Every player to break the Premier League transfer record since 92/93 | OneFootball

Modern football has seen transfer fees skyrocket on a seemingly never-ending upward trajectory. The Premier League, in particular, has seen a steep rise in big-money sums.

Since the formation of the Premier League in 1992, the league’s transfer record has been broken multiple times. Though big fees have not always guaranteed big success.

Florian Wirtz looks set to be the latest player to set a new landmark. Liverpool are closing in on the £126m signing of the Bayer Leverkusen midfielder.

Ahead of Wirtz’s move to Anfield, we’ve looked at the previous players to break the Premier League’s transfer record.

Every player to break the Premier League transfer record since 1992/93

Alan Shearer, £3.6m, Southampton to Blackburn, 1992

Backed by Jack Walker’s millions, newly-promoted Blackburn smashed the English transfer record to sign Southampton forward Alan Shearer, who was beginning to establish himself on the South Coast.

A cruciate knee ligament injury curtailed his first season at the club but 16 goals in 21 league appearances was a sign of things to come. Upon his return, Shearer embarked on the most prolific spell of his career.

The Geordie goal-getter netted over 30 goals in three consecutive Premier League seasons, the only man in the league’s history to have achieved the feat, helping fire Blackburn to the Premier League title in 1995.

After four seasons and 112 goals in just 138 league appearances, he departed for boyhood club Newcastle, having established himself as one of the world’s finest forwards.

Iconic Duos: Shearer and Sutton – Blackburn’s ‘SAS’

Roy Keane, £3.75m, Nottingham Forest to Manchester United, 1993

Manchester United made Roy Keane the Premier League’s most expensive player a year later. The midfielder had impressed under Brian Clough at Nottingham Forest since arriving from Ireland.

Named in the PFA Team of the Year despite Forest’s relegation to the second tier, Keane memorably made a U-turn on a verbal agreement to join Blackburn, following a persuasive phone call from Sir Alex Ferguson.

In Manchester, Keane became one of the Premier League’s most ferocious competitors and arguably the most inspirational captain in the league’s history.

In a glittering career under Ferguson, Keane helped United to seven Premier League titles, four FA Cups and the 1999 Champions League as part of the club’s famed treble-winning season.

His controversial departure in 2005 severed his ties with the club, though Keane remains one of the most iconic and important players in the Red Devils’ illustrious history.

Andy Cole, £7m, Newcastle to Manchester United, 1995

Cole’s goals had fired Newcastle into the top flight after joining from Bristol City in 1993 before the forward enjoyed a stunning first season in the Premier League. In 1993/94, he scored a then-record 34 goals to win the division’s Golden Boot.

He began the following season in similarly impressive fashion and his form persuaded Manchester United to table an audacious £7m offer for the forward.

Much to the dismay of the Newcastle fans, Cole moved to Old Trafford. The shock move set a new record and saw winger Kieth Gillespie go the other way in part-exchange.

Cole would go on to strike up a fine partnership with Dwight Yorke. He scored over 100 goals at United, winning five league titles and the 1999 Champions League.

Dennis Bergkamp, £7.5m, Inter Milan to Arsenal, 1995

The talented Dutchman had lost his way following a move to Inter Milan, having emerged as one of the brightest talents to come out of the famed Ajax academy.

Arsenal spent a British-record £7.5m to bring the forward to Highbury, with the forward becoming manager Bruce Rioch’s first signing. Rioch’s tenure is not remembered too fondly by the club’s supporters, though they remain thankful for the signing of Bergkamp.

Bergkamp proved inspirational during a hugely successful period under Arsene Wenger. He was awarded the PFA Player of the Year and FWA Footballer of the Year awards as Arsenal completed a memorable double season in 1998.

Sublimely talented, Bergkamp’s collection of wonder goals endeared him to the club’s fans. He twice claimed the league’s Goal of the Season award and cemented himself as one of Arsenal’s greatest-ever players.

After three league titles and four FA Cups, he retired in 2006. A bronze statue now resides outside the club’s Emirates home in homage to a north London legend.

Stan Collymore, £8.5m, Nottingham Forest to Liverpool, 1995

The third time in a calendar year that the record was broken. Stan Collymore moved to Anfield in a £8.5m deal in June 1995.

Collymore had enjoyed a prolific two-year spell at Forest and Liverpool had hoped the forward could fire them back to the summit, following the club’s decline in the early seasons of the Premier League.

A goal on his debut was a strong start and Collymore soon formed an impressive partnership with Robbie Fowler. The duo scored a total of 55 goals combined during the 1995/96 campaign.

His second season was not as successful, with a series of off-field issues costing Collymore his place in the team. The emergence of Michael Owen then saw Roy Evans sanction the sale of the forward to Aston Villa after two years at Anfield. Collymore departed having scored 28 goals in 64 league appearances.

Alan Shearer, £15m, Blackburn to Newcastle, 1996

A second appearance on this list for the Premier League’s all-time leading goalscorer. Shearer joined boyhood club Newcastle in a then world-record £15m deal in 1996.

Shearer had rejected the chance to move to serial league winners Manchester United in favour of joining his hometown side, where he would go on to smash the club’s goalscoring record.

A tally of 206 goals in 405 appearances saw Shearer pass Jackie Milburn’s record, cementing his place in Newcastle folklore.

On a personal level, Shearer’s Newcastle career was a huge success. His legacy at his boyhood club is assured and immortalised with a statue outside of St James’ Park.

However, a pair of FA Cup final defeats were as close as the prolific forward got to winning silverware.

Rio Ferdinand, £18m, West Ham to Leeds, 2000

Breaking through from West Ham’s famed academy as a teenager, Ferdinand soon started attracting attention from the league’s biggest sides.

It was free-spending Leeds who secured his signature in 2000. The ambitious outfit signed Ferdinand for a fee of £18m, breaking the British transfer record.

The deal also made Ferdinand the most expensive defender in football history and he joined an exciting Leeds side containing the likes of Harry Kewell, Robbie Keane, and Mark Viduka.

He helped the Yorkshire side to the Champions League semi-finals and was later named club captain. However, the club’s failure to secure qualification for the following season’s tournament saw Leeds financially implode. Ferdinand sold to rivals Manchester United following the World Cup in 2002.

Ruud van Nistelrooy, £19m, PSV Eindhoven to Manchester United, 2001

Having seen a move to United collapse the previous year due to a serious knee injury, Van Nistelrooy arrived at Old Trafford in a British-record £19m deal in 2001.

The Dutchman certainly proved worth the wait. He was named the PFA Player of the Year in his debut season after scoring 36 goals in all competitions for Sir Alex Ferguson’s side.

Van Nistelrooy continued to score at a prolific rate. He won the Golden Boot the following season after scoring 44 goals in all competitions – a then-record for a Premier League player. In total, he amassed 150 goals in just 219 appearances for the club.

One Premier League title, an FA Cup and a League Cup is perhaps a relatively sparse total for five seasons at England’s biggest club, though few at Old Trafford can forget the ruthlessness of Ruud in front of goal.

Juan Sebastien Veron, £28.1m, Lazio to Manchester United, 2001

A hugely-hyped deal at the time, Manchester United secured the signing of Argentine playmaker Juan Sebastien Veron from Italian side Lazio. The midfielder had been an influential figure in the club’s Serie A title triumph in 2000.

Veron began brightly, being crowned as the September Player of the Month, but his performances soon dipped. He struggled to adapt to the pace and robustness of English football.

His better performances came in the slower tempo of Europe, though for all his talent he was unable to produce regularly in the Premier League. For many, he was regarded as a huge disappointment.

After two seasons he was sold to rivals Chelsea, where he made just 15 appearances before returning to Italy.

Midfield Magicians: Juan Sebastian Veron, a f*cking great player

Rio Ferdinand, £29.1m, Leeds to Manchester United, 2002

The second player to appear twice on our list, Manchester United capitalised on the financial crisis at Leeds to sign Rio Ferdinand in 2002.

The deal again made Ferdinand the most expensive defender in history, eclipsing Lilian Thuram’s move to Juventus from Parma a year earlier.

Ferdinand had shone in that summer’s World Cup for England and soon became a mainstay at the heart of the United defence. Athletic, strong and comfortable in possession, the defender developed into one of the world’s best and enjoyed a trophy-laden spell at Old Trafford.

In 12 seasons, Ferdinand won six league titles, two League Cups and the Champions League, being named in the PFA Team of the Year on five occasions.

Andry Shevchenko, £30.8m, AC Milan to Chelsea, 2006

Roman Abramovich’s millions had propelled Chelsea to back-to-back Premier League titles and the capture of AC Milan forward Andry Shevchenko seemed to signal an era of dominance at Stamford Bridge.

Shevchenko was widely regarded as one of Europe’s best players. He had won the 2004 Ballon d’Or and fired Milan to Champions League glory the season before.

Handed the number 7 shirt, he began well with a goal on debut in the Community Shield but soon began to struggle with the demands of English football.

The Ukrainian scored just four Premier League goals in his first season, a tally he bettered by just one strike the following year. After two seasons he was shipped back on loan to Milan.

He finished his Chelsea career having scored 23 goals in 77 appearances in all competitions. A meagre total for a player of such calibre.

Noughties Nines: Andriy Shevchenko – Rossoneri royalty

Robinho, £32.5m, Real Madrid to Manchester City, 2008

The deal which shocked English football to its core. Sheikh Mansour announced his billionaire takeover of Manchester City by smashing the British-record on deadline day to capture Brazil star Robinho.

City had been propelled from mediocrity to the elite of football’s wealthiest clubs, and the arrival of Robinho from Real Madrid was their statement signing.

After City fans had forgiven him for thinking he’d joined Chelsea in his unveiling, the forward began well. He enjoyed an impressive debut season, scoring on his first appearance and finishing with 14 league goals.

From there, however, his form nosedived.

Injuries and a loss of form saw him fall out of favour in his second season. In January 2010, he rejoined former club Santos on loan, before moving to AC Milan on a permanent deal that summer.

Fernando Torres, £50m, Liverpool to Chelsea, 2011

A firm favourite with the Anfield faithful after a prolific period on Merseyside, Fernando Torres sparked anger after announcing his intention to leave the club in January 2011.

Chelsea were interested and proposed a British-record deal, eventually securing the signing of the Spaniard for a fee of £50m. Torres had scored 65 goals in 102 league appearances for Liverpool, with Chelsea believing they had signed a proven Premier League performer.

The former Atletico Madrid star never truly recaptured his best form at Stamford Bridge, scoring just 20 league goals in three-and-a-half seasons.

Despite looking a shadow of the player who had been so prolific at Anfield, Torres helped Chelsea to an FA Cup and Champions League double in 2012, before adding a Europa League title the following year.

The move to Chelsea delivered the silverware his career had been missing, though he never looked quite the same player.

Angel Di Maria, £59.7m, Real Madrid to Manchester United, 2014

The post-Sir Alex Ferguson era had seen the disastrous appointment of David Moyes as manager. In 2014, the club decided to spend big in an attempt to restore the side to the elite.

Real Madrid star Angel Di Maria had just helped the Spanish giants to Champions League success and arrived in a big-money move. The Argentine was handed the club’s prized number seven shirt.

The talented winger began brightly. An audacious goal against Leicester City highlighted his undoubted quality, but his failure to adapt to life in England soon became apparent.

A burglary at his home sparked rumours of discontent, whilst his on-pitch form deteriorated at a rapid rate. By the end of the season, Di Maria was desperate to leave. He was sold to Paris Saint-German after just a single season at Old Trafford.

He was voted as the worst signing of the Premier League season.

Paul Pogba, £89m, Juventus to Manchester United, 2016

Four years after leaving United on a free transfer, Paul Pogba returned to Old Trafford in a world-record deal.

Four seasons in Turin had seen Pogba flourish into one of the most promising talents in Europe. In Italy, he helped the Bianconeri to four consecutive Serie A titles.

Pogba’s return was a statement signing from United, who were desperate to return the side to former glories under new manager Jose Mourinho.

Pogba’s first season saw United claim a League Cup and Europa League double, though it proved to be a false dawn. The following five seasons passed without silverrware, while Pogba failed to consistently produce.

The Frenchman had spells of brilliance but an off-field circus that often surrounded his future was a distraction. He returned to Juventus on a free transfer in 2022.

Jack Grealish, £100m, Aston Villa to Manchester City, 2021

Jack Grealish became English football’s first £100m player, joining Premier League champions Manchester City from Aston Villa.

Villa fans had long championed the ability of the boyhood fan who rose through the club’s ranks. However, it initially took time for Grealish to win the admiration of the rest of the division.

City triggered Grealish’s £100m release clause and silverware followed, though the winger failed to reach the individual heights of his time at Villa Park. He’s won three league titles and the Champions League, but has failed to secure an automatic role. Pep Guardiola’s risk-averse possession football has stifled the adventure that made Grealish such an exciting watch in claret and blue. A parting of ways appears imminent.

Enzo Fernandez, £106m, Benfica to Chelsea, 2023

Enzo Fernandez’s performances at the 2022 World Cup saw him linked with major clubs across Europe. Chelsea won the race to sign the Argentine, who had claimed the Best Young Player award in Qatar. Benfica demanded his £106m release clause was met in full, setting a new British transfer record. It represented a huge profit for the Portuguese side just six months after signing Fernandez from River Plate.

Though the fee was vastly inflated, the midfielder has shown plenty of quality in West London. He helped Chelsea to Europa Conference League success in 2024/25.

Moises Caicedo, £115m, Brighton to Chelsea, 2023

Just months later, Chelsea broke the record again. The Blues beat Liverpool to the signing of Moises Caicedo, in a deal that could reach £115m with add-ons.

Caicedo’s combative ball-winning and dynamism had won admirers at the Amex Stadium, with Chelsea keen to add the Ecuadorian to their ranks. After a mixed first season, Caicedo was outstanding as Chelsea secured Champions League qualification and won the Conference League in 2024/25. He was named Player of the Season and Players’ Player of the Season at the end of the campaign.

Read: Analysing the progression of the world record transfer fee from 2000 onwards

Read Also: Sectarianism, betrayal and a pig’s head – The most controversial transfers in football history

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