Do record buys guarantee glory?

Manchester United may have broken the world transfer record to bring Paul Pogba back to Old Trafford but history shows that splashing the cash on a big money signing isn’t always a guarantee for immediate league success.

A glance back at the last eleven record-breaking fees shows that on just one occasion was the new arrival able to help steer his new club to a league title.

Will Pogba be able to buck the trend and lead Mourinho’s men back to the top of the Premier League? We look at previous record-breaking arrivals and the impact they made…

Gareth BaleTottenham to Real Madrid – £85.3mReal Madrid’s 2013/14 league finish: 3rd

Bale played an important role in Real Madrid’s Champions League and Copa del Rey successes in his first season at the Bernabeu, but he was unable to make the difference in La Liga. Madrid finished the season in third place on 87 points, three points behind title winners Atletico Madrid and behind Barcelona on their head-to-head record.

Cristiano RonaldoManchester Utd to Real Madrid – £80mReal Madrid’s 2009/10 league finish: 2nd

Ronaldo hit the ground running in his first season at Real Madrid with 26 goals in 29 La Liga appearances but ended the season trophyless. Madrid were pipped to the league title by Barcelona and were dumped out of the Champions League Round of 16 by Lyon, while on a personal level Ronaldo also lost out to Messi in the Ballon D’Or and Pichichi that year.

KakaAC Milan to Real Madrid – £56mReal Madrid’s 2009/10 league finish: 2nd

Arriving in Madrid a couple of weeks before Ronaldo, Kaka only briefly held the world record for a transfer fee in pounds sterling but his eight goals and six assists helped Real to a mammoth haul of 96 points in his debut season, only to fall short of rivals Barcelona by three …

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