Darren Bent Climbing England’s List Of Combined Transfer Fees Earned

Darren Bent’s transfer to Aston Villa will make history, the England international becoming the most expensive Vilal acquisition ever. The move will also rocket the soon-to-be 27-year-old up the list of England combined transfer fees earned, according to the Telegraph. John Ley put the list together this morning, and with the exception of the player at its top, the ranking features as much ignominy as quality.

Any list built on this premise if going to be a curiosity. For the most part, you have to be sold a number of times to ascend this order, yet truly good players are rarely sold. They usually find a home and settle-in. It’s the more mercurial talents that embrace wanderlust, which is why the list features only one truly transcendent name.

The list is not only strange in name but also formation. Ley’s only ranking players that played in England, yet he includes transfers between non-English clubs. For example, Anelka’s ranking is supported by the fee exchanged between Real Madrid and Paris St-Germain (£20 million). Likewise, Hernan Crespo’s total includes deals between Parm and Lazio (£35.4 million) as well as Lazio and Inter Milan (£16.57 million).

If you limited the totals to England-only deals, Bent would be just behind Robbie Keane, who may still take tack £6-£10 million on his account before his playing days are done. Regardless, it is still interesting to see the magnitude of Cristiano Ronaldo’s move to Real Madrid. The guy’s only been transferred twice, but the £80 million price that took him to Madrid vaults him over players who’ve moved six or seven times.