5 most expensive players aged 18 or younger

#3 Fabio Silva (€40 million)

Brentford v Wolverhampton Wanderers - Premier League

Fabio Silva is the signing who is yet to reap dividends. The Portuguese ace shifted between the youth academies of FC Porto and SL Benfica as a youngster before signing a professional contract with the former in 2018.

In his debut season in the senior setup in 2019, the striker scored three goals and provided two assists in 24 appearances. But his stock was rising and several clubs were circling for his signature.

Wolverhampton Wanderers have always signed the best Portuguese talents and wanted to do so again. They brought out their checkbook and made the 18-year-old ace their club-record signing by paying €40 million in the summer of 2020.

It has taken a while for the talented starlet to adjust to life in England. He would always play second fiddle to Ruben Neves under former manager Nuno Espirito Santo. Current manager Bruno Lage has since started using the centre-forward far more often but he is yet to score goals on a regular basis. He has made 19 appearances this season in all competitions, scoring once.

Nevertheless, Silva is still only 19-year-old and things are starting to look up for him. Once he comes into his own, the young star can justify his price tag and prove his potential to the owners that paid him the big bucks.

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#2 Rodrygo (€45 million)

FC Internazionale v Real Madrid: Group B - UEFA Champions League

Rodrygo is a star in the making and is on the precipce of developing into a world-class winger. The Brazilian starlet started playing professionally for FC Santos at the age of 16. He was soon catching the eye of all the top clubs in Europe, but Real Madrid wanted him the most. Los Blancos put the money where their mouth was and paid €45 million to sign the 17-year-old ace in 2019.

Under former Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane, young talents were always promoted to the first-team setup and given a chance to prove their worth. The French manager also knew how to manage the minutes of a young talent like Rodrygo.

Understandably, the Samba boy flourished under the 1998 World Cup winner and made a place for himself in the squad. Now under Carlo Ancelotti, the youngster is trying to take his chances and become a starter. He has made 26 appearances this season in all competitions for Real Madrid.

Rodrygo's fancy bag of tricks coupled with an eye for a goal prove that he could succeed at the Santiago Bernabeu in the coming years.

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#1 Vinicius Jr (€45 million)

Real Madrid v FC Sheriff: Group D - UEFA Champions League

Vinicius Junior is already one of the biggest stars in world football. Only four years ago, the South American ace was playing for Flamengo in the Brazilian top-flight. But Real Madrid were quick to spot him and they always wanted to invest in young talent as a proper heir to Cristiano Ronaldo.

Living up to the legend is not an easy task. It has taken a while for the Brazilian to prove he is worth every penny of the €45 million the Spanish club paid for him when he was only 18.

In the beginning, Vincius had a lot to improve upon. His shooting was wayward and his first touch was disastrous. He has always had a god-given dribbling talent on the ball but he needed discipline to become a world-beater.

The winger is now starting every game under Carlo Ancelotti at the Santiago Bernabeu and is preferred over the €100 million signing Eden Hazard. The frightening aspect is that he is still only 21. He has scored 15 goals and assisted 10 in just 30 appearances in all competitions so far this season.

Vinicius is tearing apart the best teams in the world and it will not be a surprise if he goes on to win the prestigious Ballon d'Or award someday.