Everton's former record signing Andrei Kanchelskis, who joined for £5 million in 1995, would be worth £104 million in today's transfer market, according to calculations by football finance expert Kieran Maguire. The University of Liverpool senior lecturer used the Laws-Maguire Index, which adjusts historical transfer fees for changes in club revenues over time, to provide updated values for Everton's record signings throughout the Premier League era.
How the Laws-Maguire Index Works
The index, co-created by Maguire and colleague Jason Laws, adjusts original fees for the increased buying power of clubs as their revenues have grown. Maguire explained: "This works by adjusting original fees for changes in buying power of clubs as their revenues have increased over time, and these are the totals." He added that he took the three biggest transfers from each season to create a table, and plans to expand the sample to top 10-20 transfers or a club-by-club basis.
Everton's Record Signings and Their Present-Day Values
Here is the full rundown of Everton's record signings in the Premier League era and their adjusted values using the Laws-Maguire Index:
- Daniel Amokachi (1994, £3m from Club Brugge): Now worth £65.9m.
- Duncan Ferguson (1994, £4m): Now worth £87.9m.
- Andrei Kanchelskis (1995, £5m from Manchester United): Now worth £104m.
- Nick Barmby (1996, £5.75m from Middlesbrough): Now worth £90.8m.
- James Beattie (2005, £6m from Southampton): Now worth £31.3m.
- Andrew Johnson (2006, £8.6m from Crystal Palace): Now worth £42.6m.
- Ayegbeni Yakubu (2007, £11.25m from Middlesbrough): Now worth £43.1m.
- Marouane Fellaini (2008, £15m from Standard Liege): Now worth £56.2m.
- Romelu Lukaku (2014, £28m from Chelsea): Now worth £60.4m.
- Gylfi Sigurdsson (2017, £45m from Swansea City): Now worth £67.5m.
Context from Premier League History
The analysis comes amid news of Eliot Anderson's proposed £116 million move from Nottingham Forest to Manchester City. According to the index, Anderson ranks only 31st in relative expense. By comparison, Alan Shearer's £15 million world-record move from Blackburn Rovers to Newcastle United in 1996 would now be worth £236.9 million, and Stan Collymore's £8.5 million switch from Nottingham Forest to Liverpool in 1995 would be worth £176.8 million. While no Everton purchases made the list, Romelu Lukaku's £75 million sale to Manchester United in 2017 would now be worth £112.6 million, and Jack Grealish's £100 million move from Aston Villa to Manchester City in 2021 would be valued at £132.7 million today.
Maguire's Observations on Everton
Maguire noted that Everton's "imperial" phase in the transfer market occurred in the early years of the Premier League. He said: "This was great fun looking at it for a single club, and shows that Everton’s ‘imperial’ phase when they were very much at the top table when it came to being competitive on transfer fees, was very much at the inception/early years of the Premier League."
