Transfer window dream team - Who made the list?
Who says money cant buy success? With clubs showing their readiness to break the bank in order to sign the right players for their squads, transfers in Europes 5 big leagues amounted to figures of just under 2 billion, an incredible amount given the debts that many of Europes top earners are under.As lots of the worlds biggest names switched their allegiances, we thought it would be interesting to see what a 2014-15 summer transfer window dream team would look like, and how much it would cost to assemble it. With the 3-5-2 back in vogue, we have gone with the same formation for our dream XI.
#1 Defence
Marc-Andre Ter Stegen (GK) – £10 million
Ter Stegen’s move to Barcelona was a transfer waiting to happen for a while now. With the Catalan said to have been searching for a long-term replacement for Victor Valdes for a couple of years now, the 22-year old German international’s name was always kept in the fray, as Ter Stegen performed consistently for Borussia Monchengladbach in the Bundesliga.The deal eventually went through this summer for a fee of £10 million, with the La Liga club adding a £63 million buy-out clause in the goalkeeper’s contract.
David Luiz (CB) – £50 million
A mercurial defender if there ever was one, David Luiz’s £50 million move to Paris Saint-Germain indicates a massive show of belief from the French club in the centre-half’s ability to leave his previous consistency issues behind him and play a massive part for what is an ever-strengthening PSG side.
Many believe that Jose Mourinho laughed all the way to the bank after getting what currently is a world-record transfer fee for a defender, but solid performances alongside compatriot Thiago Silva could help Luiz prove his massive valuation over the coming seasons.
Eliaquim Mangala – £32 million
Only 23 years of age, Mangala does not have too many years of top-level football under his belt, but dominating performances for Porto over the last two seasons have convinced many that the French international is a star in the making. Manchester City paid a premium for his services this summer, with a massive £32 million being spent for the centre-back’s services. But if he can fulfil his potential at the Etihad Stadium, then his partnership with Vincent Kompany can prove to be the league’s best for years to come.
Mehdi Benatia – £21 million
Hardly had he spent one year at Italian Serie A club AS Roma before Mehdi Benatia became the subject of transfer speculation, with a raft of clubs said to have been monitoring the 27-year old’s progress in what was a very impressive seaons’s showing by Roma. Manchester United were said to have been the main contenders for the Morocco international’s signature, but Bayern Munich swooped in for the defender in the last week of the transfer window with a £21 million bid.
At Bayern Munich, he is expected to line up alongside Brazilian centre-half Dante, and will be looking to improve on last season’s near-perfect performances by the Bundesliga club, with his ball-playing and passing abilities set to fit in well with Pep Guardiola’s system at the Allianz Arena.