Ranking the five most expensive teenagers in Premier League history

Premier League clubs have splashed the cash on emerging names this summer with Leny Yoro, Archie Gray and Yankuba Minteh among the talented teenagers signed for big fees.

Investing in youth can safeguard a side’s future but it comes with an element of risk, as clubs pay for potential rather than proven players.

Following several significant signings this summer we’ve looked at the most expensive teenagers in Premier League history.

The most expensive teenagers in Premier League history:

5. Fabio Silva – Porto to Wolves (£35m)

Fabio Silva’s emergence at Porto persuaded Wolves to spend £35m on the 18-year-old in 2020, a staggering sum for a player with just 12 appearances in the Primeira Liga.

A prolific scorer at youth level, Silva became Porto’s youngest player and goalscorer after being handed his debut as a teenager. Wolves were confident they had beaten Europe’s top clubs to the forward but he struggled to adapt to English football.

Silva was handed a baptism of fire after Raul Jimenez’s injury saw him thrust into action, where he scored just four goals in 54 appearances.

“I’ll be honest. I didn’t want to join Wolves,” Silva said to SportBible last month.

“It wasn’t the right time to leave Porto. I wanted to stay for one or two more years. I felt like that was the best thing for my career.

“They pushed me in the direction of Wolves. I didn’t have a choice. Maybe the other clubs would have been better for my development – a league that would allow more time and patience.

“I was told if I said no to Wolves, then I wouldn’t play for the first team at Porto. I was only 18 when a team decided to offer £35 million. At the time, Porto weren’t in a great position financially but I still didn’t have a say in the matter.

Loan spells at Anderlecht, PSV Eindhoven and Rangers have followed with limited success, with Silva set to leave Molineux this summer.

4. Anthony Martial – AS Monaco to Manchester United (£36m)

Manchester United made Anthony Martial the most expensive Premier League teenager in history when signing the French forward from Monaco in 2015.

Things started brilliantly, as a scintillating solo goal on debut against Liverpool saw Martial billed as a future superstar. He was later named winner of the Golden Boy after an instant impact in the Premier League.

However, he failed to hit the heights expected during an up-and-down career at Old Trafford. Martial scored 90 goals in 317 appearances for the Red Devils, as his time with the club was punctuated by inconsistent form.

3. Archie Gray – Leeds to Tottenham Hotspur (£40m)

Tottenham Hotspur spent big signing Archie Gray this summer, capitalising on Leeds’ failure to win promotion to snap up the highly-rated teenager.

Gray is the latest in a long lineage of family members to have represented Leeds and made 52 appearances in all competitions as the club reached the Championship play-off final in 2023-24. He was named the second-tiers’s Young Player of the Season and the 18-year-old has already won two caps for England at u-21 level.

The deal for Gray is estimated to be worth £40m with £10m of that fee made up of Joe Rodon’s move to Elland Road in the opposite direction. An impressive debut in an unfamiliar centre-back role in pre-season has Spurs supporters believing a future star has arrived in North London.

2. Leny Yoro – Lille to Manchester United (£52m)

Another of this summer’s recruits, Manchester United beat Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and Liverpool to the signing of Leny Yoro.

The 18-year-old emerged as one of the most coveted central defenders in Europe after a breakout season at Lille, where Yoro scored three times in 44 appearances across all competitions and was named in the Ligue 1 Team of the Season.

Real Madrid had appeared the frontrunner to sign the Frenchman, but Manchester United’s greater desire and superior offer won the race. After a period of underwhelming recruitment, Yoro appears an addition to get excited about.

1. Romeo Lavia – Southampton to Chelsea (£52.75m)

Romeo Lavia is the most expensive teenager in Premier League history after Chelsea spent £52.75m to sign the midfielder from Southampton in 2023.

Chelsea beat Liverpool in the race to sign Lavia, who had impressed despite the Saints’ relegation from the top division. A press-resistant and tenacious defensive midfielder, Lavia had shone on the south coast after leaving the Manchester City academy for first-team football. He led all Premier League players aged under 21 for combined tackles and interceptions in 2022-23.

However, he has endured a disastrous start to his career at Chelsea and was restricted to just 32 minutes of football during an injury-hit debut season. Lavia will hope a full pre-season can put him back on track after a false start in West London.

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