Manchester City have reportedly agreed a record-breaking £90 million deal with RB Leipzig for defender Josko Gvardiol.
The Croatian centre-back has been the subject of interest across Europe over the past 18 months. Chelsea pushed to sign him last summer as part of owner Todd Boehly’s big summer spending spree in SW6.
Gvardiol is viewed as one of Europe’s top defenders and at 21 years of age he still has plenty of room to develop. The youngster has made a huge impression in the Bundesliga since his move back in 2020 from Dinamo Zagreb and he has helped Die Roten Bullen win back-to-back DFB-Pokals in the past two seasons.
He is set to become the latest star to be developed at the Red Bull Arena and move on for a substantial fee.
Dominik Szoboszlai - £60 million
RB Leipzig have been rolling in the cash already this summer with Hungarian international Dominik Szoboszlai departing for Liverpool to help Jurgen Klopp reshape his midfield. Szoboszlai spent two years with the German outfit and was a huge presence in attack, scoring 20 goals and providing 22 assists across all competitions in the last two campaigns.
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Christopher Nkunku - £52 million
There has been a conveyor belt of talent developed by RB Leipzig over the past couple of years and Christopher Nkunku has been one of the most exciting to watch grow. The versatile attacker recently signed for Chelsea although a deal had been lined up for almost a year. Nkunku has an excellent goalscoring record with 70 goals for the club over the past four years. He was named the 2021-22 Bundesliga Player of the Season and picked up the Bundesliga Golden Boot award last term alongside Niclas Fullkrug.
Naby Keita - £48 million
It was only a few years ago that Naby Keita was thriving in Germany for RB Leipzig before joining Liverpool in 2018, with Klopp hoping he could be the midfielder the Reds were crying out for. Having just left the club on a free transfer five years later, Keita didn’t live up to the expectation at Anfield but RB Leipzig played their part in his development.
Timo Werner - £47.5 million
During his first stint at Red Bull Arena, German striker Timo Werner looked unstoppable. He was a prolific goalscorer for Die Rotten Bullen and was linked with most of Europe’s elite clubs. Chelsea triggered his release clause in the summer of 2020 and were shocked to not get the marksman they were hoping for as the German international struggled in west London. He moved back to RB Leipzig in August 2022.
Dayot Upamecano - £37 million
Before Gvardiol came on to the scene, Dayot Upamecano was the last star centre-back to come through in Leipzig. The Frenchman was picked up by Bayern Munich in the summer of 2021 after being linked with some of the giants of the Premier League. Despite being terrorised by Erling Haaland in their Champions League quarter-final tie last season, Upamecano has largely been reliable for Bayern Munich.
Ibrahima Konate - £36 million
Another RB Leipzig player who made the switch to Merseyside was fellow French defender Ibrahima Konate who joined Liverpool in the same summer Upamecano left for Bayern. Konate has had to bide his time for his chance in Klopp’s defence but he is continuing to impress when he features.
