Lucas Hernandez’s £68m move to Bayern Munich has propelled him into the top 10 most expensive defenders in world football.
Unsurprisingly, seven of those ten are currently plying their trade in the Premier League.
talkSPORT.com takes you through the shortlist below…
1. VIRGIL VAN DIJK – Southampton to Liverpool, £75m
Liverpool eventually sealed a deal for Van Dijk in January 2018, having been accused of tapping home up by Southampton just six months earlier.
Van Dijk costs a hefty £75m, making him the most expensive defender in world football, but he has more than proved his worth during his spell on Merseyside to date.
The Dutchman has played an integral role in Liverpool’s title bid this season at the heart of their defence.
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Virgil van Dijk has been a revelation at Anfield
2. LUCAS HERNANDEZ – Atletico Madrid to Bayern Munich, £68m
The World Cup winner had been mooted for a move to Bayern for many months, before the Bundesliga leaders finally finalised a mega money move for the left-back earlier this week.
The German giants splashed out the £68m fee required to trigger Lucas’ exit at the end of the season, meaning now they have a defender who could play at the very top for the next decade or more.
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Lucas Hernandez will officially join Bayern this summer
3. AYMERIC LAPORTE – Monaco to Manchester City, £57m
Laporte signed a two-year contract extension at the Premier League champions last month, taking his deal at the Etihad to 2025.
The French centre-back joined City from Spanish La Liga club Athletic Bilbao for a club record £57m in January 2018, but to date has still not represented the French senior team.
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Aymeric Laporte has been an impressive performer for Pep Guardiola’s men
4. BENJAMIN MENDY – Monaco to Manchester City, £52m
Pep Guardiola broke the record for a defender when he signed Mendy from Monaco in July 2017.
An enigmatic and colourful character off the field, the left-back rose to prominence as one of Europe’s most exciting full-backs in the 2016-17 season as Monaco won Ligue 1 – while also reaching the Champions League semi-finals.
His arrival spearheaded a spectacular overhaul of City’s backline, which saw them spend close to £165m on three defenders and goalkeeper Ederson, but two serious knee injuries have curtailed what looked to be a promising start to life in England.
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Benjamin Mendy is a colourful character on and off the field
5. DAVID LUIZ – Chelsea to Paris Saint-Germain, £50m
Paris Saint-Germain paid a whopping fee to sign Brazil international David Luiz from Chelsea in 2014.
He won Ligue 1 in both of his seasons at PSG, but returned to Stamford Bridge in a £34m deal in August 2016, making it three top-flight titles in a row come the end of that season.
Luiz, who turns 32 next month, is out of contract this summer but has made it clear he wants to stay in west London.
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David Luiz wants to stay at Chelsea beyond this season
6. KYLE WALKER – Tottenham to Manchester City, £50m
Walker arrived at City for a whopping fee back in July 2017 from Tottenham, and he hasn’t looked back since.
He quickly established himself as a key component of the defence, winning two Carabao Cup titles and the Premier League to date.
The Champions League and FA Cup could yet be added to that list this season.
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Kyle Walker, right, won the Premier League in his first season at City
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7. JOHN STONES – Everton to Manchester City, £47.5m
City have underlined their financial muscle in the transfer window for many years, in particular when acquiring England talent.
Another one of those signings, John Stones, has shown steady improvement after a tough first season at the Etihad following his big-money move from the Toffees in August 2016.
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John Stones has shown signs of steady improvement at the Etihad
8. EDER MILITAO – Porto to Real Madrid, £42m
Another transfer set to go through at the end of the season, Madrid caught many by surprise when it was announced earlier this month they had paid the release clause of Porto’s Brazil international Militao.
The 21-year-old was only brought to Europe from Sao Paulo in 2018, appearing somewhat of a gamble at this stage by Los Blancos.
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Eder Militao will leave Porto after just a single season, having moved to Europe from Sao Paulo last summer
9. DAVINSON SANCHEZ – Ajax to Tottenham, £36.6m
Spurs waited several weeks to make their first signing of the close-season transfer window in 2017, but they did so in some style, smashing their club record to bring Sanchez to north London.
The former Atletico Nacional man reportedly also caught Barcelona’s attention during Ajax’s run to the Europa League final in 2017 and has looked a solid addition to the Premier League since arriving.
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Davinson Sanchez has been a decent signing for Spurs thus far
10. LEONARDO BONUCCI – Juventus to AC Milan, £35.2m
A major falling out with Juve head coach Massimiliano Allegri led to Bonucci being allowed to join Serie A rivals AC Milan in 2017, who opened their war chest in a bid to return to the Champions League.
Bonucci won six Serie A titles at Juventus, but such success did not follow at San Siro.
His form suffered until he secured a return to Turin just a year later.
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Leonardo Bonucci left AC Milan after one season to return to Turin
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