Here’s a look at the most expensive Premier League XI – the most costly signing for each position in a 4-4-2 formation of players currently in the division.
Unsurprisingly, Manchester City dominate, but some recent signings at Liverpool and Chelsea are also in along two of Manchester United’s star names.
Here’s the actual XI, which certainly looks pretty strong on paper, even if many of the league’s best names like Harry Kane, Mohamed Salah and Eden Hazard obviously don’t come anywhere close to making it in.
Here we run through each player in the team and rate how well they’ve actually done and if they’ve justified those hefty price tags (courtesy of Wikipedia)…
Goalkeeper: Kepa Arrizabalaga
Signed for £71.6million from Athletic Bilbao this summer, Kepa Arrizabalaga has big gloves to fill at Chelsea after replacing Thibaut Courtois.
For all his quality, the 23-year-old doesn’t arrive with too much top level experience, but has suddenly become the most expensive goalkeeper of all time.
We’re yet to truly see him challenged after a dominant start to the new season by Chelsea, who’ve won four out of four and enjoyed the bulk of possession in every game, so the jury’s still out on this one.
Centre-back: Virgil van Dijk
Costing a whopping £75m, a few eyebrows were raised when Liverpool made Virgil van Dijk the most expensive defender in history back in January.
However, the former Southampton man arguably looks a bargain now after some commanding displays at the back for the Reds, helping turn them into a solid outfit at the back at long last.
Possibly future captain material as well, Van Dijk’s signing looks well worth it for Liverpool as it puts them in a good position to finally win the Premier League title after such a long drought.
Centre-back: Aymeric Laporte
Another January signing, Aymeric Laporte has done well enough at Manchester City, though he hasn’t always been a guaranteed starter.
The Frenchman shone in La Liga so should prove himself a decent purchase before too long, but at the moment you’d possibly argue City slightly overpaid here.
Right-back: Kyle Walker
Another City defender, Kyle Walker has looked well worth the £50m investment from Tottenham last season, improving even more under Pep Guardiola at the Etihad Stadium.
A superb defensive player with a great engine and the technique to contribute going forward, Walker is absolutely ideal for the way Guardiola likes City to play.
The exact moment @kylewalker2 told me he was going to score a screamer ?? #YouOnlyCanWinWhenKyleScores #WeKeepEating ? pic.twitter.com/QFfkXDiT05
— Benjamin Mendy (@benmendy23) September 1, 2018
Left-back: Benjamin Mendy
A Premier League champion and World Cup winner, it’s been a hell of a year for Benjamin Mendy despite not actually playing that much football.
The left-back has done well whenever used for City, and should prove worth the £52m price tag at some point after initially impressing at Monaco.
Also, his Twitter game is absolutely on point, so for banter points alone he’s pretty good value for money.
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