Ranking the best Premier League transfers of all time: 50-1

Bill Barnwell runs down his picks for the best transfers ever. ESPN.com Illustration

Today, we're continuing the Top 100 Premier League transfers series. After running through the best transfers from 100 to 51, we'll hit the top 50 today. Signings from 19 different clubs are represented on the list, with a likely source leading the way. Fourteen different Manchester United signings are in the top 100, the most of any team; 10 of those signings are still to come.

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  Ranking the best Premier League transfers of all time: 100-51

As a reminder, I looked at every permanent transfer made by a Premier League team since the modern top-flight was created in 1992 and graded it on the player's productivity and longevity, his legacy with the club, the titles he played a role in winning, how much the transfer cost, and whether the player was sold for a significant profit. In addition, the following rules apply:

• 1. Was the player extremely productive during his time with the club? Was he considered among the best players at his position in the division?
• 2. Did he become a club or league legend? Is there something iconic that leads him to stand out from a similar signing in terms of talent or success?
• 3. Did the player win silverware? I considered each of the titles and cups won during his time with the team, weighing Champions League and Premier League success heaviest. I also made the executive decision of awarding Liverpool the 2019-20 Premier League title for the purposes of analyzing their players.
• 4. Was he a bargain? Given the transfer market of the time, would we look back and consider his fee to be laughably cheap given his level of production?
• 5. Did the team sell him for a profit?
• 6. Did the player spend a long time with the club?

The last two categories do push some current players down the rankings, which is fine. Stars like Raheem Sterling and Virgil Van Dijk have already made an impact in a relatively short time with their clubs, and they'll continue to rise up the rankings as they continue to win trophies and gain more longevity. This is looking back over the past 28 seasons, not looking into the future.

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- Ranking the Premier League's best transfers of all time: 100-51

Finally, I need to clarify which players aren't included. If you're angry that a notable star isn't somewhere on this list, please keep the following rules in mind:

• 1. The player must have been purchased while the club was in the Premier League. In other words, players who were signed before the Premier League was formed (like Peter Schmeichel and Ian Wright) and players who were signed while their club was in a lower league (like Kevin Phillips and Jamie Vardy) don't qualify.
• 2. The player must have established himself in senior football before joining the club. Obviously, players like Steven Gerrard who came directly from their own club academies don't count. I'm also not including players who were signed out of another team's youth academy, which would exclude Cesc Fabregas' transfer to Arsenal in 2003, since he hadn't played a first-team match in La Liga for Barcelona.
• 3. No loans. Only permanent transfers count. If a player is initially signed on loan and then inks a permanent deal, like Christophe Dugarry's run with Birmingham, I'm only considering what they did after the full transfer was completed.
• 4. The team gets credit for what you accomplished while you were at the club under this specific transfer. What happens elsewhere doesn't matter. Chelsea doesn't get credit for what Thibaut Courtois did on loan at Atletico Madrid or how Kevin De Bruyne blossomed after being sold. And if a club rebought a player for a second time, I split those careers into two separate transfers, so David Luiz's two Chelsea spells are kept separate for the purposes of this list.