Brazilian side Palmeiras are one of South America’s top sides. They’ve won the Libertadores three times, the Sudamericana once, and the domestic league ten times. One of the ways they’ve sustained their success is player sales: developing top talent, then selling them for profit in order to bring in new players.
Gabriel Veron is the latest export for Palmeiras, with Veron is leaving for Portuguese side FC Porto. Long considered a talented prospect, the 19-year-old is being sold for just over $11 million – which makes him Palmeiras’ sixth most expensive sale, per transfermarkt.com. But who are Palmeiras’ top five sales, and how have they fared?
(Note: All transfer fees come from transfermarkt)
5. Flávio Conceição, 1996, $12.1 million
Conceição joined Palmeiras for free in 1994, quickly establishing himself as one of the team’s top players. While with the club he won the league twice and made his debut with the Brazilian national team. In 1996 he joined Deportivo de La Coruña, now in the third tier, for $12.1 million. After winning La Liga with Deportivo, Conceição moved on to Real Madrid, then several other European clubs before retirement in 2006.
4. Rivaldo, 1996, $13.2 million
Deportivo de La Coruña didn’t just sign one Palmeiras player in 1996. They went for the double swoop, signing attacking midfielder Rivaldo. Rivaldo stayed for just one season after being signed, moving to Barcelona for twice the fee Deportivo originally paid. With Barcelona, Rivaldo won the Ballon d’Or and the World Cup with Brazil, but his career eventually started to decline and he left. Rivaldo became a nomadic player, playing in Angola, Brazil, Italy, Greece, and Uzbekistan, but never returned to Palmeiras.
3. Yerry Mina, 2018, $13.64 million
Back in 2017, Colombian center-back Yerry Mina was seen as an exciting prospect. Only 23, he was becoming an increasingly important player for a Palmeiras side that won the league in 2016. Barcelona jumped at the chance to sign Mina, bringing him in for just over $13 million in January. However, Mina never had a chance with Barcelona, playing just six times before joining Everton later that year. He still plays at Everton, with his importance highlighted last season. The Merseyside club battled relegation with Mina on the sideline due to injury for most of the year.
2. Matías Vina, 2021, $14.3 million
Jose Mourinho’s Roma paid almost $15 million to bring in the Uruguayan international in last season, and with good reason. The 23-year-old was a crucial part of the Palmeiras side that won the Libertadores in 2021, and the Uruguayan international was gaining attention. However, his first season in Rome was somewhat of a disappointment. Vina rarely started, with Mourinho often preferring Polish prospect Nicola Zalewski. Reports say that Vina will stay with Roma, but it will be a crucial season for him.
1. Gabriel Jesus, 2017, $35.2 million
The man of the hour. Gabriel Jesus joined Arsenal this year in a highly-anticipated move, but before he was in England, Jesus played for Palmeiras. The 17-year-old debuted in 2015, and by the time he left in two years, he had been named the league’s top player in addition to winning the league, domestic cup, and the Olympics. He joined Manchester City for a record fee for Palmeiras in 2017 and has since played over 200 games for the Blues. Still just 25, Jesus will have a chance to prove himself as a top striker with Arsenal.
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Image Courtesy of Medios Públicos EP, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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