30 Highest-Valued U21 Players in Football History [Ranked]

It’s a rich man’s world certainly in the football world with the rise of state-owned clubs and celebrity tycoon’s getting their hands on the sport. At the forefront of the staggering amount of money being exchanged are players who, particularly during their youth, have some of European football’s heavyweights keeping tabs.

Transfer records are broken with each passing transfer window as clubs put their faith in the younger generation. When tracking a transfer target the recruitment team will often use a valuation set by the selling club and decide whether it’s reasonable or not.

Some players can be overpriced which plagues them for the rest of their careers. The modern era of football has plenty of young guns whose astronomical transfer values can put interested suitors off.

Here, we look at the 30 highest-valued U21 players in history and how they rank on the basis of their fee and the age when said price tag was placed on them.

30-21

Lionel Messi is down in 30th place

The top thirty starts with arguably the greatest player to grace the game, Lionel Messi. The world was already expecting the Argentine icon to shine during his youth, and he was highly valued in 2007. A 20-year-old Messi on the rise at Barcelona was valued at £50.6 million (€60 million), which shows how the market has changed over the years.

PSG’s Warren Zaire-Emery and Real Madrid’s new boy Endrick are ranked 29th and 28th, respectively, and both were aged 17 at the time of their highest valuation. There are some surprise names, with Zaire-Emery’s Parisian teammate Nuno Mendes in 27th place, while Manchester United’s most expensive U21 signing, Rasmus Hojlund, is 26th.

England duo Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka rank 25th and 24th and were poster boys of Premier League football during their youth. Evan Ferguson enjoyed a blistering start to his Brighton career at 18, which propelled him into 23rd place with a £54.8 million (€65 million valuation).

City is represented next with Gabriel Jesus in 22nd place, with many predicting he’d be Brazil’s next superstar during his U21 days. Phil Foden was similarly viewed as the future of English football and ranks in 21st place. The ex-teammates highest value during their youth was £59 million (€70 million).

20-11

La Liga well represented

Spanish football has often been associated with world football’s high-profile transfers, especially young talent. This explains why many La Liga stars rank from their U21 days, including Madrid’s Vinicius Junior. The Brazilian, who missed out on the 2024 Ballon d’Or, may have been ranked higher than 20th if not for a slow adaption at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Man City’s Josko Gvardiol’s stock grew at RB Leipzig, and the Croatian defender is next in 19th place with a valuation of £63.2 million (€75 million). Manchester United’s Matthijs de Ligt ranks sixth on the list of players’ total transfer fees and comes in at 18th from his eye-catching start at Ajax.

Xavi Simons has shined over the past year, including an impressive Euro 2024 campaign that put several European giants on notice. The Dutch attacker is in 17th place as we hit the £67 million (€80 million) zone.

This is the same highest valuation as Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold in 16th, Ousmane Dembele, who was at Barca at the time, in 15th, and Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies in 14th. Barca’s supposed Messi heir, Ansu Fati, was one of Europe’s hottest commodities in 2020 and ranks 13th.

Madrid saw off competition from United to sign Eduardo Camavinga in August 2021 for £34.4 million. The Frenchman’s value has risen at the Bernabeu to £76 million (€90 million), placing him 12th. Arsenal’s in-form Kai Havertz may not have worked out at Chelsea, but he was in demand in 2019, at age 19, while at Bayer Leverkusen. The German ranks 11th as we venture towards the top 10.

10-1

Kylian Mbappe leads the way

The top 10 kicks off with Barca’s midfield maestros Gavi and Pedri, who both won the Kopa Trophy after emerging as two of the Catalans’ brightest gems. Gavi ranks 10th with a value of £76 million (€90 million), while Pedri is 9th, having been priced at £84.1 million (€100 million).

Joao Felix was one of Europe’s most exciting talents at Benfica in 2019, and in that same year, the Portuguese attacker headed to Atletico Madrid, where his value was sky-high at £84.1 million, placing him 8th.

German football’s midfield sensations Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen) and Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich) are next up in 7th and 6th with a high value of £92.8 million (€110 million). They are highly coveted, and their price tags could increase further as they flourish in the Bundesliga.

Borussia Dortmund have a knack for developing Europe’s brightest stars into world-class talent and as a result turning a profit. That’s the case with Erling Haaland who is fifth with his price tag at £109.7 million (€130 million) at Signal Iduna Park. BvB must be kicking themselves that they let the Norweigan go to City for £51 million.

The Bundesliga side robbed City’s rivals when selling Jadon Sancho to Manchester United for £73 million in 2021. The English winger failed to replicate his Dortmund form at Old Trafford, having initially excelled in Germany and hit the same valuation as Haaland at a younger age. This value has dropped to £25.3 million (€30 million) amid his disastrous Red Devils spell.

Lamine Yamal’s jaw-dropping past year has seen the Barca starlet reach the pinnacle of European football. The 2024 Kopa Trophy winner is third with a value of £126.5 million (€150 million), which PSG reportedly exceeded with a £169 million offer that fell on deaf ears.

Madrid’s latest Galacticos are unsurprisingly top of the list, with Jude Bellingham second at a valuation of £152 million (€180 million). The English midfielder joined Los Blancos from Dortmund for £88.5 million, becoming the La Liga giants’ second-most expensive signing, where he would go on to become one of the best players in the world.

As a teenager, Kylian Mbappe had the world at his feet, leading to the 2018 World Cup winner becoming the highest-valued U21 player in history. At 19, Mbappe was at PSG and valued at £168.7 million (€200 million), which is why the Parisians were so frustrated about losing their all-time top scorer for free in the summer.