Real Madrid: Ranking the 10 best transfer bargains of this century

8. Santiago Solari – 4 Million

The Argentine international, who was one of the mainstays of the club between 2000 and 2005, was bought for 4 million from the club’s local rivals, Atletico Madrid. But considering his talent and what he went on to achieve with Real Madrid in the coming years, getting him for 4 million was really a bargain.

In the 5 years he stayed at Real Madrid, he played 209 games in the royal white jersey and scored 22 goals while assisting 19 more. He was a classy and elegant left-winger, who was more of a controlling and creative force. He won 7 titles in 5 years at Real Madrid, including the 2002 UEFA Champions League title.

7. Gonzalo Higuain – 12 Million Euros

In 2006, a 19-year-old Gonzalo Higuain was signed by Real Madrid from River plate for a fee of 12 million euros. Though he had a slow start to life at Real Madrid and was pretty much a backup to Ruud Van Nistelrooy, he got his chance to be a starter from 2008, and then he started to show his true potential as he scored 22 league goals in that season.

Though he had competition from Karim Benzema for his place, he always performed whenever he got his chance, and he was actually preferred over the Frenchman by Jose Mourinho. He finally left for Napoli in 2013, after spending seven seasons at Real Madrid, scoring 121 goals and assisting 56 more in 264 apps. It’s safe to say goal return is enough to prove that his signing was a bargain for 12 million euros.