Are Ronaldo and Messi the Only Players in Football Worth over £50 Million?

It's hard to believe now, but there were some saying at the time that £80 million was a ridiculous sum of money to spend on one footballer.

Cristiano Ronaldo or not.

Consider those words well and truly eaten.

Even if Barcelona somehow manage to peg back Real Madrid before the season's end and claim Champions League glory yet again, do you honestly think if we all went back three years in time Madrid wouldn't spend that much again? Or more?

Some even say today that Manchester United were ripped off.

Side note: If somebody wants to try and rip me off for £80 million, go right ahead.

It's one of modern football's graces that the Catalan maestro from Argentina will probably never be put up for sale.

That's one bidding war I'm glad we'll never have to face.

But if Ronaldo was bought for £80 million—and that was a bargain? Lionel Messi's transfer value isn't even worth thinking about.

But who else?

Who else is worth £80 million and a Middle Eastern billionaire owner brave enough to pull the trigger?

Heck...who else is worth £50 million?

Here are the contenders:

Bastian Schweinsteiger, Bayern Munich
Estimated worth: £25 million

Nice try Bastian, but a 27-year-old defensive midfielder is never going to make the cut... no matter how good he is. Shout out to Xabi Alonso and Yaya Toure. 

Vincent Kompany, Manchester City
Estimated worth: £30 million

Come now, no defender, no matter how good he is, is going to ever top £50 million. Let's get realistic. Shout out to Gerard Pique and Neven Subotic, though.

Robin van Persie, Arsenal
Estimated worth: £35 million

Closer to the mark, but unfortunately Robin is also a little too long in the tooth to hit the magic "50" (if 28 is considered "long in the tooth" these days). He's never been able to shake the "Injury prone" tag either. Nice try, though. Shout out to Mesut Ozil, Juan Mata and Franck Ribery.

Hulk, Porto
Estimated worth: £40 million

Don't let the £85 million release clause fool you. Hulk isn't worth half that. That's not to say he's not talented—he didn't earn the nickname for nothing! But his impact for the Portuguese club hasn't been anything like that of last season. We're getting closer at £40 million, though. Shout out to Sergio Aguero, Gareth Bale and Eden Hazard.

Marek Hamsik, Ezequiel Lavezzi, Edinson Cavani, Napoli
Estimated worth: £30 million, £30 million, £45 million respectively

The Napoli triumvirate is a potential gold mine if Napoli ever wanted to sell, although it is only Cavani whose value comes close to £50 million. Shout out to Lucas Moura, Falcao and Alexandre Pato, who are probably worth somewhere in between £30 million and £45 million.

Xavi and Andres Iniesta, Barcelona
Estimated worth: £35 million and £45 million, respectively

Closer and closer. The genius of these two players speak for itself. Shout out to Mario Gotze, Luka Modric and David Silva, who are probably worth somewhere in between £35 million and £45 million.

Wayne Rooney, Manchester United
Estimated worth: £50 million

Boom, we have our first winner! The stocky Liverpudlian hits the magic mark with a bullet volley from 30 yards out (although if this list had been drafted a couple of years ago, £50 million would probably have looked conservative).

Neymar, Santos
Estimated worth: £50 million

"Ladies and Gentlemen, in the red corner, weighing in at 135 lbs, the pride of Sao Paulo, Brazil...Neymar!"

So there you go.

Only two players worth £50 million.

But bargains galore!