MX23RW : Monday, May 20 01:17:23| >> :120:14000:14000:

Chelsea return moves Romelu Lukaku ahead of Neymar as most expensive player ever

Chelsea return moves Romelu Lukaku ahead of Neymar as most expensive player ever
© Reuters
The move takes the Belgian's cumulative transfers to almost £285m.

Romelu Lukaku's return to Chelsea makes him the most expensive footballer ever over the course of his career.

The reported £97.5million fee takes the Belgian's cumulative transfers to almost £285m, passing Neymar for top spot on the list.

Here, the PA news agency looks at how he compares to the leading group.

The £285m man

Top 10 footballers by cumulative transfer fees
Romelu Lukaku has cost almost £285m in cumulative transfer fees (PA graphic)

The study used fees listed on respected website transfermarkt.com, which were then converted from euros into sterling using the exchange rate at the time of the move.

Using that method, Lukaku's initial move to Stamford Bridge from Anderlecht in 2011 is listed at just over £13m, with £3m recouped from Everton as a loan fee before 2014's permanent move for £28m.

His moves to Manchester United and then on to Inter cost a reported £75m and around £68.3m respectively, with this latest move taking him to £284.8m in cumulative fees.

That is around £8.5m more than Neymar, who joined Barcelona from his hometown club Santos for £75.7m in 2013 and moved on to Paris St Germain four years later for a world-record £200.6m.

The pair are the only £200m players to date, with Cristiano Ronaldo around £2.5m short of that landmark and clear of the field in third place after successive big-money moves to Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus.

Quantity is key

Zlatan Ibrahimovic, left, and Alvaro Morata
Zlatan Ibrahimovic, left, and Alvaro Morata have been involved in numerous big-money moves (Jane Barlow/Adam Davy/PA)

With the exception of Neymar, Ousmane Dembele and Antoine Griezmann, every member of the top 10 has been involved in at least three separate transfers with a fee changing hands.

Alvaro Morata, fourth behind Ronaldo, has moved six times for £15m or more – including a pair of loan fees over that threshold for moves to Atletico Madrid and Juventus – with his near-£58m transfer to Chelsea in 2017 helping him amass career fees of over £164m.

Dembele follows in fifth and Griezmann sixth – they have moved only twice apiece but Barcelona paid nine-figure fees for both of them, and for seventh-placed Philippe Coutinho to account for the bulk of his £141m in fees across four transfers.

Manchester United spent £59.7m on Angel Di Maria and recouped over £44m when the Argentina winger left for PSG, helping him rank ahead of much-travelled strikers Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Gonzalo Higuain.

Mbappe the long-term threat

Kylian Mbappe
Kylian Mbappe joined Paris St Germain for the second-highest fee ever (Martin Rickett/PA)

Outside the top 10, Eden Hazard ranks 11th thanks to his moves to Chelsea and Real Madrid, but just behind him is PSG and France striker Kylian Mbappe, who is perhaps the likeliest player to challenge for top spot in the future.

The 22-year-old moved from Monaco to PSG for the second-highest fee in football history, around £128.25m in 2018 having spent the previous season on loan, and any subsequent move would see him gatecrash the top three places as a minimum.

Both he and Ronaldo have been speculatively linked with moves to Real, possibly this summer, so there could even be further movement at the top end before the window closes.

Atleti's £114m striker Joao Felix ranks a couple of places behind Mbappe, while Jack Grealish's £100m move this summer to Manchester City has him on the fringes of the top 20.

ID:459142:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect6652:

Click here for more stories about Romelu Lukaku

Click here for more stories about Chelsea

Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Inter Milan's Romelu Lukaku celebrates scoring their second goal on February 14, 2021
Read Next:
Chelsea announce club-record £97.5m Romelu Lukaku deal
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
CManchester CityMan City38287396346291
2Arsenal38285591296289
3Liverpool382410486414582
4Aston Villa382081076611568
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs382061274611366
6Chelsea381891177631463
7Newcastle UnitedNewcastle381861485622360
8Manchester UnitedMan Utd38186145758-160
9West Ham UnitedWest Ham381410146074-1452
10Crystal Palace381310155758-149
11Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton381212145562-748
12Bournemouth38139165467-1348
13Fulham38138175561-647
14Wolverhampton WanderersWolves38137185065-1546
15Everton38139164051-1140
16Brentford38109195665-939
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3899204967-1832
RLuton TownLuton3868245285-3326
RBurnley3859244178-3724
RSheffield UnitedSheff Utd38372835104-6916


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!