We take a look at the other player who’ve recently made big money La Liga moves after Luis Suarez signs for Barcelona.
The worst kept secret in football is out – Luis Suarez is a Barcelona player and has become the latest Premier League stars to make the big money move to either side of the El Clasico divide in La Liga.
Real Madrid and Barcelona seem to hold a particular allure for players plying their trade in the Premier League, with the bright lights of Spain having attracted a number of stars over the years from England’s biggest clubs.
Suarez is right up there as one of the most expensive – but here are six other players who’ve made the move for big money in recent years.
Gareth Bale (Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid)
Wales international Gareth Bale became the world’s most expensive footballer when he made the move from Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid in the summer of 2013.
The former Southampton trainee was sounded out by Real following an incredible season at White Hart Lane in which he was the Premier League’s most devastating performer, terrorising opposition teams with his mixture of pace, power and that sublime left foot.
Bale enjoyed a successful first season in La Liga, becoming a Real Madrid hero when scoring a stunning winning goal against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final and the decisive second goal against Atletico Madrid in extra time of the rivals’ classic Champions League final in Lisbon.
Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United to Real Madrid)
Before Bale, the previous world transfer record was also broken by a Premier League player moving to the Spanish capital, when Real Madrid signed Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo for around £80 million in 2009.
The Portuguese star has become an undisputed success since making the move to the Bernabeu, becoming the club’s leader and figurehead whilst rising to the position of one of the top two players in the world, alongside Lionel Messi.
Ronaldo made his intentions to leave Manchester clear as soon as Real Madrid seemed to come calling for the former Sporting Lisbon player’s services, showing just how much of a lure the Spanish giants have for players from an Iberian background.
Javier Mascherano (Liverpool to Barcelona)
Another Premier League player to make a significant transfer to Barcelona was Javier Mascherano, with the Argentina holding midfielder having joined the Catalan club from Liverpool for a fee of around £17m in 2010.
Mascherano eventually enjoyed a successful spell in the Premier League with Liverpool – but only after an unhappy time at West Ham United where he often played second fiddle to now-Notts County midfielder Hayden Mullins.
Picked up by Rafael Benitez, Mascherano showed the extent of his significant skill-set at Anfield, going on to become one of the world’s most accomplished defensive midfielders before being operated in central defence by Barca.
Xabi Alonso (Liverpool to Real Madrid)
Having once enjoyed a formidable partnership with Mascherano at the heart of the Liverpool midfield, Xabi Alonso found himself on the opposite side the El Clasico divide to his former teammate after he joined Real Madrid in 2009 for a fee of around £30m.
The classy holding midfielder became one of the key parts of both the Real Madrid team and the Spanish national side that won three successive major international tournaments from 2008.
He is still at the Bernabeu, missing out on the Champions League final against Atletico Madrid this year but returning to play a part in Spain’s ill-fated World Cup campaign in Brazil.
David Beckham (Manchester United to Real Madrid)
Perhaps the first player of the Premier League era to make a particularly significant move from the Premier League to La Liga was David Beckham, who moved from Manchester United to Real Madrid for a fee of £24.5m in 2003.
Beckham had fallen out with Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson in the wake of the infamous boot-kicking incident in the dressing room, but was one of the world’s biggest footballing stars when he arrived in the Spanish capital as one of the original Galacticos.
He was a success at Real Madrid, earning the love and respect of the club’s supporters before moving on to the Los Angeles Galaxy in MLS.
Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal to Barcelona
The last significant player to leave the Premier League for Barcelona was Cesc Fabregas, who arrived at the Nou Camp for a fee eventually rising to £35m in 2011.
Fabregas now finds himself back in the Premier League, having signed for former club Arsenal’s bitter rivals Chelsea this summer when he was put up for sale by the La Liga club.
Fabregas played for Barcelona as a teenager before being lured to England by Arsene Wenger, who promised increased first team opportunities – something that he lived up to as Fabregas developed into one of Europe’s finest central midfielders.