Declan Rice could soon be on the move (Picture: George Wood/Getty Images)
West Ham have reportedly slapped a £120 million price tag on Declan Rice amid an expected summer transfer tussle between a number of Premier League heavyweights.
Arsenal are thought to be the current front runners in the race for his signature, but the Hammers captain has also courted interest from the likes of Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea.
Despite his obvious talents, a number of figures in the game have preached caution over meeting West Ham’s valuation, including Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville.
And so with West Ham seemingly demanding the eye watering figure to part ways with their star player, let’s take a look at some of the biggest transfers ever involving midfielders.
Enzo Fernandez – £107 million
Argentina’s World Cup winner became the most expensive midfield signing of all time when he completed his move to Todd Boehly’s big-spending Chelsea from Benfica in the January 2023 transfer window.
Chelsea went big on Enzo Fernandez (Picture: Diego Souto/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images)
Club officials had flown to Lisbon in a dramatic attempt to get the deal over the line on deadline day, amind fears Benfica would elect to keep their prize asset and thus spark a huge transfer tussle between other European clubs in the summer.
Fernandez, who is also the most expensive player in Premier League history, has settled in well during his first four months at Stamford Bridge despite the turmoil engulfing the west Londoners.
Paul Pogba – £91 million
Manchester United finally returned Pogba to Old Trafford in 2016 in a £91 million deal with Italian giants Juventus.
Paul Pogba didn’t quite live up to expectations (Picture: Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)
The Frenchman had been in United’s academy as a youngster before moving to Juventus in 2012, where he blossomed into one of the finest midfielders in world football during his four year spell in Turin.
At the time of the deal, Pogba’s move was the most expensive transfer in the history of the game – but he largely failed to live up to his lofty price tag and returned to the Old Lady as a free agent in 2022.
Aurelien Tchouameni – £85 million
Real Madrid announced the signing of Tchouameni in June 2022 after beating off a whole host of Premier League interest.
Real Madrid have a diamond on their hands (Picture: Diego Souto/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images)
The 23 year-old established himself as one of the most dominant midfielders in the game during his two-and-a-half years with Monaco, and he has since cemented that reputation with regular game time at the Bernabeu despite competing for a starting place with the likes of Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Fede Valverde.
Tchouameni, who scored against England in the World Cup quarter-final last year, has reportedly received interest from Liverpool over a potential move this summer.
Zinedine Zidane – £69 million
Regarded as one of the very best players of all time, the French icon moved to Real Madrid from Juventus from a then world-record fee in 2001.
Zidane excelled in Spain (Picture: Liewig Christian/Corbis via Getty Images)
Having won the Euros and World Cup with France in the three years before the deal, Zizou went on to score 49 goals in 227 appearances for Los Blancos en route to winning the Champions League and La Liga.
Zidane hung up his boots in 2006 and stepped into management with Madrid, guiding the club to three successive Champions League titles between 2016 and 2018.
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Frenkie de Jong – £65 million
The Dutchman snubbed transfer interest from Manchester City and PSG to sign for Barcelona from Ajax in 2019.
Barca snapped up Frenkie de Jong four years ago (Picture: Angel Martinez/Getty Images)
As is expected of a Barca midfielder, de Jong has displayed impeccable close ball control, flawless positioning and an extensive range of passing.
But with cash-stricken Barcelona in desperate need to raise to raise money and reduce their crippling wage bill, the 25 year-old has repeatedly been linked with a move away from Camp Nou with Manchester United known to be long-term admirers.
MORE : David Seaman doubts Arsenal will pay West Ham’s asking price for Declan Rice
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The best players demand the biggest transfer fees.