Dele Alli, Eden Hazard… and Sadio Mane: The Premier League stars who could break the £100m transfer mark
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IN the space of a year, the most expensive fee for a footballer has shot up from £89million to £198million after Neymar’s transfer from Paris Saint-Germain.
That fee has meant fees for players are higher than ever, and it surely won’t be long before the Premier League sees its first £100million player.
Our friends at Football Whispers look at ten players from England’s top flight who could go for that massive sum.
Dele Alli (Tottenham Hotspur)
If a 21-year-old forward had 30 goals in a top flight in Europe, the talk would be of him being one of the hottest striking prospects around.
Alli already has that amount for Tottenham, grabbing 30 goals in 73 Premier League games, a record that is very impressive for a midfielder.
Since arriving from MK Dons in 2015, he has proven himself as one of the most exciting young prospects in Europe, and it would take a huge offer for Daniel Levy and Spurs to even consider selling him.
Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur)
The Tottenham striker is every bit as valuable as Alli to Tottenham, winning the Premier League Golden Boot in 2015/16 and 2016/17 and being named in the PFA Team of the Year for the past three seasons.
With 78 goals in 119 Premier League games, Kane has plenty of admirers, including Chelsea boss Antonio Conte.
“If I had to buy one striker I would go to Kane. He is a complete striker,” he said back in July. “If you go to buy Kane now it would be at least £100m.”
Undoubtedly Spurs would think he’s worth a lot more than that, especially with the International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES)’ Football Observatory ranking him and Alli only behind Neymar in terms of transfer value earlier this year.
Eden Hazard (Chelsea)
When he’s at the top of the game, there aren’t many better than Chelsea’s Belgian superstar.
The 26-year-old can light up a game and move past players like they aren’t even there – just take his solo goal against Arsenal last season as an example.
He’s been subject of Real Madrid transfer rumours and there’s a reason why he has been linked to the best team in Europe at the moment, but if they do want him he would cost at least £100m.
Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
The Belgian was the second most expensive Premier League signing ever when he arrived at Manchester City for £55m back in August 2015.
Since then he’s only got better, and has become one of the key players for Pep Guardiola’s side, with no other player bettering his 18 Premier League assists last season.
Considering how much transfer fees have spiralled since his arrival in England, it would be a shock if City didn’t command more than £100m to let him go.
Paul Pogba (Manchester United)
When Pogba signed for £89.3million last summer in August 2016, it looked like an astronomical fee.
Yet that world record has seen been obliterated by Paris Saint-Germain’s move for Neymar.
With the way the market is going now, midfielder would definitely be worth at least £150m, although there isn’t much chance of Manchester United wanting to sell.
Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool)
If Liverpool do eventually sell their Brazilian attacker, it will be for more than £100m for sure.
They held firm this summer though, refusing to sell Coutinho, despite the Barcelona transfer target handing in a transfer request.
The Reds turned down multiple bids from the Catalan side, including one of £114m as they were insistent he would not be leaving Anfield.
Sadio Mane (Liverpool)
With Coutinho absent for the start of the season for Liverpool, Mane has taken centre stage for Liverpool.
He has three goals already this season and has proven just how important he now is for the Reds after signing from Southampton for £34m in June last year.
He was joint-top scorer last season for the Reds in the Premier League, with both him and Coutinho on 13.
Romelu Lukaku (Manchester United)
The striker joined Manchester United from Everton for £75m in July, but boss Jose Mourinho believes Neymar’s fee inflated the market so much he’d have cost a lot more now.
The United boss said: “We thought that something could happen that could change the market forever.
“Normally the last part of the market is less expensive, but this season, after Neymar everything changed - and changed for the worse in terms of prices.
“I think Lukaku on August 31 would have been £150m. Matic would have been £60m or £70m.”
Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City)
Manchester City’s Brazilian striker may not have much top-flight experience, but that doesn’t mean clubs wouldn’t pay for him – just look at Kylian Mbappe. The 18-year-old French forward cost PSG £166m after one full season in Ligue 1.
Jesus has only half a season in the Premier League, but already has two years behind him in the Brazilian Serie A, where he was voted best player in 2016.
His record for Brazil of five goals in seven games is also likely to show potential suitors just how good he could be.
Christian Eriksen (Tottenham Hotspur)
If Alli and Kane would cost an arm and a leg to prize from Tottenham, Eriksen wouldn’t be much cheaper.
Only De Bruyne provided more assists than the Dane’s 15 in the Premier League last season.
He may not be the biggest of names, but with Levy’s negotiation skills, a £100m price tag would not be a surprise.
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