The Most Expensive Spanish Player Transfers of All Time

In honor of the 2011 Winter Transfer Market, I thought that I would do some anoraking and find out who are the most expensive Spanish Player transfers ever. Some of them are the well know Spanish Internationals, others hit the highest heights, but fell tragically short over the span of their careers.


So who are they?


1) El Niño Fernando Torres from Liverpool to Chelsea - 58M - 2011

The new obssession of Roman Abramovich was purchased this January for a cool 58 million. The star of Euro 2008 left in search of trophies, Champions League football, and a new life. Let's hope Torres can find his health and form in London. This sale broke the bank and the record for Spanish player transfers. A brilliant bit of business for Liverpool, who purchased the striker from Atlético Madrid in 2007 for 36 million. That's a profit of 22 million!


2) Gaizka Mendieta from Valencia to Lazio - 48M - 2001

Back in the day, when Italy was the king of football and Lazio was a big spender, Valencia did a good bit of business by selling their star player, Gaizka Mendieta to Lazio. Real Madrid was also interested in the Basque player, but their 24 million offer was no comparison to the Roman team's. Unfortunately, Mendieta never quite hit his stride in Serie A and returned back to Spain on loan in the 2002-3 season and never quite settled thereafter.


3) El Guaje David Villa to from Valencia to Barcelona - 40M - 2010

The tug of war between Real Madrid and Barçelona over Villa lasted way too long and even affected the striker's Confederation Cup performance back in 2009. He did not end up moving that year, due to low ball offers from both clubs. Real Madrid ended up with Benzema and Barçelona with Zlatan. Well, Los Culés learned their lesson and offloaded the big Swede and bought Spain's number one. He has fit into the team like a glove.


4) El Niño Torres from Atlético Madrid to Liverpool - 36M - 2007
See no 1) above. Double Ca-Ching!


5) Xabi Alonso from Liverpool to Real Madrid - 34M - 2009

The apple of Florentino Perez' eye, ever since the first Galactico era, Real Madrid's jefe finally got his man. Alonso is the engine of the Real Madrid midfield and team. He is probably the most important and intelligent player on the pitch.


6) David Silva from Valencia to Manchester City - 30M - 2010

Valencia is a selling team and desperately needed the money from the sale of the midfield magician. Mourinho passed on the Gran Canarian, so City swooped in. He is combining brilliantly with Carlitos Tevez.


7) Sergio Ramos from Sevilla to Real Madrid - 27M - 2005

A shock to the system back then, as Florentino Perez dared to open the coffers for a Spanish defender! The versatile player now looks like money well spent as he can play at right back, central defense and even as an attacking winger.


8) Joaquin from Real Betis to Valencia - 25M - 2006

A record sale for Real Betis and the beginning of the end of free spending Valencia. A bit overrated and overpriced, the speedy winger is now captain for Los Che.


9) Gerard Lopez from Valencia to Barçelona - 21.6M - 2000

Part of the Valencia team that reached the Champions League final, he was one of the best at his position in midfield. Barça won the auction over the player the summer after. Though a regular during his five years at Barçelona, he was never in the starting 11 consistently. The player never really reached those same early heights and was plagued with injuries and personal tragedy. Lopez is still only 31 and is currently playing for Girona FC in the second division.


10) Jose Marí from Atlético Madrid to AC Milan - 19.2M - 2000

Prolific with Los Colchoneros, he was part of the team in 1999 that beat Real Madrid twice (in two separate seasons), AC Milan came a calling for the Andaluz striker. Marí failed to settle in Italy. He soon found himself loaned back to Atlético, then Villarreal, then Real Betis and so on. The 32 year old is currently playing for Xerez in the second division.


11) Francisco Javier Farinós from Valencia to Inter Milan - 18M - 2000

A contemporary of Gerard Lopez and part of the same Valencia team who were sub champions in the 2000 Champions League final, the midfielder caught the eye of Inter Milan and signed a contract for 5 years. He too was injury plagued and did not have much success in Serie A. He became a journeyman, moving from team to team. The 32 year old currently plays for Hercules in La Primera.


12) Dani Guiza from Mallorca to Fenerbache - 17.4M - 2008

Desparate for money, the Islanders sold the Andaluz pichichi to Fenerbache, where he has been inconsistent and plagued by injuries. I expect him to return to Spain soon.

13) The 15M club: Jose Antonio Reyes (Sevilla to Arsenal - 2004), Albert Luque (Deportivo La Coruña to Newcastle - 2005), Raul Albiol (Valencia to Real Madrid - 2010), Alvaro Negredo (Real Madrid to Sevilla - 2010), and Alfonso Perez (Real Betis to Barça -2000)

Getafe's Best Players of the Decade

Continuing our top ten or best XI of the decade series, we go to Ewan Macdonald from Getafe-escocia!

The following XI was compiled with the gracious assistance of the fans at Getafeweb.

Pato
Contra - Belenguer - Alexis - Pernía
Pedro León - De la Red - Vivar Dorado - Gavilán
Soldado - Güiza

Roberto 'Pato' Abbondanzieri (GK): The first name on the teamsheet and the man who more than any other exemplified Getafe's rise from minnows to La Liga mainstays. A real coup of a signing: as Argentina's number one he had plenty of options throughout Europe, but he chose Getafe. His twilight years were well-spent at the Coliseum, and although he is uncharitably remembered for high-profile errors against Bayern Munich he remains the only Geta player to have won Marca's "Zamora" award for top goalie, shipping just 32 league goals in the 2006-07 campaign.

Cosmin Contra (DR): A fiery figure who spent four injury-hit but brilliant years at the club, Contra was a tough-tackling, line-hugging full-back for the ages. A fan favourite due to his combative nature on the pitch, and a problem child in the dressing room due to the same off it, he was a player who, once seen, was never forgotten. Left under something of a cloud in 2010 but the memories of his tenure mark him out as the best and most influential right-back of the last ten years.

David Belenguer (DC): A defender neither fast nor tall, David Belenguer nonetheless served as Getafe's skipper and first choice centre-back for over half the decade. Present for all the team's best moments, including promotion, and always reliable. Still one of the most revered names in the club's history and still playing at the age of 38 at Real Betis.

Alexis (DC): It was virtually impossible to choose between Alexis and current centre-back Cata Díaz. Alexis only narrowly gets the nod: were it not for injuries his career might have gone in a better direction, but even so his calm, assured, almost languid defensive performances were a joy to behold during his all-too-brief stay at the Coliseum. A one-season wonder who should have remained..

Pernía (DL): The big-domed Argentine became Getafe's first Spanish international when he took citizenship and donned the red shirt before crossing town to join Atlético Madrid. Prior to that he was one of Getafe's greatest finds, arriving from Recre in Geta's top-flight debut season. Like Contra, he wasn't a defender who restricted himself to his own half, but one who used every inch of the touchline.

Pedro León (MR): Like Alexis, Pedro only stopped at the Coliseum for a single campaign. But the impact he had was undeniable. The classiest right-midfielder in the club's history - ousting even Pablo Hernández - Pedro was as likely to score goals as he was to set them up, and more often than not they were audacious screamers that most players wouldn't even try on the training ground. Ultimately sold to Real Madrid for €10m - his release clause.

Rubén de la Red (MC): A commanding, sophisticated midfielder whose career was sadly cut short in its prime. De la Red enjoyed one tremendous season at Getafe in which he would become the best pivot the club had ever seen. Alongside erstwhile Madrid teammate Esteban Granero he formed a devastating trigger to most attacking moves, and his positional sense was well-utilised in the defensive phase. He rejoined his boyhood club Madrid in the summer of 2008; three months later his career was over due to heart trouble. He was just 23 when he hung up his boots to take up coaching.

Ángel Vivar Dorado (MC): Of all the players on this list, Vivar Dorado joined the club the earliest, signing from nearby Rayo Vallecano in 2002. Prior to this he'd represented local rivals Leganés, Tenerife, and Racing - but it was at Getafe that he finally made his mark as a tenacious and classy attacking midfielder. Always entertaining to watch, his was the name on most replica shirts in the middle of the decade.

Jaime Gavilán (MR): Narrowly the best left-sided player in the club's history, there is a nagging feeling that despite Jaime's undoubted talents, he's yet to fully unleash his potential. Still, he's a mainstay on the left wing and offers a great deal of finesse and control when on the ball. Spent two loan spells at the club before finally signing on full-time in 2008: now he's considered an automatic first pick.

Roberto Soldado (ST): Two seasons and over 30 goals, Roberto Soldado is now onto bigger and better things at Valencia, having been let go by boyhood club Real Madrid earlier in his career. What a poor piece of judgement from the Bernabéu side, who failed to see the potential that the rest of Spanish football noticed in Soldado's pace, power, control, and of course that deadly shot. A true team player who breaks the mould of the "poaching" forward.

Dani Güiza (ST): Dani didn't manage quite as many goals in Madrid as did Roberto, but in his two seasons at Getafe he nonetheless proved himself to be one of the league's fastest-improving forwards. Never the type to drop back too much, he was a penalty-box forward of the old school, and had a fierce and accurate shot that put most other forwards to shame. Eventually re-joined Mallorca and is now at Fenerbahce in Turkey. Every so often he's linked with a move back to Geta - how the fans wish it were true!

Honorable Mentions (7-Man Subs' Bench): Jordi Codina (GK); Cata Díaz (DC), Javier Paredes (DR); Casquero (DM/MC), Manu del Moral (AMC/AML/ST), Pablo Hernández (AMR); Gica (ST).

Real Club de Mallorca Best XI of the Decade

Continuing our series of looking at the best players of the decade, we turn to our friend Jeremy Tanner from the Mallorca Offside blog for his Best XI.

I am going with a 4-3-1-2 formation based on the strengths of the club.

Let's start with the two strikers. Mallorca has had lots of good strikers, many of which performed better for other clubs, but my top two choices were not that difficult to make.

SAMUEL ETO'O(2000-04)

If you have watched Eto'o for any length of time, you know his greatness. He was Real Madrid owned yet at age 19 in 2000, came to Mallorca where he spent four seasons showing the flashes of talent that led him to even more goal scoring success at Barca and now Inter. With over 150 appearances for Mallorca and 50 plus goals, he is probably our best player of the decade and has stated often he wants to finish his career in Palma.

DANI GUIZA(1999-03, 2007-08)

Any long time Mallorca fan knows the wasted promise that was Guiza in the early part of the decade. He started as part of the B team as a youngster and did nothing by the time he left in 2003. He returned as a project in 2007 and spent the next year winning the Pichichi as La Liga's top goal scorer with 27 goals, none of which were PKs. He simply dominated and put his partying ways aside to develop his talent which lead to a place in Spain's winning team for EURO 2008. While he then took the money and went to Turkey where he has regressed. His foundation in Mallorca in the early part of the decade with a return for a magical season earns him the partnership with Eto'o. These two at their best would match up with any strike partnership of any team this decade.


Midfield

For a small club, Mallorca has had some great midfielders as well over the past decade so picking four is not as obvious as it may seem. I am picking the obvious talented and long serving choices, but including a couple of supremely talented players who made brief contributions to the team or may see their full potential realized elsewhere.

In this formation, I am going to add a "Triquartista" attacking midfielder and that choice is:

BORJA VALERO(2007-08, 2009-10)

In terms of a decade long analysis, this may be a slight reach, but I think he belongs in this team. He is basically a Real Madrid man, but he came to Mallorca in 2007-08 and did not do a lot, was then sold to West Brom for 08-09, but came back to Mallorca for 2009-10 where he was our best player and lead the team to a 5th place finish. Take him off that team and we are mid table. His talent is obvious and at age 25, he is now in Villarreal and is a big part of the future for the Spanish national team. Players who stand out in Mallorca but will make it big elsewhere are the epitome of Mallorca's team and players like Valero and my next midfield choice should have a few places on this team.

The next choice is:
GONZALO "CHORI" CASTRO(2007-Current).

I am going to go with him for the final spot in the midfield over Fernando Varela, who was a little more steady over a longer time in the decade but simply not as good. Castro came to Palma from his home country of Uruguay in 2007. He started slow but took over for Valera in 2009 and spent 2009-10 becoming one of Mallorca's top players. Still only 26, he will move on and likely get more recognition elsewhere. Because most of the other midfielders who did not make this team may have played longer and held starting positions for longer, they simply were not spectacular enough to stand out and make an all decade team.

The last two places in the midfield are probably the most obvious as these two guys combined talent and longevity to making Mallorca a better squad.

ARIEL IBAGAZA(1998-03, 2006-08) is an obvious choice for the midfield. He came to Mallorca from Argentina in 1998 and was part of the CL qualifying team and the Copa winning team. He left in 2003 and returned in 2006 playing two more years before heading on to Villarreal. His leadership and ability to read the game might put him on any all time Mallorca team not to mention the team of the decade. With over 200 appearances in the decade and the ability to make those around him better, earns him a place on this team.

The last spot in our midfield goes to JUAN ARANGO(2004-09), the best player ever to come out of Venezuela. After some early years in the Mexican league, he came to Palma in 2004 and spent 5 years with us where he was likely the best player in the team while they struggled to survive. After combining with Guiza in 2008-09 to help make Mallorca one of the most exciting teams around, he was sold to Monchengladbach in Germany for a paltry 3 million. He was a faster, higher scoring Carlos Valderrama type player who controlled the game for Mallorca in the midfield, but scored many big goals when needed as an attacking midfielder. He and Borja Valero are so good that they would fight for that attacking midfielder role, but I would keep Arango behind Valero on the field simply because of his maturity and the ability to read the game. Another player who would probably make a Mallorca all time team in addition to the team of the decade.

The back four is where it gets a bit tough as most of Mallorca's stand out defenders played early in the decade and unless you are a real Mallorca fan, you may not know many of these guys.

The first choice is probably pretty obvious in MIGUEL ANGEL NADAL.

Nadal is Mallorca through and through as he is from the island and started his career in 1986. He spent the 90s playing for Barca but returned to Palma in 1999 and played out his career until 2005. Even in his later years, he was still strong in the back and his heading and leadership was second to none. Part of the CL and Copa del Rey winning teams in the first half of the decade, he is another player that probably makes an all time team in addition to an all decade team. He is now part of the coaching staff with Laudrup and will likely take over for him when Laudrup is either fired or can't be paid or if the team is successful and Laudrup's ego takes him to a bigger club. One word for Nadal is simply Legend.


IVAN RAMIS(2001-current; on loan to Valladolid 05-06)

Ramis makes this team because not only has he been a solid player the whole decade starting with the B team at age 16 and the top level since 2004 at age 20, but because he has improved to the point where now, at age 26, he is Mallorca's top defender and is coveted by top clubs. He missed out on a move to Celtic last year but is still likely to be sold when the right offer comes in as he is now at peak value. Like Nadal, he is strong at the back and his height makes him great at clearances, but his stability, improvement, and overall contributions the entire decade all by age 26, earn him a place on this all decade team.


FERNANDO NAVARRO(2005-08).

After developing in the Barcelona system, Navarro came to Mallorca in 2005 and spent 3 seasons drastically improving while helping Mallorca transition from relegation struggler to European challenger. His toughness, consistency, and strength, in over 100 appearances for the club, caused him to stand out enough to earn a place on the national squad for Spain for EURO 2008 and a move to Sevilla that summer. At age 28 he is an important player for Sevilla and like many players, we got to see a portion of his prime and development in Palma.


FERNANDO NINO(1998-2005).

Nino is best known for the stability he helped create in the back with Nadal as they were the strength of the defense for the first half of the decade while Mallorca saw so many other players try to earn regular places. He was a big part of the CL team and the Copa winning side. Like Nadal his heading, strength, leadership, and durability, gave the coaches a player they could count on for years until an injury cut short his career in 2005. Like most defenders, he earned his reputation quietly and over a long period of time.


Keeper

LEO FRANCO(1999-04)

Despite the great play of current keeper Aouate, the decade long potential that was Miguel Moya, the player of the decade in goal has to be Franco. With almost 150 appearnces in the first half of the decade, he gave a lot to the team before moving on to Atletico Madrid. He was the keeper on the 3rd place team from 2000-01 and won the Copa del Rey in 2003. While certainly up and down in his performances, his longevity and team results says something. He was a solid keeper and his results earn him this spot even though Aouate and Moya probably are better overall keepers from a talent standpoint.


Bench

For all the great choices, there are plenty of players that would make a nice bench even if most of them didn't play for Mallorca for very long or did not show their real talent until after they left.

Names like Riera, Luque, Tristan, Jonas Gutierrez, David Navarro, and Aritz Aduriz are players who would be great subs on this team.

For a small club, you would be hard to find a team with a better overall starting XI then Mallorca for the decade.