Who are the most expensive left-backs of all time?

8 Jun 2026 14:39 BST |
4 min read

Lucas Hernandez is the most expensive left-back in the world following his move from Atletico Madrid to Bayern Munich for €80 million in 2019.

However, he failed to justify his transfer fee at the Allianz Arena, in part due to injury problems, and he left Bayern for PSG in the summer of 2023 after a tough four years.

Some will argue that Josko Gvardiol, who joined Manchester City for €90m in 2023, should occupy first place, but the Croatia international was a centre-back at the time of his transfer and would only subsequently be converted into a left-back.

Marc Cucurella became the second most expensive left-back in football history after joining Chelsea in the summer of 2022. Cucurella moved to the Blues for a whopping €65.3m, four times the amount that his former club Brighton paid to bring him to the Amex Stadium on Deadline Day less than 12 months earlier.

Benjamin Mendy cost Man City €57.5m in 2017 when he joined from Monaco, a move that in hindsight proved disastrous for the English giants. The player managed just 75 games for City in six seasons and was suspended for a large portion of his spell at the club due to rape allegations, which he was eventually cleared on. He left the club in 2023.

Ben Chilwell cost Chelsea €50.2m when he arrived from Leicester City in 2020 and was a fixture in the side that won the Champions League under Thomas Tuchel during his maiden season at the club. In 2021-22, however, the full-back ruptured his cruciate ligament and he has never quite been the same since. He was sold to sister club Strasbourg in 2025.

Real Madrid defender Alvaro Carreras joined this list in 2025 when he left Benfica to sign for Los Blancos for a whopping transfer fee of €50m. He endured a difficult debut season at the Bernabeu, notably struggling against Michael Olise in the Champions League quarter-finals.

Another Real Madrid left-back sits in sixth place – Ferland Mendy. Los Blancos paid €48m to sign him from Lyon in 2019 as the anointed successor to club great Marcelo and the Frenchman proved a smart acquisition as he gradually made the starting role his own and won the Champions League in 2022.

In seventh is Milos Kerkez, who joined Liverpool for €46.9m in 2025 after a stellar two-year stint at Bournemouth.

Lucas Hernandez, who can also play centre-back, appears for a second time after he left Bayern to join PSG in the summer of 2023 for €45m. He is the eighth-most expensive left-back in history.

Ian Maatsen was involved in a bizarre swap deal with Omari Kellyman, with the two players moving in opposite directions as Aston Villa and Chelsea looked to bypass the Premier League’s financial rules. Maatsen joined Villa for €44.5m.

The 10th-most expensive left-back of all time is Jorrel Hato, who left boyhood club Ajax to join Chelsea for €44.2m in 2025.

The most expensive left-backs of all time

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