Chelsea’s Lukaku ahead of Neymar, Ronaldo as most expensive player ever
...becomes EPL’s highest-paid player
New Chelsea signing, Romelu Lukaku has become the most expensive footballer ever over the course of his career following his return to Stamford Bridge.
Lukaku’s £98million move to Chelsea on Thursday takes his cumulative transfers to almost £285million, passing Paris Saint-Germain’s Neymar for top spot on the list, PA news agency reports.
The study used transfer 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 Chelsea 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.
The 28-year-old’s moves to Manchester United and then on to Inter Milan 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 Santos for £75.7m in 2013 and moved on to PSG four years later for a world-record £200.6m.
Meanwhile, third on the list is Juventus’s Cristiano Ronaldo with £197.6m cumulative transfer fees, having moved from Sporting to Manchester United, Real Madrid and now Juventus.
Below is top ten most expensive footballers ever by cumulative transfer fees:
Romelu Lukaku – £284.8m
Neymar – £276.3m
Cristiano Ronaldo – £197.6m
Alvaro Morata – £164.6m
Ousmane Dembele – £154.3m
Antoine Greizmann – £150.4m
Phillippe Coutinho – £141.0m
Angel Di Maria – £136.7m
Zlatan Ibrahimovic – £135.3m
Gonzalo Higuain – £132.9m
Meanwhile, Romelu Lukaku has become the highest-paid player in the Premier League, following his £98m move to Chelsea on Thursday, according to The Athletic.
Once image rights and bonuses are taken into account, Lukaku will take home between £325,000 and £450,000-per-week.
The 28-year-old is now ahead of compatriot, Kevin De Bruyne, who recently signed a £385,000-per-week contract at Manchester City.
De Bruyne’s new team mate, Jack Grealish, is paid £380,000-per-week including bonuses.
Lukaku, whose goals led Inter Milan to the Serie A title last season, was understood to have been happy to remain in Italy this season.
However, Inter’s financial predicament made Chelsea’s £98m bid an offer too good to refuse.
Lukaku is set to wear the No 18 shirt for Chelsea, the same number he was given when he first joined from Anderlecht almost 10 years ago.
EPL’s TOP EARNERS
Romelu Lukaku – £450,000-per-week (including bonuses)
Kevin de Bruyne – £385,000-per-week
Jack Grealish – £380,000-per-week (including bonuses)
David De Gea – £375,000-per-week
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – £350,000-per-week
Raheem Sterling – £300,000-per-week
Paul Pogba – £270,000-per-week
Anthony Martial – £250,000-per-week
Mo Salah – £220,00-per-week
Jack Grealish – £200,000-per-week
Ben Chilwell – £190,000-per-week
Virgil van Dijk – £180,000-per-week
