The transfer of midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni, 22, is one of the millionaire sales made by Monaco over the last decade. The team has been characterized by amassing a long list of young talents, most of them of French nationality, and has never had any qualms about getting rid of them, as long as it was in exchange for a lucrative figure of course.
Tchouaméni is positioned at second place on the podium in this special classification. Obviously the sale that stands out the most is that of the prodigy Kylian Mbappé, who went to PSG for a figure of 180 million euros, which is placed in second place always, only behind Neymar, who was signed for 222 million always by the Parisian club when he played for Barcelona.
In the Principality, the succession of geniuses and stars that passed was infinite: from goalkeeper Fabien Barthez to Thierry Henry, passing through David Trézéguet to the most recent James Rodríguez, Fabinho and Bernardo Silva.
All this started 25 years ago, when in 1997 Sonny Anderson said goodbye to Barcelona for an important figure at the time: 26 million euros. The following year it was the turn of Thierry Henry who left for Juventus for a lower figure, around 12 million. Over the years, the arrival of new sponsors and the possibility of spending more, Monaco became a star market, with most buyers submitting their offers from England. Bakayoko, Tielemans, Fabinho, Bernardo Silva and Martial are just a few examples of players who have ‘escaped’ to destinations such as London, Manchester, Leicester and Liverpool.
Despite the massive English presence, the most impressive signings have been taken by the Spanish market, with the exception of Mbappé in France (or Qatar). Tchouaméni follows him on this list with his 100 million (80 fixed 20 variables). Later, in third place, is another ‘merengue’, James Rodríguez, who went to the white team after having played a spectacular World Cup in Brazil; the price was 75 million. Three years ago, the transfer of another French striker to another Madrid team, Atlético, was verified, which secured the benefits of winger Thomas Lemar for 72 million euros.
The last maneuver of the club was that of the young attacking midfielder who, thanks to his talent, managed to continue this ‘tradition’ in the French team that continues to receive huge sums of money with the sales of its youngest and most valuable pieces.
