| 1 |  Kaishu Sano | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Japan | 1.FSV Mainz 05 | 2000 | €20.0m |
| 2 |  Raphael Onyedika | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Nigeria | Club Brugge KV | 2001 | €20.0m |
| 3 |  James Garner | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | England | Everton FC | 2001 | €18.0m |
| 4 |  Samú Costa | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Portugal | RCD Mallorca | 2000 | €15.0m |
| 5 |  Martinelli | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Brazil | Fluminense Football Club | 2001 | €14.0m |
| 6 |  Kristjan Asllani | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Albania Italy | Torino FC | 2002 | €13.0m |
| 7 |  Tomás Händel | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Portugal Austria | Red Star Belgrade | 2000 | €13.0m |
| 8 |  Santiago Hezze | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Argentina Poland | Olympiacos Piraeus | 2001 | €12.0m |
| 9 |  André | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Brazil | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2001 | €28.0m |
| 10 |  Volodymyr Brazhko | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Ukraine | Dynamo Kyiv | 2002 | €12.0m |
| 11 |  Danilo | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Brazil | Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas | 2001 | €28.0m |
| 12 |  Mandela Keita | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Belgium Guinea | Parma Calcio 1913 | 2002 | €12.0m |
| 13 |  Yacine Adli | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | France Algeria | Al-Shabab FC | 2000 | €11.0m |
| 14 |  Oliver Skipp | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | England | Leicester City | 2000 | €10.0m |
| 15 |  Enzo Barrenechea | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Argentina | SL Benfica | 2001 | €10.0m |
| 16 |  Manu Silva | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Portugal | SL Benfica | 2001 | €10.0m |
| 17 |  Nicolò Rovella | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Italy | SS Lazio | 2001 | €30.0m |
| 18 |  Salvatore Esposito | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Italy | Spezia Calcio | 2000 | €10.0m |
| 19 |  Antonio Blanco | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Spain | Deportivo Alavés | 2000 | €10.0m |
| 20 |  Samuele Ricci | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Italy | AC Milan | 2001 | €30.0m |
| 21 |  Alan Varela | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Argentina | FC Porto | 2001 | €32.0m |
| 22 |  Lucien Agoumé | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | France Cameroon | Sevilla FC | 2002 | €8.0m |
| 23 |  Pablo Maia | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Brazil | São Paulo Futebol Clube | 2002 | €8.0m |
| 24 |  Kevin Castaño | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Colombia | CA River Plate | 2000 | €8.0m |
| 25 |  Pierre Ekwah | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | France Ghana | AS Saint-Étienne | 2002 | €7.0m |
| 26 |  Tanner Tessmann | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | United States | Olympique Lyon | 2001 | €6.0m |
| 27 |  Dion Lopy | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Senegal | UD Almería | 2002 | €6.0m |
| 28 |  Joris Chotard | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | France | Stade Brestois 29 | 2001 | €6.0m |
| 29 |  Eric Martel | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Germany | 1.FC Köln | 2002 | €6.0m |
| 30 |  Yannik Engelhardt | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Germany | Borussia Mönchengladbach | 2001 | €6.0m |