Manchester City has spent more than 2 billion euros on transfers in 14 years
Such sums of money are beyond the minds of mere mortals, but the fact remains that since Sheikh Mansour took over the box at the Etihad, the club from Manchester City have spent more than two billion euros on player acquisitions. The starting point of the new era and the accompanying transfer madness is Robinho’s move from Real Madrid to Manchester City in 2008. The Brazilian was given €43 million, which was a club record for the Citizens at the time. Fourteen years later Robinho is only 19th in the list of the most expensive newcomers in the history of “City”. Do you know what the top ten looks like? We show and tell you.
No. 10. Benjamin Mendy (France) – in 2017 from Monaco for 57.5 million euros
“Manchester City” generously spends money on players, but big purchases are often effective, transfer blunders the “citizens” have very few, which allowed them to become the best club in England. But there are exceptions to every rule, and Benjamin Mendy is one of them. During his first season in England, the Frenchman tore his anterior cruciate ligament, but it got worse from there: the world champion was charged with nine episodes of sex crimes. Mendy’s soccer career is de facto over.
9th place. Erling Holand (Norway) – in 2022 from Borussia Dortmund for 60 million euros
Of course, EUR 60m is only the official fee for Holland, and there are also unofficial payments to his agents and father, without whom Erling would not have signed the contract with the club he has supported since childhood. We will begin to assess the effectiveness of this transfer in the coming season. “Man City has signed a superforward, but Hollande’s injuries last season and Guardiola’s complicated relationship with the center-forwards leave room for doubt.
No. 8. Rodri (Spain) – in 2019 from Atletico Madrid for €62.7 million
In 2018, Atletico paid €20 million to Villarreal for Rodri, and a year later, City shelled out three times that much to acquire the Spanish centerfielder. There’s nothing to complain about, as Rodri has become a systematic midfielder in Guardiola’s schemes, and literally just renewed his contract until 2027.
7th place. Raheem Sterling (England) – in 2015 from Liverpool for €63.7m
Sterling’s career at the Etihad has come to an end. Seven years ago, Raheem moved to Manchester City from Liverpool with special effects, and now he is leaving for Chelsea. Sterling has played 337 games for the Citizens in seven years, scored 131 goals and made 94 assists. Outstanding numbers when you add in the team accomplishments – 10 trophies won.
5th-6th place. Emeric Llaporte (Spain) – in 2018 from Athletic Bilbao for 65 million euros
Josep Guardiola wanted to see Laport at Manchester City back in 2016, but the young defender turned down the English club and the eminent coach, continued to play for Athletic. A year and a half later, the Citizens brought a bag of money to Bilbao and still took Emeric to Manchester. LaPorte is a strong defender and has grown under Pep, though there have been some controversial moments and stretches during his time at the Etihad.
5th-6th place. Joao Cancelo (Portugal) – in 2019 from Juventus for 65 million euros
Cancelo was part of a deal with Juventus that saw Danilo follow in the opposite direction. The technically gifted Cancelo made Man City’s attack even richer with his boldness and creative qualities. It took the first season to adapt, but then Joao got better every year.
4th place. Riyad Marez (Algeria) – in 2018 from Leicester for €67.8m
There were enough people wanting to take Marez from Leicester after the Foxes’ championship season, but Leicester resisted for a long time and did not want to lose the Algerian. Riyadh did not leave King Power until 2018, when City paid a tidy sum for him. Marez did not get lost in the star-studded squad, as evidenced by his performance statistics: 63+45 in 188 games. Riyadh has won trophies and still has dreams of winning the Champions League with Manchester City.
3rd place. Ruben Dias (Portugal) – 2020 from Benfica for 68m euros
“Manchester City were in desperate need of a defensive leader after the departure of Vincent Kompany, and then Dias came in and changed everything. The 23-year-old centerback joined the Citizens in 2020 to impress everyone around him from the get-go. Ruben proved to be not only a technically and physically gifted guy, as was noted from playing for Benfica, he instantly turned on his organizational and communication skills, making him a real leader of the championship team overnight. Does anyone doubt that this is City’s future captain?
2nd place. Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium) – in 2015 from Wolfsburg for 76 million euros
De Bruyne was in England for the first time at the call of Chelsea, but failed to impress in the Premier League at first. Kevin went to Germany, where he matured and learned to manage his strengths, before arriving again to conquer the APL. One English tabloid in 2015 called De Bruyne’s purchase “£60 million thrown away.” The author will be bitching for this unfortunate prediction for the rest of his days, because Kevin has become the main star of Guardiola’s team, one of the best in England and a true symbol of Man City’s victories.
1st place. Jack Grealish (England) – 2021 from Aston Villa for 117.5m euros
Manchester City rewrote the club transfer record last summer by dropping £100 million for Jack Grealish. While the most expensive Briton of all time has not impressed, his first season at the Etihad has not been outstanding. Perhaps the Citizens succumbed to an old trick and overestimated the English player, or maybe Grealish needs a little more time to adapt to Guardiola’s soccer and find a better version of himself.
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