perfect sense. The ex-Ajax man had scored a stellar 82 goals in only 133 appearances and almost single-handedly made the Reds title contenders. However, his biting incident in the 2014 World Cup showed him in a bad light. Due to the disciplinary sanctions, which kept him from playing until late October, many top teams, including Real Madrid, pulled out from the race to sign the Uruguayan. Barca, meanwhile, stood by him, knowing they had a brilliant player in their ranks.
Their faith paid off in the following six years, as Suarez helped Barcelona to four La Liga titles and a UEFA Champions League trophy. His telepathic understanding with Lionel Messi was a sight to behold, with the two finding each other with very little effort. Suarez emerged as one of the best players in La Liga during his time at Barcelona, scoring 195 goals and providing 113 assists in 283 games across competitions.
#5 Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United to Real Madrid): £80 million ($101.56 million)
Easily the most successful Premier League export in history, Cristiano Ronaldo left his beloved Manchester United to fulfill his destiny at Real Madrid in the summer of 2009. Madrid wanted to sign the Portuguese in 2008 itself, but Sir Alex Ferguson blocked the move. The following year, he begrudgingly allowed his favorite student to depart, with Manchester United earning a cool £80 million ($101.56 million) from his sale.
The price tag was fitting, of course, as Ronaldo had won it all during his time at Old Trafford. His heroics helped Manchester United to three Premier League titles and a UEFA Champions League trophy, and he deservedly won the 2008 Ballon d’Or.
Ronaldo was at the top of his game during his nine-year stay at Real Madrid. He shattered records left, right, and center, emerging as the club’s all-time leading scorer with 451 goals in 438 matches. Thanks to his blistering showings, which helped Madrid to four UEFA Champions League trophies and two La Liga titles, Ronaldo won four Ballon d’Or awards.
#4 Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur To Bayern Munich): £81.7 million ($103.72 million)
Arguably the greatest player to come out of Tottenham Hotspur’s academy, Harry Kane, joined Bayern Munich in a mammoth £81.7 million ($103.72 million) deal in the summer of 2023. Kane, the second-highest scorer in Premier League history, scored 280 goals and claimed 61 assists in 435 matches for the Lilywhites in all competitions between 2009-10 and 2022-23. Unfortunately, despite his best efforts, Spurs could not win even a single trophy during his time at the club.
In search of silverware, Kane joined the biggest club in German soccer. However, things did not work out the way he expected in his debut season. Kane enjoyed the best season of his career in 2023-24, scoring 44 goals and providing 12 assists in 45 games, but Bayern fell short in all competitions, finishing trophyless for the first time since 2011-12. It will be interesting to see if Lady Luck finally stands by the Englishman’s side in the 2024-25 season.
#3 Gareth Bale (Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid): £86.9 million ($110.32 million)
One of the best Premier League wingers of all time, Gareth Bale left Tottenham Hotspur for Real Madrid in then British-record £86.9 million ($110.32 million) in August 2013. The Welsh Wizard, who had scored 55 goals and provided 50 assists in 203 games for Spurs, partnered up with Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema in attack, forming one of the most fearsome attacking trios in the world.
Bale helped Los Blancos to their 10th UEFA Champions League and the Copa del Rey in his debut season, scoring in both finals. He also converted from the spot in the 2015-16 UCL final and scored a brilliant brace, which included an overhead kick, in the 2017-18 final against Liverpool. Bale slipped down the pecking order after the 2018-19 season but he had already cemented his Real Madrid legacy by then. Before leaving the Whites for Major League Soccer (MLS) side Los Angeles FC in 2022, Bale played 258 games, scoring 106 goals and providing 67 assists. He won three La Liga titles and five UEFA Champions League trophies at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.
#2 Eden Hazard (Chelsea to Real Madrid): £103.9 million ($131.9 million)
After years of to-and-fro, Real Madrid secured the services of Belgian superstar Eden Hazard from Premier League giants Chelsea. Despite having only one year remaining on his contract, Chelsea got £103.9 million ($131.9 million) for the left-winger’s services.
Having contributed to 195 goals (110 goals and 85 assists) in 352 games for Chelsea, two-time Premier League winner Hazard joined Madrid with a massive reputation. However, he never reached the level everyone knew he was capable of reaching. He received criticism for not being serious enough about his fitness and suffered a lot of injuries during his four-year stay in the Spanish capital. Before retiring in 2023, Hazard played 76 games for Madrid, scoring seven times and providing 12 assists.
#1 Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool to Barcelona): £116 million ($147.26 million)
Former Brazil international Philippe Coutinho emerged as one of the best players in the Premier League during his time at Liverpool. Joining from Inter Milan in January 2013, Coutinho played 201 games for Liverpool, chipping in with 54 goals and 43 assists. Impressed with his performances, Barcelona prized him away from Anfield Stadium for a staggering £116 million ($147.26 million) fee in January 2018.
Unfortunately, things did not go according to plan in Catalonia. After an encouraging half-season in 2017-18, during which he scored nine goals in 22 appearances, Coutinho fell off. In his first full season, he only scored 11 times and provided five assists in 54 appearances. Following the underwhelming campaign, Barcelona loaned him to Bayern Munich, where he won the Treble. He even scored twice in Bayern’s historic 8-2 routing of Barcelona in the Champions League quarter-finals. Another loan to Aston Villa followed before Barca shipped him off for good to the Villans for a £17.26 million ($21.91 million) fee.
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