We don’t know for sure if Barcelona and Atletico Madrid will swap Griezmann and Saul, but it will surely be historic if it does. With Antoine Griezmann returning to Los Rojiblancos after a dry spell in Barcelona, Saul Niguez would come the other way. This would be the most attractive deal of the summer.
This transfer has yet to come to a solid construct. While that happens, let’s have a look at some of the most important swaps that took the footballing world by surprise.
The Arthur and Pjanic switch in 2020
The most recent switch also included Barcelona. The switch was between Barcelona’s young Arthur Melo and an experienced Miralem Pjanic from Juventus. The Catalonian side also paid 12 million euros extra to Juventus for Pjanic. Both the players failed to draw their respective manager’s trust in them.
The Alexis Sanchez and Mkhitaryan switch in 2018
This was a big profile swap but one which ended in much disappointment for both sides. Manchester United exchanged Henrikh Mkhitaryan for Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez. Neither of the players ever lived up to their expectations.
The David Luiz and Matic switch in 2011
Chelsea swapped a promising David Luiz from Benfica in exchange for almost 20 million euros and another 5 million euros in add-ons. The Brazilian centre-back was exchanged for Nemanja Matic who moved to Benfica.
The Eto’o and Ibrahimovic switch in 2009
Barcelona won the treble in 2009 and Samuel Eto’o had an amazing season. Barcelona leveraged Eto as a makeweight along with another 45 million euros to bring in Zlatan Ibrahimovic from Inter. Eto’o, who was then valued at 20m euros, won yet another treble at Inter. On the other hand, the Swede wasn’t quite the fit for Camp Nou.
The Luis Garcia and Torres switch in 2007
Fernando Torres came to Liverpool at a huge price tag. The English side spent 36 million euros along with Luis Garcia to sign the Spanish from Atletico Madrid. Luis Garcia was then valued at 4m euros.
The Gallas and Cole switch in 2006
The William Gallas and Ashley Cole switch quite literally took the world by surprise. With Gallas moving from Chelsea to Arsenal and Cole coming the other way round along with the 7m euros Arsenal paid to Chelsea.
The Baptista and Reyes switch in 2006
It was the deadline day ahead of the 2006/07 season when Real Madrid made a huge move, one that would play a major role in the coming years. The Madrid club swapped Julio Baptista for Arsenal’s Jose Antonio Reyes. Reyes would go on to play a key role in winning them their 30th LaLiga title. Baptista also returned to Real the next season and enjoyed one of his best seasons.
The Quaresma and Deco switch in 2004
Barcelona got Deco from Porto for just 15 million euros and Ricardo Quaresma going the other way. Deco was one of the best decisions the Catalan club made then.
The Simeone and Vieri switch in 1999
Inter paid up to 40 million euros along with Diego Simeone to sign Christian Vieri from Lazio. Simeone enjoyed a successful spell at Lazio helping them to win the Serie A title and the Coppa Italia.
