20 years of market values 

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In 2011/12, Chelsea beat Bayern Munich at their stadium to win the Champions League for the first time. In the Premier League, Manchester City won the title for the first time in 44 years. Real Madrid, under José Mourinho, ended Barcelona’s three-year dominance in Spain thanks to an in-form Cristiano Ronaldo. 

As part of 20 years of market values on Transfermarkt, we look back at the most valuable players of every season since 2004. As in the three years prior, in 2011/12, there was no way around Real’s Ronaldo and Barca’s superstar Lionel Messi, who won the Golden Boot with 50 goals in LaLiga and once again the Ballon d’Or. Ronaldo scored just four goals less than the Argentine but, across all competitions, had 27 goal contributions less than Messi (102 vs 75). As a result, the Real star remained behind Messi in the market value ranking. Messi confirmed his €100m market value, and Ronaldo remained stuck at €90m. 

The most valuable XI, like the prior season, once again included the Barca stars Messi, Andrés Iniesta (€65m), Xavi (€45m), and Gerard Piqué (€38m). New among Barcelona players was Cesc Fàbregas (€55m), who joined the Catalans from Arsenal that season. At the time of his transfer, Fàbregas was the most valuable transfer based on market value and, with a fee of €34m, the fourth most expensive of the season. Six Spanish players dominated the selection, playing a decisive role in the golden generation that won the Euros in 2008 and 2012 and the World Cup in 2010. 

Man City on the up – Title-less Bayern with one player in the top XI

For the first time, the top XI was represented by players from newly rich Man City. After the Abu Dhabi takeover in 2008, Man City invested heavily and finally won their first league title that season. Among the new signings were Wolfsburg’s Edin Dzeko for €37m and Valencia’s David Silva for €28.8m, who secured a position in the top XI with a market value of €46m. Also part of the XI was defender Vincent Kompany (€35m). Despite losing the Champions League final and finishing second to Dortmund in the DFB Pokal final and the Bundesliga title race, Bayern managed their first entry into the top XI in the form of Franck Ribéry (€42m).