Footballers are like gold in their Prime especially if they are young in age. Here are the ten most expensive players in the world as of January 2021 according to CIES Football Observatory. These players’ ranking is based on the player’s age, length of their contract, performance, and injury history.
The top estimated value was calculated for the 23-year-old Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford: €165 M. With only 18 months of contract remaining, the former leader Kylian Mbappé falls back to fifth place.
The 20-year-old Norwegian prolific striker Erling Haaland ranks second with an estimated transfer value of €152M. The 22-year-old English full international Trent Alexander-Arnold completes the podium. The Liverpool’s full-back is the most expensive defender ahead of Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies (€139M) and Manchester City’s Rúben Dias (€127M). The top estimated values for midfielders and goalkeepers were recorded for Bruno Fernandes (€151 M) and Ederson Moraes (€80M).
With only six months of contract remaining, Lionel Messi just makes the top 100 list: 97th with an estimated value of €54M. Despite his excellent performances, 35-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo (€47M) is only 131st. This is mainly due to his age and the relatively short duration of his contract with Juventus (until June 2022).
| Name | Price Tag | Football Club |
| Marcus Rashford (fw) | €165.6M | Man. United |
| Erling Haaland (fw) | €152M | B. Dortmund |
| Trent Alexander-Arnold (df) | €151.6M | Liverpool |
| Bruno Fernandes (md) | €151.1M | Man. United |
| Kylian Mbappé (fw) | €149.4M | PSG |
| Jadon Sancho (fw) | €148.3M | B. Dortmund |
| João Félix (fw) | €141.5M | Atlético Madrid |
| Alphonso Davies (df) | €139.2M | Bayern |
| Raheem Sterling (fw) | €136.9M | Man. City |
| Kai Havertz (md) | €136M | Chelsea |
This ranking is based in particular on the player’s age, length of their contract, performance, and injury history as projected by CIES Football Observatory. See full list here