Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever

Paris Saint-Germain, founded in 1970, might not be one of the oldest clubs in the world, but it has certainly been able to present itself well on the professional stage. While once considered as a last station for retiring icons, PSG have turned into the first choice of many young talents, rising stars and already successful superstars, becoming one of the powerhouses of recent times. Their newfound success might not have been found so early if it were not for its acquisition by Qatari Sports Investments organization, which is owned by the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

With Nasser Al-Khelaifi in charge as the president of the club, the top-10

most expensive signings in Paris Saint-Germain history

all arrived in the 2010s as their previous most expensive signing before this era dates back to the 2000/01 season. The Qatari owners have spent ridiculous amounts of money in order to turn the tides in PSG’s favor and create one of the best modern football clubs in the world. Of course some are still hesitant when it comes to taking the Parisians serious due to their lack of continental trophies.

It is time we got to know who

most expensive signings ever are, and how much they have actually cost. Most of the footballs might already know about some of the more recent transfers, but there are also others on the list of PSG most expensive transfers ever that might be less known to everyone.

most expensive signings in Paris Saint-Germain history

Here is the list of

PSG most expensive transfers ever

. How much longer do you think the Parisians can keep up with spending exorbitant amounts of money without being suspended by UEFA Financial Fair Play Regulations?

Nicolas Anelka

• Price: €34m

When it comes to experiencing different cultures and play styles, few players reach the number of times Nicolas Anelka has changed clubs during his career. The French forward has played for a total of 12 clubs during his footballing days, which includes the likes of

, Chelsea, Juventus, Liverpool, PSG and many others. In fact, the most number appearances he has made for a club stands at 184, the number of games he played for

.

Anelka was actually a PSG player before joining Arsenal and then Real Madrid, which is quite interesting to see that he became

Paris Saint-Germain’s all-time most expensive signings

only after his second arrival at the club.

He moved back to PSG from Real Madrid for €34 million, which made him one of the Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever. But it seems that it did not turn out to be a wise investment after all. He spent a year on loan at Liverpool and only managed make 69 appearances for PSG, scoring 19 goals and adding another 2 assists to his tally.

Julian Draxler

• Price: €36m

Julian Draxler put his name on the list of Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever after his €36 million move from away from

to Paris in the 2016/17 winter transfer window. He is well known for his impressive versatility on the pitch, which allows him to play in almost any position managers ask of him, Left, right or Center midfield, left wing, right wing or center forward, you name it.

While the German midfielder was only able to get his hands on a couple of trophies in Germany, He has spent a fruitful number of seasons in France as has added several trophies and league titles to his trophy cabinet with the Parisians. As one of the

most expensive PSG signings ever

, the 27-year-old has been able to impress at his current club, scoring 22 goals and providing 32 assists in more than 145 appearances in almost three years at PSG.

Thilo Kehrer

• Price: €37m

The German center-back was brought in to the club as a breath of fresh air in the back in order to create a much more solid defensive line. He joined the Parisians from

for €37 million, which made him one of the most expensive PSG signings ever. He went on to make 27 solid appearances in the 2018/19 season, but one of the most difficult problems of his career began in 2019 as he spent several months on the sidelines do to various foot injuries, and only managed to play in seven Ligue 1 games last season.

His injuries seem to be much more persistent than thought, however, as he has been injured once again this season, which is definitely no good news for the club. They might even doubt having him on the list of

Paris Saint-Germain highest transfer fee paid ever

. In total, he has made 63 appearances, even scoring 2 goals in the process, adding another 2 assists as well, which leaves him and everyone else wondering about what could have happened if he were not injured so much.

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Leandro Paredes

• Price: €40m

Leandro Paredes moved to Paris from Zenit in the 2019 January transfer window for a reported fee of €40 million, which made him one of Paris Saint-Germain’s all-time most expensive signings. His market value before his move was believed to be €20 million which then rose above €40 million after his expensive move to Paris as fans believed he could be a set of fresh lungs in the midfield to enforce the tactics of their manager.

After two and a half years at the club, however, Paredes’ market value as one of the

Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever

, has once again dropped to around €20 million due to his lack of games in recent years, which might be due to the number of midfielders Thomas Tuchel has available. T

he Argentinian midfielder has only made 59 appearances since joining the club in 2019, accumulating 11 yellow cards in the process as well. PSG supporters will have to wait and see if Paredes finally manages to impress the manager enough to be a fixed player on the starting XI, or if he turns out to be flop after all.

Lucas Moura

• Price: €40m

Before the arrival of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe,

used to be the main choice on the wings after he completed one of the

most expensive Paris Saint-Germain transfers of all time

with a €40 million move from Sao Paulo in the 2012/13 season. He had an acceptable performance at his former club, as he enjoyed quite a successful number of seasons in Paris, scoring 46 goals and providing 48 assists in 229 appearances. Of course these are not mind-blowing stats, but keep in mind that these were for the times before the arrival of some of the best football players in the world.

With the arrival of Neymar and later Mbappe in 2017, times had definitely gotten tougher for the Brazilian winger, as he was left out of the starting XI and was later shown the door. He moved to the Premier League side

in the 2018 January transfer window for a reported fee of 28 million Euros.

Javier Pastore

• Price: €42 million

Javier Pastore’s market value was believed to be around €20 million when he moved from Palermo to PSG for €45 million back in the 2011/12 season and became one of Paris Saint-Germain’s all-time most expensive signings.

The first seasons were great for the Argentinian midfielder, but the difficulties began in 2015 when his persistent injuries began to take over his whole career as he watched his teammates play from the sidelines. He spent a major part of 2015 and 2016 injured, which definitely affected his performance.

Pastore made a total of 269 appearances for PSG and managed to bag 45 goals and provide 61 assists in the process, which is not bad at all for a midfielder. Despite the Argentinian’s injuries, Paris were able to dominate French football thanks to his contributions, winning every available trophy in France for at least four consecutive years. Although he was brought in for €42 million as one of the

Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever

, he was sold to

for €24 million, almost half the buying price, in 2018.

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Thiago Silva

• Price: €42m

Regarded as one of the best defenders of his generation, Thiago Silva was one of the integral parts of PSG’s starting XI throughout the years he spent at the club. The now 36-year-old Brazilian center-back was 27 years old when he joined the Parisians from

for reportedly €42 million and became one of the most expensive signings in Paris Saint-Germain history.

He was in fact the second most expensive defender in history behind Rio Ferdinand when he joined PSG, a record that has been broken several times in the past few years alone. In the eight years that Thiago Silva spent at Paris Saint-Germain, he appeared in 315 games and captained the team on many occasions, as he was the first captain of the team.

The Brazilian’s trophy cabinet is full of various trophies thanks to his successful tenure at PSG, where he managed to win 7

titles, 5 Coupe de France trophies, 6 Coupe de la Ligue titles and 7 Trophees des Champions trophies. He also came close to winning the 2019/20 Champions League, but were beaten by the stronger Bayern Munich in the final.

David Luiz

• Price: €49.5m

seems to be one of those players who gets to be a vital part of every team they join, no matter what. Of course he has always earned his place at any club that has been with impressive performances time and time again, which is why Nasser al-Khelaifi opted to splash the cash and spend one of the Paris Saint-Germain highest transfer fee paid ever to bring in the Brazilian center-back from Chelsea for almost €50 million.

Luiz began his career with the Portuguese side

in 2006 and later joined Chelsea after spending four years at his former club. Chelsea was not his final destination, however, as after making more than 245 appearances for the Blues, he decided to move to France and become one of the Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever.

It has simply turned into a norm, that if you join PSG, you are guaranteed to win at least one or two trophies every season, which is why many players such as Luiz himself tend to join the club in order to fill their trophy cabinets with prestigious trophies.

David Luiz created a formidable strong defensive line at the back alongside Thiago Silva, but it did not take long for the player on the list of most expensive Paris Saint-Germain transfers of all time to move back to his former club Chelsea for €35 million in 2016. After spending another three years with the Blues, the 33-year-old center-back has now joined Arsenal for a new challenge as he aims to help Mikel Arteta’s side challenge for several trophies.

Mauro Icardi

• Price: €50m

Mauro Icardi is the Parisians’ most recent signing. He actually spent last season in France on loan from

, but he made his €50 million move away from the Italian side permanent this season as he completed one of PSG’s most expensive transfers ever. Paris Saint-Germain’s lethal attacking front, consisting of Neymar, Mbappe and Di Maria has certainly been a huge asset for the team and the newly arrived striker as he has managed to score 22 goals and provide a further 4 assists in 38 games that he has appeared in PSG’s colors.

It is interesting that how much a player’s market value could be affected by only a couple of fine and impressive performances in a season. Mauro Icardi’s market value proves this theory as his value in 2018 had risen up to a staggering €100 million, but has since dropped down to around €50 million. The 27-year-old striker will certainly have high hopes as he eyes a

trophy with PSG, which will require him and his teammates to put in everything they have got.

Angel Di Maria

• Price: €63m

If you are looking for a master player on the wings with extraordinary versatility, then look no more as Angel Di Maria is the one you had been searching for. The Argentinian is truly one of the best wingers in the world as he has accumulated more than 600 appearances in total in his career, scoring 143 goals and providing a further 218 assists, which is quite impressive for any player anywhere around the globe. Di Maria became one of Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever after completing a move away from Manchester United for €63 million.

Perhaps the only regret he has, is deciding to join

in the first place, a move to England that lasted only a season and only made things worse for both the club and the player. He actually visited his former club in the Champions League after joining PSG, a night during which we witnessed a hilarious troll moment from Di Maria after he pretended to drink from the beer bottle that was thrown at him.

Aside from the horrific season the

international spent at Manchester United, he has had quite a lot of memorable moments in his career, with maybe winning La Decima with

 being one of his best. His move to PSG might be a memorable moment for him as well, since he became one of Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever.

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Edinson Cavani

• Price: €64m

is undoubtedly one of the most lethal strikers of his generation as he scored more than 340 goals in 550 games, which is definitely an impressive feat. Also, if you add the 65 assists that he has provided in his career, you might see that he deserves being one of Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever.

Before joining PSG, Cavani started his career in Italy with Parma and later joined

, where he dominated the game with his lethality and his overall performance. The Uruguayan striker’s phenomenal form helped him score 104 goals in 138 appearances at Napoli, which was truly extraordinary.

After proving his worth in Italy, the young striker joined PSG in 2013 in a deal that was worth €64 million and made Cavani one of Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever. The Ligue 1 defenders simply could not handle the striker as he added yet another 200 goals to his tally in 300 games that he played for the French club. He is without a doubt one of the best PSG players of all time.

Edinson Cavani managed to win everything there was to win in France, including six Ligue 1 titles, 4 Coupe de France trophies, 7 Trophée des Champions titles and many other trophies as well. Now, after spending seven wonderful years at PSG, the 33-year-old striker has joined Manchester United as a free agent and aims to show that he has still got it and it is too soon for him to retire, something that the likes of

, Ronaldo, Messi and many others have proven time and time again.

Kylian Mbappe

• Price: €135m

It seems that the future of football is in good hands as long as the likes of Kylian Mbappe keep impressing the world. Mbappe is surely one of the brightest stars of now and the future as the 21-year-old striker has already managed to 96 goals and provide yet another 55 assists in only 130 games that he has appeared in for PSG. Taking into account that he is only 21 years old, these stats match the likes of Pele and are rarely seen at this stage of European football.

Mbappe won the 2018 World Cup with

, where he shone the brightest for his country and showed the world his immense talent for scoring goals and his extraordinary pace. It is no surprise, then, that the French striker is one of Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever. He actually moved to PSG from

on loan for his first season at the club due to UEFA’s Financial Fair Play Regulations, but the contract had an obligation to buy, which resulted in PSG coughing up €135 million in order to acquire Mbappe’s services.

Not only is Mbappe on the list of Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever, but he is also the most expensive teenager in the world ahead of the €126 million worth Joao Felix. We will be seeing a lot more from these two and we will certainly be talking about them for years to come as the era of Ronaldo v Messi slowly nears an end.

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Neymar

• Price: €222m

Neymar Jr. shocked the world back in 2017 when he decided to leave

and join the Parisians to be on top of the list of Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever. He was believed to be the ‘heir apparent’ to Messi’s throne at Barca. But the Brazilian might have felt overshadowed by the presence of his Argentinian teammate, which to be honest, who wouldn’t?

Neymar was a part of the MSN trio, one of the deadliest trios in football history who managed to score hundreds of goals as they competed against Real Madrid’s BBC trio. Neymar alone scored an outstanding total of 105 goals in 186 appearances for Barcelona, adding another 76 assists to his tally.

It was unfortunate for Barca fans and the club board that

was not satisfied with how things were managed and with being the heir apparent as he desired to be the king at the club, which is why he moved to France and became the number one on the list of Paris Saint-Germain most expensive signings ever.

Of course persistent injuries might not have let the Brazilian winger thrive as much as he had expected as he has spent several months on the sidelines since joining PSG in 2017, which is definitely frustrating for fans and the manager to not have one of the best players in the world at their disposal. We will have to wait and see if Neymar finally gets to achieve what he desired and if he ever manages to bring the Champions League trophy back to Parc des Princes.

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