France Football is expected to release its best paid player list later on today and it is widely believed that Argentina and Barcelona forward Lionel Messi will top it. The Argentina wizard as he is fondly referred to, has overtaken LA Galaxy’s David Beckham and Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo to stamp his dominance on all fronts.
Of course, with Eto’o having signed that mega deal last summer, i was expecting him to top the list however, according to France Football, the list is compiled based on a player’s annual wages and sponsorship deals.
That said, a very surprising statistic present on the pre-list is the non-existence of Serie A players. In fact, with the exception of La Liga trio Messi, Ronaldo and Kaka the Galaxy’s David Beckham and Bayern Munich’s Philip Lahm, the rest of the list (half) is made up of EPL players. Without wanting to keep you in suspense, here is a complete list of the ten best paid players:
- Lionel Messi (Barcelona) £27.5m
- David Beckham (LA Galaxy) £26.2m
- Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid) £24.3m
- Samuel Eto’o (Anzhi) £19.4m
- Wayne Rooney (Man United) £17.2m
- Sergio Aguero (Man City) £15.7m
- Yaya Toure (Man City) £14.7m
- Fernando Torres (Chelsea) £13.9m
- Kaka (Real Madrid) £12.9m
- Philipp Lahm (Bayern Munich) £11.9m
Also featuring on the list is Chelsea’s record signing Fernando Torres who despite having scored only a handful of goals since his £50 million move last January, he comes in at 8th on the list with a combined turnover of £13.9m for the year 2011.
Of course the list is based on individuals and their earning power, however, it is also a reflection on the player’s particular league and how that league fairs amongst other in the region and internationally.
The lack of Italian players on the list is a big reflection on the state of the game in Italy. Once considered the best league in the world in the 90’s, the Serie A has rapidly descended to become a league marred by scandals and rumours of scandals.
If this does not ring the warning bells for the FIGC, then it will be only a matter of time before the Bundesliga overtakes it to become a key destination for emerging and top players.
photo credit © thesportreview