Emmanuel Adebayor

14. Emmanuel Adebayor (Tottenham Hotspur), $15.4 million

 

 

Sheyi Emmanuel Adebayor (born 26 February 1984), known as Emmanuel Adebayor, is a Togolese footballer who plays as a striker for Tottenham Hotspur and the Togo national team. Adebayor previously played for Metz, Monaco, Arsenal, Real Madrid and Manchester City. He was voted African Footballer of the Year for 2008.In January 2010, Adebayor was one of the players involved when the Togo national team's bus came under gunfire on the way to the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations in Angola. In 2013 he is playing with Togo national team's at 2013 African Cup of Nations in South Africa, and they are qualified in quarterfinals.

 

 

Club career

 

 

Arsenal

2006-2009

 

 

 

 

 

 

Manchester City



2009-2012

 

 

 

 



 

Tottenham Hotspur

2012-Present

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

Frank Ribery

15. Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich), $15.3 million

 

 

Franck Ribéry (born 7 April 1983) is a French international footballer who plays for German club Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga and for the France national team. He primarily plays as a winger, preferably on the left side, and is known for "pace, energy, skill and precise passing." Ribéry is described as a player who is "fast, tricky and an excellent dribbler" who "has great control with the ball at his feet". Since joining Bayern, he has been recognised on the world stage as one of the best French players of his generation. The previous talisman of French national team, Zinedine Zidane, has called Ribéry the "jewel of French football".

 

Ribéry's career began in 1989 as a youth player for local hometown club Conti Boulogne. He left the club after seven years to join professional outfit Lille, but departed the club after three years after having difficulties adjusting. In 1999, Ribéry joined US Boulogne, where he played for two years. After spending two more years in the amateur divisions with two different clubs (Alès and Brest), in 2004, Ribéry earned a move to Ligue 1 club FC Metz. After six months with the club, Ribéry moved to Turkey in January 2005 joining Galatasaray where he won the Turkish Cup. After six months at Galatasaray, he departed the club in controversial fashion in order to return to France to join Marseille. Ribéry spent two seasons at the club helping the Marseillais reach the final of the Coupe de France in back-to-back seasons. In 2007, Ribéry joined German club Bayern Munich for a then club-record fee of €25 million. With Bayern, he has won the double on two occasions; in the 2007–08 and 2009–10 seasons. In 2010, Ribéry contributed to the team that reached the 2010 UEFA Champions League Final, but was unable to participate in the match due to suspension.

 

Ribéry is a French international. Prior to representing the senior team, he played at under-21 level. At senior level, Ribéry has represented his nation at two FIFA World Cups and two UEFA European Football Championships. He made his international debut in May 2006 against Mexico. At the 2006 World Cup, Ribéry scored his first international goal against Spain and played in the final match against Italy. Individually, Ribéry is a two-time winner of the French Player of the Year award and has also won the German Footballer of the Year becoming the first player to hold both honours. He has also been named to the UEFA Team of the Year and declared the Young Player of the Year in France.

 

Club career

 

Marseille

2005-2007

 

 

 

 

 

 Bayern Munich

2007-Present

 

 

 

 

 

Daniel Alves

17. Daniel Alves (Barcelona), $15 million

 

 

Daniel Alves da Silva (born 6 May 1983), commonly known as Dani Alves, is a Brazilian footballer. He plays as an offensive right defender for FC Barcelona and the Brazilian national team.
Before joining Barcelona, Alves spent a successful six-year spell with Sevilla FC, winning two UEFA Cups and the Copa del Rey with the Andalusian side. He joined Barcelona for €32.5m,becoming the second most expensive defender to date, after Rio Ferdinands transfer from Leeds United to Manchester United in 2002 for around £30 million. Alves won the Treble in his first season with the club and in the other season, he won Spanish super cup, European super cup, and FIFA Club World Cup. Also, he helped the club to clinch another Spanish super cup, two league titles, and a UEFA Champions League in the years that followed. Alves has held a Spanish passport since 2005. On Thursday, 29 September 2011, Alves was appointed as a Special Olympics Ambassador for its Global Football program, charged with promoting respect and inclusion in football for people with intellectual disabilities, particularly in the run up to the 2014 FIFA World Cup.


Club career

Sevilla
2002-2008

 

 





 

Barcelona

2008-Present

 

 

 

 



Sergio Aguero

16. Sergio Aguero (Manchester City), $15.3 million

 

 

Sergio Leonel "Kun" Agüero del Castillo (born 2 June 1988) is an Argentine footballer who plays as a striker for Manchester City in England's Premier League and the Argentine national team. On 5 July 2003, he became the youngest player to debut in the Argentine Primera División at 15 years and 35 days, breaking the record previously established by Diego Maradona in 1976. He plays with the shirt name Kun Agüero.

 

At international level, Agüero represented the Argentina under-20 team at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2005 and in 2007, winning both tournaments. Agüero played at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, he scored two goals in the 3–0 semi-final win against Brazil as Argentina went on to win the gold medal. Agüero was selected to represent Argentina in the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2011 Copa América.

In 2006, Agüero moved to Europe to play for La Liga side Atlético Madrid for a fee of €23 million from Independiente. He made a name for himself, attracting attention from Europe's top clubs by scoring 101 goals in 234 appearances while winning the UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Super Cup in 2010. Agüero moved to Premier League club Manchester City in July 2011 for an undisclosed fee thought to be in the region of £35 million. On the last day of his début season with the club, Agüero scored a 94th-minute winner against Queen's Park Rangers that earned Manchester City their first league title in 44 years. In 2012, he won Manchester City's player of the year as voted for by the fans.

Club career

Independiente
2003-2006

 

 

 

 

Atlético Madrid

2006-2011

 

 

 

 

 

Manchester City

2011-2012

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 



 

Carlos Tevez

18. Carlos Tevez (Manchester City), $14.9 million

 

 

Carlos Alberto Tévez (born Carlos Alberto Martínez; 5 February 1984) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward for English club Manchester City. He has previously played for Boca Juniors, Corinthians, West Ham United and Manchester United. He transferred to Manchester City from United in the 2009 summer transfer window, becoming the first player to move between the two rival clubs since Terry Cooke in 1999. His energy and goal scoring rate has since made him an indispensable player for the club in the eyes of fellow players and media alike. He was promoted to captain at the beginning of the 2010–11 season by manager Roberto Mancini.

 

 

In 2011, Tévez sought a transfer away from Manchester, citing family reasons and Sergio Agüero was drafted in as a replacement. However he remains a City player after his family moved back to Manchester with manager Roberto Mancini believing Tévez will stay for the foreseeable future. His career has been dogged by a long-standing relationship with Media Sports Investment (along with Just Sport), the company which owned the rights of Tévez, and several other players and coaches. This eventually resulted in West Ham United being fined over issues regarding third-party ownership. He has made 62 appearances for the Argentina national team, scoring 13 goals.

 

 

Club career

 

 

Boca Juniors

2001-2004

 

 

 

 

 

Corinthians

2004-2006

 

 

 

 





 

 

West Ham United

2006-2007

 

 

 

 

 

Manchester United

2007-2009

 

 

 

 

 

Manchester City

2009-Present

 

 

 

 



 



 

Thierry Henry

19. Thierry Henry (New York Red Bulls), $14.6 million

 

 

Thierry Daniel Henry (born 17 August 1977) is a French footballer who plays as a striker for New York Red Bulls in Major League Soccer. Henry was born in Les Ulis, Essonne (a suburb of Paris) where he played for an array of local sides as a youngster and showed great promise as a goal-scorer. He was spotted by AS Monaco in 1990 and signed instantly, making his professional debut in 1994. Good form led to an international call-up in 1998, after which he signed for the Serie A defending champions Juventus. He had a disappointing season playing on the wing, before joining Arsenal for £11 million in 1999.

 

 

It was at Arsenal that Henry made his name as a world-class footballer. Despite initially struggling in the Premier League, he emerged as Arsenal's top goal-scorer for almost every season of his tenure there. Under long-time mentor and coach Arsène Wenger, Henry became a prolific striker and Arsenal's all-time leading scorer with 228 goals in all competitions. The Frenchman won two league titles and three FA Cups with the Gunners; he was nominated for the FIFA World Player of the Year twice, was named the PFA Players' Player of the Year twice, and the FWA Footballer of the Year three times. Henry spent his final two seasons with Arsenal as club captain, leading them to the 2006 UEFA Champions League Final.

 

 

In June 2007, after eight years with Arsenal, he transferred to Barcelona for a fee of €24 million. His first honours with the Catalan club came in 2009 when they won the La Liga, Copa del Rey and Champions League treble. He went on to achieve an unprecedented sextuple by also winning the Supercopa de España, the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup. In total, Henry has been named in the UEFA Team of the Year five times. In 2010, he joined the New York Red Bulls of the Major League Soccer, and won the Eastern Conference title with them in 2010. He returned to Arsenal on loan for two months in 2012.

 

 

Henry enjoyed similar success with the French national team, having won the 1998 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2000 and 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup. In October 2007, he surpassed Michel Platini's record to become France's top goal-scorer of all time. Henry retired from international football after the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Off the pitch, Henry is an active spokesperson against racism in football, partially due to his own experiences. He married English model Nicole Merry in 2003 and had a daughter with her, but they divorced in 2007. Henry was also one of the top commercially marketed footballers; he was ranked ninth in the world in 2006.

 

 

Club career

 

Arsenal

1999-2007

 

 

 

 

 

Bacelona

2007-2010

 

 

 

 

 

New York Red Bulls

2010-Present

 

 

 

 

 

 

 





 



 

Karim Benzema

20. Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), $14.3 million

 

 

Karim Mostafa Benzema (born 19 December 1987) is a French international footballer who plays for Spanish club Real Madrid in La Liga. He primarily plays as a striker whose influence can extend out to the wings and is known for his technical ability, powerful style of play, and vast goal-scoring ability. He is described as an "immensely-talented striker" who is "strong and powerful" and "a potent finisher from inside the box".

 

 

Benzema was born in the city of Lyon and began his football career with local club Bron Terraillon. In 1996, he joined the biggest club in the city Olympique Lyonnais and, subsequently, came through the club's youth academy. Benzema made his professional debut in the 2004–05 season and appeared sporadically in his first three seasons as Lyon won three titles in that span. In the 2007–08 season, Benzema became a starter and had a breakthrough year scoring over 30 goals as Lyon won its seventh straight league title. For his performances, he was named the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) Ligue 1 Player of the Year and named to the organization's Team of the Year. Benzema was also the league's top scorer and given the Bravo Award by Italian magazine Guerin Sportivo. After another season at Lyon, in July 2009, Benzema signed a six-year contract with Spanish outfit Real Madrid. After struggling to establish himself in his debut season with the club, in the ensuing two seasons, Benzema reached prominence scoring 32 goals en route to helping Real Madrid win the Copa del Rey in 2011 and the 2011–12 edition of La Liga. He has been awarded French Player of the Year for his performances during the calendar year of 2011 respectively 2012.

 

 

Benzema is a former French youth international and has represented his nation from under-17 level onwards. Prior to playing for the senior team, he played on the under-17 team that won the 2004 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship. Benzema made his senior international debut in March 2007 in a friendly match against Austria. On his debut, he scored his first international goal in a 1–0 win. Benzema has represented France at two major international tournaments; the 2008 and 2012 editions of the UEFA European Football Championship. He made two appearances in the former competition against Romania and Italy in the group stage.

 

 

Club career

 

Lyon

2004-2009

 

 

 

 

 

Real Madrid

2009-Present