Following his reported £142m transfer to La Liga giants, Barcelona from Liverpool, Philippe Coutinho has edged his name into the football's expensive transfers of all-time list. 

Coutinho's transfer is now officially the second most expensive transfer ever after Neymar's move to Paris Saint-Germain, 120 million euros (£106m) is to be paid up front with another 40 million euros (£36m) performance related.

The final deal will be eclipsed only by the £200m Paris St-Germain paid Barcelona for Neymar last summer, and the £165.7m Kylian Mbappe will cost PSG at the end of his initial loan spell from Monaco.

Here, we look at the top ten most expensive transfers in the history of the game .

10. Neymar (Santos to Barcelona (2013) for £71.5m)


Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, commonly known as Neymar or Neymar Jr., is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays for French club Paris Saint-Germain and the Brazil national team.On May 24, 2013, Santos announced that they had received two offers for Neymar and the following day, Neymar announced he would sign with Barcelona on 27 May 2013 and join the team after playing in the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup. Neither the player nor the clubs released details on the transfer fee but media reports had it that he signed a five-year deal that cost Barcelona about £71.5m.

9. Virgil van Dijk (Southampton to Liverpool (2017) for £75m)


Virgil van Dijk is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a centre back for Premier League club Liverpool and the Dutch national team.On 27 December 2017, Van Dijk became the most expensive defender in football history after it was announced that the Dutchman would join Liverpool when the winter transfer window opened on 1 January 2018 for a reported fee of £75 million.

8. Gonzalo Higuain (Napoli to Juventus (2016) for £79.8m)

Gonzalo Gerardo Higuaín is an Argentine professional footballer who plays for Italian club Juventus and the Argentina national team.After a month of transfer speculation, on 26 July 2016, Higuaín transferred to rivals Juventus for a fee of €90 million (£79.8m) paid in two installments, becoming one of the highest football transfers of all-time and highest ever transfer for an Italian club.

7. Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United to Real Madrid (2009) for £80m)

Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro GOIH is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish club Real Madrid and the Portugal national team.

Ahead of the 2009–10 season, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner joined Real Madrid for a world record transfer fee at the time, of €94 million (£80m).

6. Gareth Bale (Tottenham to Real Madrid (2013) for £86m)

Gareth Frank Bale is a Welsh professional footballer who plays for Spanish club Real Madrid and the Wales national team.On September 1, 2013, Real Madrid announced that they had reached an agreement with Tottenham Hotspur for the transfer of Bale, signing a six-year deal for an undisclosed fee believed to be a transfer fee of €100 million (£88m).

5. Paul Pogba (Juventus to Manchester United (2016) for £89m)

Paul Labile Pogba is a French professional footballer who plays for Premier League club Manchester United and the French national team.Two years after he refused a contract at Manchester United for a move to Serie A giants Juventus, Pogba on August 8, 2016 returned to Old Trafford on a five-year contract for a then-record for highest football transfer fee at €105 million (£89.3m) plus bonuses of €5 million, surpassing the former record holder Gareth Bale.

4. Romelu Lukaku (Everton to Manchester United (2017) for £90m)

Romelu Menama Lukaku Bolingoli is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Manchester United and the Belgium national team.Lukaku who is one of only five players to score 50 Premier League goals before his 23rd birthday Lukaku joined Manchester United on July 10, 2017, signing a five-year contract with the option of a further year. Although the fee was officially undisclosed, it was reported to be worth an initial £75 million, plus £15 million in add-ons.

3. Ousmane Dembele (Borussia Dortmund to Barcelona (2017) for £97m)

Ousmane Dembele is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish club Barcelona and the France national team.Dembélé began his career at Rennes before joining Dortmund in 2016. On August 25, 2017, Barcelona announced that they had reached an agreement to sign the youngster for €105 million plus a reported €40 million add-ons. He signed a five-year contract, with his buyout clause set at €400 million.

2. Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool to Barcelona (2018) £142m)

Philippe Coutinho Correia is a Brazilian professional footballer who now plays for Barcelona and the Brazilian national team.On January 6, 2018, Liverpool confirmed that they had reached an agreement with Barcelona for the transfer of Coutinho. His transfer fee is reported to be an initial £105 million, which could rise to £142 million with various clauses being met.

1. Neymar (Barcelona to PSG (2017) £198m)

On August, 3, 2017, Barcelona announced that Neymar's legal representatives made a payment of €222 million to the club (most expensive transfer ever), equal to the release clause of his contract (which was activated by the player himself) and joined French club Paris Saint-Germain on a five-year deal.

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