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In the recent past, the game of football has become a financially luring prospect for rich businessmen and industrialists. Many of them have invested huge sums of money into the game. This has resulted in inflated transfer prices and increased wages for players.
Some of the highest-paid players include Paris Saint-Germain's Lionel Messi and Neymar and Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo.
The constant pumping of funds has led to overpaying some football players.
Sometimes, a club offers a player according to their reputation. If the player doesn't justify his salary tag, he will be considered as an overpaid footballer.
In this article, we will look at five players across Europe who have not justified their wages and will be better off switching clubs.
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#5. Juan Mata (Mancheser United) - £160k-a-week
There's no denying that Juan Mata was one of the best attacking players in the Premier League during his heydays. However, the Spaniard has been just a rotation option for the Manchester Unit for some time now.
The Red Devils snapped him from rivals Chelsea in 2014 for a then club-record fee of £40 million. A left-footed player with creativity and great technical abilities, Mata enjoyed some good moments with Manchester United. Of the 276 appearances he has made for the club in all competitions, the 33-year old has bagged 51 goals and 47 assists.
A footballer with a great reputation, he has predominantly warmed the bench in recent seasons. Mata has made just three appearances for Manchester United this season. His high wages could surely be utilized in a thrifty manner.
#4. Samuel Umtiti (Barcelona) - £208k-a-week
There's no denying that Samuel Umtiti is a considerable talent. As he displayed most emphatically perhaps at the 2018 World Cup but also over a number of years at Lyon.
However, Umtiti's current club Barcelona have developed an unfortunate habit of paying ludicrous wages over the last decade. And it's true that the Frenchman's salary is a little generous for him.
He signed a five-year deal with Barcelona, where his salary was reportedly worth around £208k-a-week in 2018. This was when his reputation was at its highest. Giving comparisons with fellow centre-backs around the world, Umtiti earns three times as much as Chelsea's Thiago Silva. Umtiti's salary is also about nine times what Simon Kjaer reportedly earns at AC Milan.
The Barcelona centre-half hasn't even played more than 20 games in all competitions in any of the last three seasons. Umtiti has had a series of horrible knee injuries at the Camp Nou. He was also booed by fans in pre-season matches. They felt that his refusal to leave the club had been a key reason behind Lionel Messi's enforced departure.
His poor performances when called upon have meant that the likes of Oscar Mingueza, Ronald Araujo and under-firing Eric Garcia are now ahead in the pecking order.
#3. Kepa Arrizabalaga (Chelsea) - £155k-a-week
As the most expensive goalkeeper in the world, you are expected to start every game for your club. Unfortunately for Chelsea, that has not been the case with Kepa Arrizabalaga.
The London-based club paid Atheltic Bilbao a mammoth £72 million to sign the Spain international in 2018 to replace the outgoing Thibaut Courtois.
However, due to Arrizabalaga's dismal performances and recurring errors, Chelsea were forced to sign Edouard Mendy during the 2019-20 campaign. Now serving as a second-choice goalkeeper, the 27-year-old has made just five starts in all competitions, keeping two clean sheets.
Arrizabalaga is the sixth highest-earner in the squad and Chelsea will be keen to cut their losses.
#2. Isco (Real Madrid) - £210k-a-week
In full flow, there are few players who are as graceful and gifted as the 29-year-old Isco. He made his name at Malaga, where in his teens he won a Golden boy award.
Los Blancos snatched him for €30 million in 2013. During his tenure as Madrid boss, Zinedine Zidane even drew comparisons between the playmaker and himself. But there was always a sense that there was so much more to come. However, his next level breakout season just never arrived.
Isco didn't score a single goal and made just a couple of assists in 29 appearances last season. He has grabbed a solitary goal and zero assists from seven outings so far this term under Carlo Ancelotti. That is not the form that one would typically expect of a midfielder who earns in excess of £200-a-week.
Interestingly, the Spaniard earns more than Angel Di Maria and Dani Olmo combined. It remains to be seen whether Real Madrid will extend his contract, which is set to expire at the end of this season.
#1. Anthony Martial (Manchester United) - £250k-a-week
Anthony Martial joined the Red Devils as the most expensive teenage footballer of all time at reportedly £58 million from AS Monaco in 2015. In his debut campaign he topped the club's scoring charts, scoring 18 goals. Since then, the Frenchman has been hugely frustrating, brilliant and absent. Ultimately, he hasn't just clicked at Old Trafford over the last 18 months at least.
It is worth emphasizing that Martial is said to earn more than Liverpool's Mohamed Salah, who is one of the most in-form players in world football right now. The Egyptian has already scored 22 goals and nine assists this season. Whereas the French international has one goal and zero assists so far.
Jadon Sancho, Mason Greenwood and Marcus Rashford are all younger than him in Manchester United squad. Cristiano Ronaldo and Edinson Cavani are seemingly more favored through the middle. Hence, it is difficult to see how a separation isn't inevitable at this time.
There are only 32 players in world football who are believed to earn more than Martial, who has a weekly wage of £250k-a-week.
The likes of Erling Haaland, Bruno Fernandes and Bernardo Silva are all reported to earn far less. Hence, it is fair to say that Manchester United are no longer getting great value for money from the former Monaco man.
