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The 700m line-up
- Updated: October 19, 2016
We look at the cost of the Barcelona and Manchester City squads ahead of their hotly-anticipated Champions League meeting…
When Barcelona and Manchester City go head-to-head at the Nou Camp in their Champions League Group C encounter on Wednesday night, there will be more than £700m in cumulative transfer expenditure on display.
Barca’s predicted 18-man matchday squad has cost a staggering £323m to assemble, while City boast an even more expensive collection of stars, with their £425.35m squad.
City backed their new manager Pep Guardiola in the transfer market this summer to the tune of around £170m.
In has come John Stones from Everton for £47.5m, Leroy Sane from Schalke for £37m, Ilkay Gundogan from Borussia Dortmund for £20m, Nolito from Celta Vigo for £13.8m and Claudio Bravo from Wednesday night’s opponents for £17.1m.
Guardiola has also signed young stars Gabriel Jesus, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Marlos Moreno, who will all join up with their new employers in the near future.
And even though four years have passed since his Nou Camp departure, Guardiola’s stamp can still be seen on the current Barca side.
The former Bayern coach oversaw the purchase of Gerard Pique and Javier Mascherano, who are both expected to start against City, as well as handing midfielder Sergio Busquets his debut in 2008.
The Spanish champions were extremely active in the transfer market this summer, spending well over £100m. Though few of their recent additions will be guaranteed starters this season, Barca’s new men have added greater strength in depth to Luis Enrique’s squad.
They have signed Jasper Cillessen from Ajax for £13m, Samuel Umtiti from Lyon for £21.2m, Denis Suarez from Villarreal for £2.76m, Lucas Digne from Paris Saint Germain for £14m and Andre Gomes and Paco Alcacer from Valencia …
