Aurélien Tchouameni (Monaco ⇒ Real Madrid)
Transfer amount:
€80m + €20m
After victories in the Champions League and Example, Real Madrid is not going to rest on its laurels, but is actively engaged in strengthening the squad.
And the first major acquisition was Aurelien Tchouameni, whose transfer was widely discussed at the end of May.
Apparently, Florentino Perez decided not to be stingy and spent a substantial amount of funds intended for the salary of Kylian Mbappe on the purchase of his compatriot.
According to Marca, Monaco is guaranteed to earn €80 million from the sale of the player, and another €20 million can be received in the form of bonuses.
Half of this amount will be transferred to the team's account if the midfielder plays 90 matches for the Blancos, and the remaining money if the midfielder receives the Ballon d'Or.
In pursuit of Tchuameni, Real Madrid managed to get ahead of not only the opponent in the Champions League final, but also Paris Saint-Germain.
As journalist Fabrizio Romano reported, the player was personally called by Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp, and the French club offered more attractive conditions.
In addition, Mbappe personally discussed a possible transition with him.
However, Aurélien immediately dotted the i's and said that moving to Madrid has always been a priority for him.
Interestingly, some time ago, Kilian expressed himself in a similar vein, but then decided to stay at PSG.
As for playing qualities, Tchuameni is an overall defensive midfielder who is good both in the selection and in the development of attacks, but has some problems in finishing them.
True, for the performers of his role this cannot be called critical.
Like Eduardo Camavinga, he is unlikely to get a place at the start of Real Madrid right away, but in the future he can be more than a quality replacement for Casemiro.
The contract with the 22-year-old footballer is for six years - another confirmation that the club make a big bet on him and see him as an investment in the future.
Ryan Gravenberch (Ajax ⇒ Bayern)
Transfer amount:
€25 million
The same can be said about Ryan Gravenbergh, recently introduced as a Bayern player.
True, the transfer of a talented Dutchman was much cheaper.
According to Fabrizio Romano, taking into account bonuses, Ajax will receive up to €25 million. There is also a clause in the agreement according to which the Amsterdammers are entitled to 7% of the amount of the subsequent sale of the midfielder.
However, this does not speak of the difference in level between Gravenberh and Tchuameni.
The Dutchman's current deal was due to expire next summer, so Ajax were forced to sell him below market value.
According to the Transfermarkt portal, it is €35 million. And it could have been higher if Ryan had not missed the end of the season due to an ankle injury.
In any case, the sports director of Munich has no doubts about the professional suitability of the central midfielder and calls him "one of the main talents of Europe, which everyone wanted to sign."
Like Tchuameni, Gravenberh is located in the middle line, but is more attack oriented.
At Ajax, he usually occupied the position on the left side of the central midfield three and was actively involved in promoting the ball.
Ryan is able to both pass the ball into the final third of the field, and he himself can drag the ball to someone else's penalty area.
For a place at the start of Bayern, the Dutchman is likely to compete with Leon Goretzka.
Due to hip problems, he missed more than 100 days last season, as a result of which Julian Nagelsmann needed a quality and promising replacement.
Darwin Nunez (Benfica ⇒ Liverpool)
Transfer amount:
£85.4m (including possible bonuses)
Some of the same reasons were used at Liverpool when they decided to invest in the acquisition of Darwin Nunez.
With bonuses included, the Benfica striker cost the Reds nearly €100m (£85.4m), making him one of the most expensive players in Premier League history.
Above him are Paul Pogba (£93.25m), Jack Grealish (£100m) and Romelu Lukaku.
In 2017, Manchester United paid £90m for his move from Everton, and four years later Chelsea transferred £97.5m to Inter's account.
Liverpool's increased interest in Nunes can be attributed to two factors.
One of them is the constant injury and decline in the game of Roberto Firmino.
In the last competitive year, the Brazilian missed a total of 112 days due to injuries and, although he subsequently entered the field in 35 matches, spent an average of 51.5 minutes per game.
Therefore, it is not surprising that this year has become one of the most unfortunate for him in terms of statistics.
In all tournaments, he scored 16 (11 + 5) points in the "goal + pass" system - the worst result since the 2012/13 championship.
Then he chalked up seven goals and four assists for Hoffenheim.
The second reason is the possible departure of Sadio Mane.
The Senegalese expressed a desire to leave Liverpool and move to Bayern.
And although the clubs still cannot agree on the size of the buyout of the forward's expiring contract, almost no one has any doubts that this transfer will still take place.
According to media reports, Munich were initially ready to pay €25 million for him (some of them in the form of bonuses), but in recent days they have significantly improved their offer.
However, the Merseysiders are not enough and €40 million.
As for Nunez, the past season was a breakthrough for him.
The oversized centre-forward became the top scorer of the Portuguese Championship with 26 goals, and scored six goals in the Champions League, standing on a par with Mbappe, Cristiano Ronaldo, Arno Danjuma and Leroy Sane.
Moreover, a third of them fell on a two-legged confrontation with Liverpool in the 1/4 finals.
First, Darwin broke the score at Estadio da Luz, and then got a draw for Benfica at Anfield.
Perhaps this also influenced the decision of the Red leadership.
Antonio Rudiger (Chelsea ⇒ Real Madrid)
Transfer Amount:
Free Agent
Performance in a face-to-face meeting was a key factor in the case of the transition of the German defender.
In the quarter-finals of the Champions League, Real Madrid with great difficulty passed Chelsea on aggregate, and in Madrid they were so impressed with Rudiger's performance that they entered into negotiations with renewed vigor.
And this is not surprising, because the royal club had a chance to sign a future member of the symbolic team of the main European Cup and thereby solve the problem with the shortage of performers in the center of defense.
As a result, Real Madrid managed to get a top player for free for the second year in a row.
A year ago, in the status of a free agent, David Alaba moved to the capital of Spain, and now Rudiger has followed the same path.
And although a place in the squad is not guaranteed for him, it should not be ruled out that the German will be able to beat the competition from Eder Militao and, together with the Austrian, make up a pair of the main central defenders of the Blancos.
Although in this case there are options.
The other day, rumors appeared in the media about the readiness of the “creamy” to sell Ferlan Mendy, and transfer Alaba to the left side.
By signing Rudiger, Real Madrid not only strengthens the rear, but also gets another option in terms of developing attacks.
In the course of recent seasons, the German has been actively involved in promoting the ball, and his raids on someone else's penalty area along the left half-flank have become one of Chelsea's calling cards.
True, whether he will so actively move forward in a scheme with two central ones is a big question.
Niklas Süle (Bayern ⇒ Borussia D)
Transfer Amount:
Free Agent
If Rudiger's intention to join the squad of the 14-time Champion of the Champions League can be called logical, then Niklas Süle's decision to move from Munich to Dortmund can cause bewilderment.
For several years he was one of the strongest performers in his position in the country and the main one in the camp of the 32-time German champion, but in fact he went down and moved to the country's second team.
And if you believe the agent Volker Strut, the reason for this was the dissatisfaction of the football player with the attitude towards him from the leadership.
The German believed that he was not appreciated enough in the club, so he announced his departure back in the winter.
And this is taking into account the offer of €10 million under the new contract.
One way or another, the signing of a contract with Borussia was announced back in February, and closer to the summer it became known about the team's intention to assemble one of the most promising defensive lines in the Bundesliga.
In addition to Manuel Akanji and Mats Hummels already at their disposal, not only Süle was added, but also Nico Schlotterbeck from Freiburg, who is called one of the most talented players in this position in the country.
And now the bumblebees' center of defense looks, if not stronger, then at least no worse than Bayern's with the unstable Dayo Mention and Lucas Hernandez.
Therefore, it should not be ruled out that it is Niklas' move that will become one of the key factors in the fight for gold in the 2022/23 season.
Karim Adeyemi (Salzburg ⇒ Borussia D)
Transfer amount:
€30 million
At the same time, Borussia quickly made up for the lack of players in the attack, formed after the departure of Erling Haaland.
On the beaten path from Salzburg to Dortmund went Karim Adeyemi - 20-year-old German, over the past year strengthened in the status of one of the most promising forwards in the world.
In the Austrian championship, he scored 19 goals and won the title of top scorer of the tournament, and also scored in the Champions League, where he hit Lille twice and Wolfsburg once.
Along the way, he managed to make his debut for the German national team and scored against Armenia in the first match.
The choice of Borussia in favor of Adeyemi is all the more curious because it implies certain changes in the construction of the game in attack.
The forward is also famous for his speed and likes to work in open spaces, but in texture he is noticeably different from the grenadier-Holand.
The German is noticeably lower (180 cm) and will not be able to exert such pressure on the defenders as the Norwegian, and even has certain gaps in technique.
According to scouts, the striker has problems with the first touch, which often deprives him of the opportunity to create a dangerous moment.