ANKARA
French football star Paul Pogba became the most expensive signing in history Tuesday when Manchester United agreed a 105 million euro ($116.4 million) deal with Italy’s Juventus.
The 23-year-old left the English club on a free transfer in the summer of 2012. In addition to the initial fee, there will be bonuses related to his performance on the pitch.
The midfielder’s deal surpassed the money paid for Real Madrid duo Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo -- previously the world’s largest signings. Bale joined from Tottenham Hotspur for 101 million euros ($112.1 million) in 2013 while Ronaldo signed from United for 94 million euro ($104.3 million) in 2009.
Pogba also broke Zinedine Zidane’s former record as the most expensive French player.
According to the German football database website Transfermarkt, the 10 most expensive signings in football history were:
Player | To | From | Season | Transfer fee (million euro) |
1. Paul Pogba (France) | Manchester United | Juventus | 2016-2017 | 105 |
2. Gareth Bale (Wales) | Real Madrid | Tottenham | 2013-2014 | 101 |
3. Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) | Real Madrid | Manchester United | 2009-2010 | 94 |
4. Gonzalo Higuain (Argentina) | Juventus | Napoli | 2016-2017 | 90 |
5. Neymar (Brazil) | Barcelona | Santos | 2013-2014 | 88.2 |
6. Luis Suarez (Uruguay) | Barcelona | Liverpool | 2014-2015 | 81.7 |
7. Angel Di Maria (Argentina) | Manchester United | Real Madrid | 2014-2015 | 75 |
8. James Rodriguez (Colombia) | Real Madrid | Monaco | 2014-2015 | 75 |
9. Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium) | Manchester City | Wolfsburg | 2015-2016 | 74 |
10. Zinedine Zidane (France) | Real Madrid | Juventus | 2001-2002 | 73.5 |
*Reporting by Huseyin Burak Demirer; Writing by Can Erozden
