Top Ten Big Money Soccer Transfers

Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid to Arsenal (2013) - $68.3 Million Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid to Arsenal (2013) - $68.3 Million

In the past few seasons the trend has been for the best players in the world to leave England for the sunnier climes of Spain, Italy or France. But Arsenal Football Club, after a decade of shopping in the bargain bin, decided to make a statement of intent by purchasing one of the crown jewels of the German national team on the last day of the transfer window.

Though Ozil was clearly ushered out of Madrid by Bale's arrival, his record as an assist provider is unrivaled in Europe and there are many that think that the Gunners got the better end of this deal.

Reuters/Juan Medina

Neymar From Santos to Barcelona (2013) - $75.5 Million Neymar From Santos to Barcelona (2013) - $75.5 Million

Until this season, the Brazilian wonder kid had chosen to stay with his hometown team, Santos, but his performances as a teenager on the national team brought him to the world stage and Barcelona came calling. How the flamboyant young man will mesh with the "best player in the world," Lionel Messi, is one of the fascinating subplots of the 2013-14 season.

Reuters/Kai Pfaffenbach

Zinadine Zidane from Juventus to Real Madrid (2001) - $71.5 Million Zinadine Zidane from Juventus to Real Madrid (2001) - $71.5 Million

Despite the infamous end to his career, soccer fans still speak of Zidane with the same hushed reverence Americans use for such greats as Michael Jordan or Muhammad Ali. He combined balletic grace with a hard edge in a way that few footballers ever could. An entire documentary was filmed in which the camera followed him through every action of a single game. And so it seemed only natural that Real Madrid would come calling in their eternal quest to field a team full of "Galacticos."

To get a sense of perspective on the size of his transfer fee, consider that at the time it was a world record and that it would be eight years before that record would be broken.

Reuters/Ho New

Fernando Torres Liverpool to Chelsea (2011) - $77.7 Million Fernando Torres Liverpool to Chelsea (2011) - $77.7 Million

A classic cautionary tale of what can go wrong with a record signing. In the late 2000's, Torres was one of the most impressive strikers in the English Premier League. His quick turn of pace put him behind defenses seemingly at will. But in 2011, as his move to Chelsea drew near, Torres was a man recovering from a bad knee injury. While theoretically in his prime, the injury seemed to have robbed Torres of his main gift.

But Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is not the sort to be dissuaded. He needed a striker to replace the aging Didier Drogba and he needed a star to fill the stands. Torres was purchased for £50 million (and in the process accidentally made lumbering Andy Carroll, Soccer's Tim Tebow, a £35 million Striker) and two and a half years later it's hard not to call this a bad investment.

Reuters/Stefan Wermuth

Edinson Cavani From Napoli to PSG (2013) - $85.5 Million Edinson Cavani From Napoli to PSG (2013) - $85.5 Million

One of the odd trends to emerge in European soccer in the past decade is the oligarch owner, the ultra-rich (usually oil-based) fan who decides that the ultimate status symbol would be to own a football club and fill it with the brightest stars he can find, regardless of financial prudence.

It is in this environment that a player like Cavani, who was admittedly prolific at Napoli but hardly a household name, can become one of the most expensive athletes in the world. When a bidding war breaks out among men to whom money is no object, there is no price ceiling...

Reuters/Benoit Tessier

Radamel Falcao from Athletico Madrid to Monaco (2013) - $79.2 Milllion Radamel Falcao from Athletico Madrid to Monaco (2013) - $79.2 Millio n

Though in the end, it all amounted to nothing, the rumor mills were in full swing regarding this Columbian striker before he ever even kicked a ball for his new club.

The subject of another bidding war between the ultra-rich, Falcao ultimately ended up at newly minted AS Monaco, and that's where the trouble really started. First came the rumors (since disproven) that his birth certificate had been falsified and that he was in fact two years older than he claimed. Strikers peak around 27 and are generally considered on their way down by 32 before retiring around 35. In that window, two years make a world of difference.

After that came the rumors that Monaco's wealth was just a house of cards and that the implementation of tax policies would force them to sell their prize asset before he even started a game. Fortunately for Monaco fans, the troubles seem to have passed...now it just remains to be seen if Falcao can deliver on the field.

Reuters/Jose Gomez

Kaka From AC Milan to Real Madrid (2009) - $87 Million Kaka From AC Milan to Real Madrid (2009) - $87 Million

For the middle part of the last decade, Brazilian Kaka was considered to be the true heir to Zidane, a silky attacking midfielder who glided along the pitch like he was on rails. It seemed only natural that he'd follow in "ZiZou's" footsteps and head to Madrid.

But Kaka was a different person. He was loyal and intensely religious. The money that Madrid offered him couldn't lure him away from his beloved Milan.

Finally, when Real came along with a then world record $87 million bid, AC had to convince their star to leave home.

After a disappointing spell at Madrid he was ultimately sold back to Milan on September 2, 2013, with a giant smile on his face.

Reuters/Juan Medina

Zlatan Ibrahimovic from Inter Milan to Barcelona (2009) - $91.7 Million Zlatan Ibrahimovic from Inter Milan to Barcelona (2009) - $91.7 Million

As Ibrahimovic starts to enter the later stages of his career (he turns 32 next month) it becomes more and more fascinating to look at his career as a whole. Moving from his native Sweden to Ajax in Holland, to Juventus, Inter Milan, and AC Milan in Italy, to his current club in Paris, Zlatan has been everywhere and won everything.

But it was his move to Barcelona that made the biggest splash...and perhaps his biggest disappointment. Zlatan still won everything with Barca, but there was more than a sense that he was shown the door in favor of the emerging talent of Lionel Messi. Ibrahimovic is many things but humble is not one of them and he was not going to play second fiddle to a "polite little boy."

Reuters/Juan Medina

Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United to Real Madrid (2009) - $124.3 Million Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United to Real Madrid (2009) - $124.3 Million

The one man on this list who can challenge Ibrahimovic for sheer ego power, Ronaldo arrived in Manchester a coltish and pimply youth during the doldrums of Man U's mid-2000's slump. Within a few years he was terrifying defenses and largely carrying an otherwise mediocre team on his shoulders. Real saw a Galactico in him and came calling.

The years that followed have been a mano-a-mano duel with Lionel Messi for control of the title "best player in the world."

It's hard not to think that part of the reason Ronaldo so often is listed as runner up is due to his abrasive personality. Where Ibrahimovic's arrogance is born of surviving a rough backstreets childhood, Ronaldo's is almost entirely based on vanity. At a press conference following a game in which he received a black eye, Ronaldo told his fans, "Don't worry, soon I will be beautiful again."

Reuters/Sergio Perez

Gareth Bale from Tottenham to Real Madrid (2013) - $132.6 Million Gareth Bale from Tottenham to Real Madrid (2013) - $132.6 Million

The new "Most Expensive Footballer in the World." Gareth Bale began his Tottenham career as a defender, a somewhat disappointing left-back who held the distinction of never having started a game that his team won. But a few years into his career something odd happened: Bale started scoring goals, seemingly at will.

Now playing as a winger, he used his exceptional pace, natural agility and dead-eye aim to lift a solid but limited Tottenham team to their highest ever points total. It remains to be seen how he'll do in Madrid, where British players have typically been rather poorly treated.

When asked about the man who replaced him as the most expensive footballer, Cristiano Ronaldo is reported to have said of his new teammate, "I have my own opinion on Gareth Bale, but I'll keep it to myself."

Reuters/Dylan Martinez