Tottenham Hotspur: 10 Biggest Transfer Bargains in Spurs History

By (Correspondent) on May 29, 2012

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Let's face it, Spurs fans—Tottenham's going to have to make a splash in the transfer market this summer to have any chance of securing a place in next season's Champions League.

With rumors of Luka Modric, Gareth Bale and Emmanuel Adebayor leaving the club swirling around north London, Harry Redknapp's going to have to shore up his squad.

The disappointing part is, because of Tottenham's place in the Europa League (instead of the highly lucrative Champions League) they might not have the funds to go after the big names with the expensive price tags.

From a few quick glances at Spurs' recent transfer history, finding bargains is something White Hart Lane is surprisingly good at.

In Tottenham's 130-year history, Spurs have only taken on nine players that have cost the club more than £10 million in transfer fees. Compare that with the Manchester clubs, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal, and Spurs are the garage-salers of the Premier League.

As Tottenham begins their summer quest to find less-than-expensive transfers to add to their squad, let's revisit the top 10 bargains Spurs have found in their history.

10. Carlo Cudicini (Free)

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Mike Hewitt/Getty Images

Although he never caught on as a regular starter, the former Chelsea goalkeeper has given Tottenham a solid backup between the sticks along with a veteran to call on for non-league matches so as to not tire out starters Heurelho Gomes and, later, Brad Friedel.

He was brought on for free and served a couple dozen matches for Spurs.

Not the best bargain, but far from the worst.

9. Younes Kaboul (£5 Million)

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Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

The former Portsmouth man may have come to Tottenham at a fee to the tune of £5 million, but he's entrenched himself as the starting centre-back for the future.

At only 26 years old and with nearly a decade left on his knees, £5 million doesn't seem all that bad, does it?

8. Scott Parker (£5 Million)

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Clive Rose/Getty Images

I will always love this picture.

Parker is another player who may not seem like a bargain at first (his transfer fee was £5 million alone), but when you factor in the impact the feisty midfielder makes when he's on the pitch for Spurs and that he still has upwards of eight years left in him, like Kaboul, £5 million seems like a small price to pay.

Good for Tottenham—poaching last year's newly relegated West Ham United for Parker's services.

7. Benoit Assou-Ekotto (£3.5 Million)

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Michael Steele/Getty Images

If this year hadn't happened, the £3.5 million Tottenham spent on Assou-Ekotto might have seemed a waste.

Sure, the former RC Lens defender averaged 30 league appearances in the last two seasons, but it's this season that has seen Assou-Ekotto blossom into the attack-first left-back that Tottenham so desperately needs—especially if Gareth Bale is thinking of leaving.

6. Niko Kranjcar (£2.5 Million)

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Julian Finney/Getty Images

This season, Kranjcar's done little to prove he's a bargain.

But when he came to Tottenham in 2009, he scored six goals, assisted six more and was a big part of getting Spurs to the Champions League that year.

He's certainly a role player, but these days, £2.5 million is a bargain for effective role players who can help you get to the lucrative Champions League.

5. Aaron Lennon (£1 Million)

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Clive Rose/Getty Images

The quickest player on Tottenham's squad (yes, I remember Bale is still in a Spurs uniform), Lennon offers something different in attack from most of his other teammates.

He came over to White Hart Lane from Leeds United in the summer of 2005 for only £1 million, and since then he's appeared in more than 200 matches.

4. Jurgen Klinsmann (£2,000,000)

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Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

Yeah, yeah, I know—it was 1997 when the German wonderboy came over to Tottenham, and £175,000 was worth a little bit more.

But according to the CPI Inflation Calculator, £2,000,000 is only worth a little over £3,000,000 in today's money.

Mere chump change for a striker who gave them 21 goals in a single season.

3. Kyle Walker (£4 Million)

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Scott Heavey/Getty Images

Except for a shaky finish to this season, Walker was absolutely superb.

He appeared in all but one of Tottenham's matches, and his rocket of a goal in Spurs' 2-0 win over Blackburn was nearly worth the £4 million it cost to bring the right-back here in the first place.

Sad about the drop off at the end, as it seems to have cost him a place on Roy Hodgson's Euro 2012 roster, but he was great earlier on.

2. Brad Friedel (Free)

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Mike Hewitt/Getty Images

He had a chance at this year's Golden Glove, and he came to Tottenham for free.

What was Aston Villa thinking letting him go for nothing?

1. Gareth Bale (£5 Million)

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Clive Rose/Getty Images

There's a very high bar for a salary that Welsh phenomenon Gareth Bale wouldn't be worth. 

£5 million? Peanuts compared to what he's done for Tottenham since he came in 2007.

He's given Tottenham 113 appearances and 21 goals in the last four seasons along with an incredible amount of credit for getting Spurs to the Champions League, to Europa League and to the top of the league table.

If Tottenham loses him this summer, he'll do one more great thing for White Hart Lane—fetch a nearly £25 million profit on his original £5 million investment.

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