From Collymore to Torres: The costliest Premier League transfers ever adjusted for football inflation | OneFootball

Football transfer fees appear on an unstoppable upward curve with the Premier League clubs again expected to invest billions into their squads this summer.

Last summer sawLiverpool break the British transfer record to sign Alexander Isak from Newcastle United, though that transfer would represent only the 14th costliest Premier League deal, if all transfers were adjusted for inflation.

Football finance expertKieran Maguire has done the maths, and listed the most expensive Premier League transfers of all time, adjusted for football inflation.

Using the inflation inPremier League revenue per season as a guide, Maguire has worked out the most expensive deals in the division's history.

Figures in brackets are fees adjusted for inflation

The most expensive players in Premier League history adjusted for 'football inflation'

5. Fernando Torres - Liverpool to Chelsea, 2011 £50m (£148.7m)

Chelsea broke the bank to land Fernando Torres from Liverpool on a dramatic deadline day in January 2011.

The Spanish striker had scored 81 goals in 142 games for the Reds, and had proven to be a regular thorn in Chelsea's side. Torres never quite hit the same heights in a blue shirt, but did win the Champions League, FA Cup, and Europa League in West London.

4. Stan Collymore - Nottingham Forest to Liverpool, 1995, £8.5m (£166.6m)

Liverpool made Stan Collymore the most expensive player in Premier League history in 1995. The forward arrived from Nottingham Forest for a fee that would equate to £166.6m in today's market.

Collymore excelled alongside Robbie Fowler as the duo combined for 55 goals in 1995/96. He netted 35 times over two seasons for the Reds, but was sold to Aston Villa after the emergence of Michael Owen.

3. Juan Sebastien Veron - Lazio to Manchester United, 2001, £28.1m (£168.3m)

Manchester United broke the British transfer record to sign Juan Sebastien Veron from Lazio. The Argentine had been a key figure in the Italian side's Serie A title success a year earlier, and arrived with a big reputation.

Veron struggled to settle in England, with Alex Ferguson memorably leaping to his defence in an expletive-laden press conference. The midfielder spent two seasons at Old Trafford before signing for Chelsea.

2. Rio Ferdinand - Leeds United to Manchester United, 2002, £33.1m (£187.1m)

Rio Ferdinand features twice in the most expensive inflation-adjusted transfers in Premier League history. The centre-back set a new British record when moving from West Ham to Leeds in 2000, before setting another new mark after crossing the Pennines to Manchester United.

Ferdinand's move would be the equivalent of a £187.1m fee adjusted for inflation, though the Red Devils got value for money. The defender spent more than a decade with the club and won six Premier League titles among his honours.

1. Alan Shearer - Blackburn Rovers to Newcastle United, 1996, £15m (£223.3m)

Alan Shearer's return home to Newcastle represents the Premier League's biggest ever deal adjusted for inflation.

The £15m fee was a world record at the time, as Newcastle spent big to bring the boyhood fan back to the North East. Shearer had scored 130 goals in 171 games for Blackburn, and added a club-record 206 for Newcastle after moving to St James' Park.

Though trophies eluded him on Tyneside, he remains the Premier League's record scorer.