4) Javier Mascherano – £17.25m to Barcelona
Barcelona got a real, real bargain here – it has to be said. The feisty Argentine was brilliant for us, but his head was turned when the world’s best club side came knocking. He’s won three La Liga titles, two Champions Leagues and is as respected a holding midfielder (come centre-back) as anyone in world football.
3) Xabi Alonso – £30m to Real Madrid
The Spaniards paid top dollar for Alonso, probably the most fluent passer of a footballer we’ve seen at Anfield during the Premier League era. Unsettling Alonso by targeting Gareth Barry as a replacement was arguably the biggest mistake of Rafa Benitez’s Liverpool tenure. With Madrid, Alonso won a Champions League title – and is now plying his trade for another European behemoth: Bayern Munich.
