Liverpool’s
Raheem Sterling is the sixth most valuable player in the world at £60m,
while Chelsea’s Eden Hazard is worth more than Cristiano Ronaldo, according
to a new transfer study.
The study has been carried out by a team of statisticians at the Football
Observatory, a research group in the International Centre for Sports Studies
which was founded in 1995 as a joint-venture between FIFA and the University
of Neuchâtel in Switzerland. The Football Observatory itself was established
in 2005 and has undertaken research for both FIFA and UEFA.
Their newly-published report makes four-time World Player of the Year Lionel
Messi by far the most expensive player in the world with a value of £205m
following another stellar season with Barcelona.
Their findings are based on in-depth analysis which takes into account age,
position, contract situation, international status, experience and on-pitch
performance, and Chelsea star Hazard is second in the list with a value of
£109m having shone for the Blues and signed a lucrative new contract in
February.
Real Madrid’s Ronaldo has fallen to third with a value of £92m since the
Football Observatory’s last study in January 2015, while Barcelona’s Neymar
is deemed to be worth £72m, ahead of Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero (£63m)
and the £60m Sterling.
The 20-year-old, who has been strongly linked with a move away from Anfield
this summer, is the most valuable English player in the study and the
youngest player in the top 30.
The rest of the top 10 is made up of Paul Pogba, the in-demand Juventus
midfielder whose value is calculated at £57m, Chelsea striker Diego Costa
(£56m), Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez (£55m) and James Rodriguez (£50m), who
joined Real Madrid in a big money deal from Monaco last summer.
Chelsea’s Cesc Fabregas is judged to be the next most expensive Premier
League player at £47m, which puts him 13th in the list, two places ahead of
Tottenham’s Harry Kane.
The Spurs youth product is valued at £43m after a stunning breakthrough
campaign in which he scored 32 goals for club and country, making him more
expensive than his former team-mate Gareth Bale, whose value has fallen to
£41m just two years after his world record £85m move to Real Madrid.
Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho is 17th at £40.6m, closely followed by Chelsea
duo Thibaut Courtois and Oscar, who the study values at £40.5m and £38.2m
respectively.
Tottenham’s Christian Eriksen (£32.4), Everton’s Romelu Lukaku (£32m),
Chelsea’s Willian (£31.1m) and City’s David Silva (£30.6m) are the only
other Premier League players in the top 30, while Manchester United’s £59.7m
summer signing Angel Di Maria is 31st and now valued at just £29.7 after a
disappointing season at Old Trafford.
Wayne Rooney is rated as United's next most valuable player, with an
estimated worth of £28.9m putting him 33rd in the list.
As for other transfer targets for Premier League clubs outside the top 30,
Manchester City-linked midfielder Kevin De Bruyne is 32nd in the list and
valued at £29.6m after impressing for Wolfsburg.
Lyon striker Alexandre Lacazette has also been linked with a move to England
and is valued at £28.6m, while Napoli's Gonzalo Higuain is estimated to be
worth £27.4m. Reported Liverpool target Mateo Kovacic, who plays for Inter
Milan, is valued at £23.7m.
United target Mats Hummels is also in the top 100 with a value of £21m,
while Barcelona forward Pedro is given a value of £18.2m. Surprisingly,
United goalkeeper David De Gea, who has been strongly linked with a move to
Madrid, is only rated at £17.9m, putting him 95th in the list.
The Football Observatory’s top 30 most expensive players
1. Lionel Messi (Barcelona) £205m
2. Eden Hazard (Chelsea) £109m
3. Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid) £92m
4. Neymar (Barcelona) £72m
5. Sergio Aguero (Manchester City) £63m
6. Raheem Sterling (Liverpool) £60m
7. Paul Pogba (Juventus) £57m
8. Diego Costa (Chelsea) £56m
9. Alexis Sanchez (Arsenal) £55m
10. James Rodriguez (Real Madrid) £50m
11. Luis Suarez (Barcelona) £48.2m
12. Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid) £47.5
13. Cesc Fabregas (Chelsea) £47m
14. Isco Alcoron (Real Madrid) £46m
15. Harry Kane (Tottenham) £43m
16. Gareth Bale (Real Madrid) £41m
17. Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool) £40.6m
18. Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea) £40.5m
19. Oscar (Chelsea) £38.2m
20. Karim Benzema (Real Madrid) £36m
21. Mario Gotze (Bayern Munich) £34.5
22. Koke Resurreccion (Atletico Madrid) £33.1m
23. Christian Eriksen (Tottenham) £32.4m
24. Romelu Lukaku (Everton) £32m
25. Toni Kroos (Real Madrid) £31.9m
26. Willian (Chelsea) £31.1m
27. Alvaro Morata (Juventus) £30.9m
28. Sergio Busquets (Barcelona) £30.7m
29. David Silva (Manchester City) £30.6m
30. Edinson Cavani (Paris St Germain) £30.4m
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