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

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Real Madrid, Keylor Navas (Photo by David Aliaga/MB Media/Getty Images) /

4. Keylor Navas – 10 Million Euros

Real Madrid purchased Keylor Navas from Levante in the summer of 2014, after triggering his release clause of 10 million. He was brought in after the exit of Diego Lopez and was expected to be Iker Casillas’ backup. But no one could’ve ever expected that Keylor Navas would go onto be Real Madrid’s starter and become such a crucial player.

Even after Casillas’ departure, people didn’t see him as the starter as the club almost signed David de Gea from Manchester United in the summer of 2015, only for the transfer to fail due to a faulty fax machine. People doubted if Navas could be Real Madrid’s No.1 and there were always doubts over him throughout his career, but he went onto answer his critics with his performances on the field.

He played an important role in the Champions League three-peat of Real Madrid, producing some unbelievable saves on the road and establishing himself as one of the best shot-stoppers in the history of the competition. Considering his contribution to the club, he has been one of the best transfer bargains ever.

Real Madrid, Casemiro (Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images) /

3. Casemiro – 6 Million Euros

Casemiro was initially taken on loan from Sao Paulo by Real Madrid so that Los Blancos could use him for the reserve side Real Madrid Castilla. But he impressed everyone a lot with his performances and even got a chance to make his first-team debut. His deal was made permanent in the summer of 2013 for a sum of 6 million euros, as he was promoted to the first team for the next season.

After a season on loan at Porto, and after being a second-choice payer most of the time under Benitez, Zinedine Zidane gave him his chance to be the starter, after which he established himself as a definite starter and one of the most important players for the team’s defensive setup. He has always excelled in his role as a destroyer and won a lot of trophies all these years. Considering the ratio of his output to the investment made on him, it’s quite easy to include him as one of the best bargains ever.

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