Five most expensive teenage transfers in football history

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Bengaluru, December 19: A football team that is successful keeps assembling its side with the long term in mind. However, most of the time it doesn’t come inexpensive, with some of the top teenagers in world football ranking among the highest transfer fees in history.

Most recently Real Madrid made the headlines with the signing of Brazilian prodigy Endrick. The 16-year-old attacker will join the club in the summer of 2024 when he turns 18 for a fee close to €72million.

Keeping that in mind here we have enlisted such five teenage talents who have been the costliest teenagers in World football so far:

1. Kylian Mbappe

The World Cup 2022 Golden Boot winner became the costliest teenager in football history when PSG paid a whopping €180m in 2018.

He is also the second most expensive transfer of all time. The French youngster introduced himself to World football when he helped Monaco win the league.

PSG did not wait to land him the following summer on a loan deal with an option to buy next summer. Since then he has been a force to be reckoned with 190 goals and 93 assists in just 237 games for the French side.

2. Joao Felix

A breakthrough at Benfica caught the eye of Spanish giants Atletico Madrid in 2019 and they splashed a massive €130m on him to make him the direct replacement of Antoine Griezmann.

He has shown glimpses of talent since his move to Wanda Metropolitano however mostly on a regular basis he’s struggled to adapt to Diego Simeone's aggressive and defensive style. He is now likely to be sold in January or Summer window as Atletico look to recuperate the money spent on him.

3. Matthijs De Ligt

The Dutch defender made a name for himself while playing for Ajax. A captain of the Netherlands giants at the age of 19 speaks volume about it.

Following his team's superb display in the Champions League run to the semifinal in 2019, beating the likes of Real Madrid and Juventus on the way, several squads chased the youngster next summer.

However, Juventus get hold of him for a club record €85m. He, however, now has been sold to Bayern this summer for a similar fee, €77m.

4. Anthony Martial

The French teenager joined the Old Trafford side on a deadline day from Monaco under the guidance of Louis Van Gaal in 2015. He immediately introduced himself to English football scoring a massive goal against Liverpool.

However, seven years down the line he is yet to demonstrate the best of himself. Injury issues and lack of consistency has been major factor. However, he has improved under Ten Hag recently and it remains to be seen how he fares now.

5. Rodrygo

After poaching Vinicius Jr from Brazil, Real Madrid chose to sign another Latin American talent for €45m with an eye on the future. The Spanish giants are now reaping the rewards with him playing a key role in last season’s La Liga & Champions League double triumph.