Joao Felix becomes fourth most expensive player of all time – who else makes the top ten list for total transfer fees? | OneFootball

Joao Felix’s move to Al Nassr has seen him become the fourth most expensive player of all time when taking into account the cumulative transfer fees from all of his moves.

The Portuguese forward has completed a switch to the Saudi Pro League to link up with his international team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo.

Here’s who else is on the top ten list for the most expensive players for total transfer fees spent, according to Transfermarkt.

Neymar – €400m

The Brazilian superstar has completed three huge money moves in his career. His first saw him go from Santos to Barcelona in 2013 for €88m, before leaving Barca for PSG in 2017 for a still world record transfer fee of €222m.

He moved to Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal in 2023, who despite his age and injury worries still paid a whopping €90m euros to sign him. He is now back at his boyhood club Santos.

Romelu Lukaku – €369.2m

The Belgian striker has been a regular mover of clubs. His first move saw him transfer from Anderlecht to Chelsea for €15m. After loan spells, which also included smaller loan fees, he moved to Everton for €35.36m where he would establish himself as one of the Premier League’s top strikers.

That persuaded Manchester United to splash out on the forward, paying €84.70m to sign him before selling him to Inter Milan two years later for €74.00m.

His biggest move was yet to come however. Needing a centre-forward, Chelsea paid a huge €113.00m to sign him from Inter but the move would prove disastrous, with Lukaku’s public interview in which he said he was not happy at the club spelling the end for him.

He has now moved to Napoli, following some other loan spells, for €30m.

Cristiano Ronaldo – €247m

Unsurprisingly, one of the greatest players of all time in Cristiano Ronaldo ranks near the top of the list. His first transfer saw him move from Sporting CP to Manchester United for a modest €19m, but he has since completed several big money moves.

He became the world’s most expensive player when he moved from United to Real Madrid for €94m, spending nine years at the club and winning plenty of team and individual honours before moving to Juventus for €117 million in 2018.

The Portugal legend would later move back to United for around €22m, before his contract was terminated after a public fall out with then manager Erik ten Hag.

Joao Felix – €225.7m

As already mentioned, the Portugal forward’s move to Al Nassr sees him rise to fourth in the list. As a youngster, he moved from Benfica to Atletico Madrid for €127.2m. Chelsea spent €11m to sign him on loan in 2023 before paying €52m to sign him permanently a year-and-a-half later, but he would fail to make an impact and will be hoping for a better time in the Saudi Pro League.

Ousmane Dembele – €220m

It took a while for Dembele to realise his true potential but he is now firmly in the Ballon d’Or conversation having helped PSG to the treble last season.

Borussia Dortmund paid €35m for him back in 2016 before selling him to Barcelona for €135m. PSG paid €50m after an underwhelming spell in La Liga and have certainly got their money’s worth.

Alvaro Morata – €208m

The 32-year-old striker is now at Galatasaray after securing his latest move. Similar to Lukaku, Morata has moved clubs very often in his career. His first move came when he transferred from Real Madrid to Juventus for €20m, before moving back the other way for €30m.

Chelsea would then pay €66m to sign him from Madrid but sold him at a loss when he moved to Atletico Madrid for €35m. Juventus paid €20m just to sign him on loan again in 2020 before Atletico sold him to AC Milan for €13m.

Antoine Griezmann – €206m

The French forward started out at Real Sociedad before moving to Atletico Madrid for a sizable €54m. He spent five years in Madrid before moving to Barcelona for €120m. Atletico then paid €10m to sign him on loan in 2021 before re-signing him permanently for €22m.

Matthijs de Ligt – €197.5m

Manchester United defender de Ligt’s first big move came when Juventus paid €85.5m to sign him from Ajax where he had established himself as one of the top young defenders in Europe. It would not work out quite as planned, however, and Bayern Munich signed the Dutchman for €67m in 2022.

His transfer value continued to fall and Man Utd paid €45m to sign him in 2024.

Matheus Cunha – €192.2m

Another newcomer to the list after joining Manchester United this summer for €74.2m. RB Leipzig paid €15m to sign him from FC Sion in 2018 before Hertha Berlin spent €18m for his signature two years later. From there, he would move on to Atletico Madrid, who paid €35m, and then Wolves for €50m, with his transfer value continuing to steadily increase.

Phillipe Coutinho – €180.3m

Just beating Kylian Mbappe to a top ten spot is Coutinho, who completed a huge €135m to Barcelona in 2018 from Liverpool. The Reds had previously signed him for a modest €13m from Inter Milan, while Aston Villa paid €20m to sign him from Barcelona in 2022.