14. David Villa (Barcelona) – £37m
David Villa has played a key role for Barcelona and Spain during the club and national side’s most successful spells ever, as well as being la Roja’s all-time top goalscorer.
He scored vital goals during Spain’s 2010 World Cup win, as well as at the European Championship in 2008 where he was top goalscorer. At Barcelona he has fitted in to their philosophy and popped up with some timely strikes in big matches, particularly in the 2010-11 Champions League final win over Manchester United.
Villa’s first big transfer came in 2005 when Valencia agreed to pay Zaragoza £10 million for the striker, before Barca paid £34m for his services in 2010 and offered him a contract worth £94,000-a-week, with up to £814,000 a year on offer through bonuses.
The two major transfers in Villa’s career will have earned him substantial wealth as Spanish clubs are obliged to pay their players 15% of their transfer fees. Villa enjoys a high profile status in Spain and that is reflected in a lucrative and long-running agreement with Adidas, while he also commands substantial off-field income from sponsorship agreements with Big Cola, Mahou, Maxibon and Gameloft.