EPL

Where Harry Kane’s big-money move stands in British football history

By Sports Desk August 12, 2023

Bayern Munich have announced the signing of Tottenham and England striker Harry Kane for an initial £100million.

The fee could eventually rise to £120m including add-ons, which would be a record for a British player.

Here, the PA news agency compares the transfer with previous big-money signings.

Most expensive British players

Based on initial transfer fees, Kane is tied at the top of the list of most expensive British players of all-time.

He joins England team-mates and fellow £100m men Declan Rice and Jack Grealish, with Rice having moved from West Ham to Arsenal in July and Grealish leaving Aston Villa for Manchester City in 2021.

Jude Bellingham is fourth, with Real Madrid paying Borussia Dortmund an initial £88.5m for his services in June.

Then comes another ex-Tottenham player in Gareth Bale, who Spurs sold to Madrid for £85.1m back in 2013.

Kane’s move knocks Harry Maguire out of the top five, although his £80m switch from Leicester to Manchester United in 2019 remains a record for a British defender.

Most expensive over-30s

Kane has become the most expensive player from any country aged over 30.

He surpasses Cristiano Ronaldo, who moved from Real Madrid to Juventus for £99.2m in 2018 at the age of 33.

The size of the fee is testament to Kane’s form, following a season in which he became the all-time record scorer for both Tottenham and England, with nobody else apart from Ronaldo having come close to commanding a nine-figure bid in their 30s.

Ronaldo’s former Real and Manchester United team-mate Casemiro was 30 when he swapped the Bernabeu for Old Trafford for £60m last summer, while Barcelona paid £54.8m for 30-year-old Miralem Pjanic in 2020 and £38.3m for 33-year-old Robert Lewandowski in 2022.

Highest fees received by British clubs

Tottenham have become the fourth British club to receive a nine-figure sum for an individual player.

Liverpool’s sale of Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona in January 2018 remains the most expensive in Premier League history, with the Reds having received an initial fee of £105m and a further £37m in add-ons.

Like Spurs, West Ham and Aston Villa received an initial £100m for Rice and Grealish respectively.

Chelsea’s sale of Eden Hazard to Real Madrid – thought to be worth an initial £88.3 million in 2019 – completes the top five.

Related items

  • Ricketts congratulates 'Bunny' Shaw on FWA Women's Player of the Year award Ricketts congratulates 'Bunny' Shaw on FWA Women's Player of the Year award

    Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) president Michael Ricketts saluted Reggae Girl and Manchester City striker Khadija “Bunny” Shaw on her latest accomplishment of being voted the Football Writers’ Association (FWA) Women’s Player of the Year for the 2023-24 season.

    Shaw won the women’s Footballer of the Year award with 80 per cent of the voters opting for either the Manchester City striker or Chelsea’s Lauren James. James finished runner-up with another Manchester City standout Alex Greenwood finishing third. Yui Hasegawa, Elisabeth Terland and Khiara Keating completed the top six.

    In a release on Friday, Ricketts pointed out that the award spoke volumes of Shaw's impact on Manchester City's Women's Super League charge, as she has been a model of consistency since joining the Gareth Taylor-coached club in 2021. Her performances have placed Manchester City on the brink of securing their first WSL title since 2016.

    “This award is a beautiful feather in her cap and a massive advertisement for Jamaica’s football,” Ricketts said.

     

    “I am happy to see the consistency in quality shown by Khadija. She has always been a top player, but her standard has risen a notch this season. This augurs well for the national team in the future. We wish her all the best on the road to recovery,” he added.

    Prior to Shaw sustaining a broken foot during her last Women’s Super League match against West Ham, the Reggae Girls captain scored 21 goals, which were complemented by three assists in 18 games this season.

    Shaw is the third Jamaican-born individual to have won the award after John Barnes (1987-88, 1989-90) and Raheem Sterling in 2019.

    However, she is the first national representative to receive the honour, as both Barnes and Sterling were England internationals when they earned the recognition.

  • 'It's football hunger' – Moyes intent on West Ham stay as Lopetegui speculation swirls 'It's football hunger' – Moyes intent on West Ham stay as Lopetegui speculation swirls

    David Moyes insisted there remains a "football hunger" to carry West Ham forward as speculation persists over the Hammers moving for Julen Lopetegui.

    Widespread reports suggest West Ham have been in contact with Lopetegui, who left Wolves ahead of the 2023-24 campaign after just eight months in charge.

    Yet Moyes reiterated his commitment to West Ham as the Scotsman aims for another top-10 Premier League finish, with the Hammers ninth in the table heading into the weekend's action.

    "Absolutely, it's football hunger," Moyes responded when questioned on his drive to take West Ham to the next level.

    "I'm nearly a bit embarrassed to be asked that question because I'm a football nut. I love my football, I go to games, I love it, really do. I have got great hunger."

    "I said to everybody that we will make a decision at the end of the season."

    West Ham and Moyes will hope to end a three-game winless run in the league when they head to London rivals Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

  • Courtois to make first start this season as Madrid close in on title Courtois to make first start this season as Madrid close in on title

    Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois will make his first start of the season against Cadiz on Saturday after making a full recovery from two knee injuries, Carlo Ancelotti has revealed.

    Ancelotti, however, will remain cautious with Courtois, who has not played since suffering torn ligaments 13 months ago, with Andriy Lunin set to return for Wednesday's Champions League semi-final second leg against Bayern Munich.

    "The decisive game we have in mind, a final, is Wednesday's match against Bayern, where Lunin will play. After that, we'll see what happens," Ancelotti said on Friday.

    "Courtois is fine, he will play tomorrow after a long, long time. It's good news that he's coming back, just like [Eder] Militao. 

    "Courtois can contribute, he's feeling good, he's very excited. We are delighted to have him back."

    Lunin has established himself as Ancelotti's preferred deputy in Courtois' absence, seeing off competition from Kepa Arrizabalaga.

    Lunin was Madrid's hero as they beat Manchester City in the Champions League quarter-finals, making two saves in their 4-3 penalty shoot-out victory after an inspired performance in a 1-1 second-leg draw.

    Courtois, however, is widely considered to be one of the world's best goalkeepers and the Belgian is likely to regain his starting spot soon, with a LaLiga and Champions League double in Madrid's sights.

    He was named man-of-the-match in the 2022 Champions League final after making nine saves to deny Liverpool as Madrid clinched a record-extending 14th European title with a 1-0 win in Paris.

    Brazil centre-back Militao returned in late March after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in August, making his first start in last week's win at Real Sociedad in LaLiga.

    "We were too passive against Bayern. We have to be more active. So Militao will play tomorrow to get into a rhythm," Ancelotti said.

    "We are only thinking about the 'final' on Wednesday. We don't think about what might happen in a month's time. Hopefully, soon we can start looking further ahead, it will mean we'll make the final in London."

    With five games left, Ancelotti's side top the LaLiga standings on 84 points, 11 ahead of Barca and 13 clear of third-placed Girona. They can clinch a record-extending 36th Spanish title if they beat Cadiz and Barcelona fail to win at Girona later on Saturday.

© 2023 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.