HIT or MISS: Judging every player bought for at least €100m as Wirtz joins the list | OneFootball

Florian Wirtz has completed his move from Bayer Leverkusen to Premier League champions Liverpool in a potential €137.5m deal, including add-ons.

His signing puts the German well into the top ten for most expensive footballers in the world, and becomes a British record transfer.

16 other players across the world have already been purchased for more than €100m. However, there have been a mixed bag of results, with some players showing their worth and others failing to live up to the price tag.

We’ve given our verdict on whether those signings were a hit, or a miss…

1. Neymar – Barcelona to PSG €222m – HIT

The only player to go for more than 200m euros. Paris-Saint Germain went all out when they signed Neymar from Barcelona. An injury hit five years in Paris still warranted 197 goal contributions in 173 matches for the Brazilian superstar along with plenty of silverware.

2. Kylian Mbappe – AS Monaco to PSG €180m – HIT

Some might view PSG allowing Kylian Mbappe to leave the club on a free transfer to Real Madrid in 2024 after a 180 million euro transfer in 2017 as a ‘miss’ but his legacy at the Parisians ensures that will not be the case. The Frenchman is PSG’s all-time top goalscorer with 256 goals, ending his time in the French capital with 365 goal contributions in 308 games.

3. Philippe Coutinho – Liverpool to Barcelona €135m – MISS

100 per cent a miss. The Brazilian had been touted for a move away from Liverpool for years, and when it finally happened in January 2018, it was to plenty of fanfare. However, Coutinho’s time at the Blaugrana was anything but a joy, struggling for fitness and form before being loaned to Bayern Munich and Aston Villa. He signed for Villa on a permanent basis to end his Spanish nightmare.

4. Ousmane Dembele – Borussia Dortmund to Barcelona €135m – MISS

The same can be said for Dembele, who arrived the summer prior to Coutinho, with the Frenchman one of the hottest young properties on the market after excelling with Borussia Dortmund. Form and fitness were key contributors to it not working for Dembele, who has just come off the back of a potential Ballon d’Or winning season at PSG.

5. Joao Felix – Benfica to Atletico Madrid €127.2m – MISS

A lot of moment spent on a player who had just had their breakout season. Joao Felix had everyone’s eyes on him after his superb 2018/19 season with Benfica, but Atletico Madrid were on hand to seal his signature. It simply did not work out in Madrid for the Portuguese, who had loans at Chelsea and Barcelona before returning to Stamford Bridge permanently, where he has continued to struggle.

6. Enzo Fernandez – Benfica to Chelsea €121m – UNSURE

Off the back of a breakthrough World Cup in Qatar, Chelsea jumped at the opportunity to sign the Argentine from Benfica. After initially struggling for form and a place in the starting line-up, Fernandez has slowly become one of the Blues’ top performers. However, the jury is still out over whether he has been a success yet or not.

7. Eden Hazard – Chelsea to Real Madrid €120.8m – MISS

The dream move that turned into a nightmare. Chelsea had reluctantly let Eden Hazard leave the club for Real Madrid in 2019. The following four seasons were a disaster for the Belgian superstar, with injuries leading to Hazard calling time on his career in October 2023, three months on from his Los Blancos departure.

8. Antoine Griezmann – Atletico Madrid to Barcelona €120m – MISS

Big money moves to Barcelona have been far from successful in recent times, and Griezmann was another example of this. 52 goal contributions in 102 matches is not the level expected, and after a loan back to Atletico in 2021, the Frenchman returned there permanently a year later.

9. Jack Grealish – Aston Villa to Manchester City €117.5m – MISS

Since his move from Aston Villa in 2021, Grealish has rarely nailed down a starting role under Pep Guardiola, especially in the last two seasons. 17 goals and 23 assists in 157 matches is not the numbers an attacking player that cost over €100m should be producing. It looks likely that Grealish will be on his way out of City this summer.

10. Cristiano Ronaldo – Real Madrid to Juventus €117m – HIT

A move that shocked the footballing world, Cristiano Ronaldo’s move to Juventus was definitely a success. 101 goals in 134 appearances, and he helped Juve to two league titles.

11. Declan Rice – West Ham to Arsenal €116.6m – HIT

Plenty of eyebrows were raised when Arsenal spent such a huge sum on the West Ham midfielder but he has shown that he is worth every penny. It still feels like there is more to come from Rice and helping Arsenal to silverware would make him an even bigger hit.

12. Moises Caicedo – Brighton to Chelsea €116m – HIT

Struggled initially after making the move from Brighton but has since shown why he was so in demand, establishing himself as one of the best holding midfield players in the world.

13. Jude Bellingham – Borussia Dortmund to Real Madrid €113m – HIT

His debut season could not have gone much better after moving to Madrid from Dortmund. 36 goal contributions in 42 games, along with a league and Champions League title. It was not so smooth sailing last season as Real missed out on major honours but he still showed that he is one of the best midfielders in the world.

14. Romelu Lukaku – Inter to Chelsea €113m – MISS

A disaster of a transfer. Lukaku was dubbed as the missing link for Chelsea and he initially started well. But things quickly turned sour when the Belgian gave an interview saying he was not happy with his situation at Chelsea, and following two loan spells at Inter Milan and Roma, he joined Napoli on a permanent deal last summer.

15. Paul Pogba – Juventus to Manchester United €105m – MISS

A hard one to call but Pogba never really hit the heights expected of him after returning to Manchester United. He had spells where he delivered on his price tag but was disappointing towards the end of his United career and left on a free transfer for former club Juventus.

16. Gareth Bale – Tottenham to Real Madrid €101m – HIT

It feels as though Bale could have done more at Madrid given how good of a player he was but it is hard not to class him as a hit. He was a big part of the side which won the Champions League five times and scored 106 goals in 258 games for the club.