| 1 |  Kevin Gutiérrez | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Argentina | Defensa y Justicia | 1997 | €3.5m |
| 2 |  Lewis Travis | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | England | Derby County | 1997 | €3.5m |
| 3 |  Keaton Parks | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | United States | New York City FC | 1997 | €3.5m |
| 4 |  Santiago Colombatto | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Argentina Italy | Real Oviedo | 1997 | €3.0m |
| 5 |  Gustav Berggren | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Sweden | New York Red Bulls | 1997 | €3.0m |
| 6 |  Ryan Wintle | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | England | Cardiff City | 1997 | €3.0m |
| 7 |  Andrés Cubas | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Paraguay Argentina | Vancouver Whitecaps FC | 1996 | €4.0m |
| 8 |  Edimilson Fernandes | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Switzerland | BSC Young Boys | 1996 | €3.0m |
| 9 |  Elisha Owusu | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Ghana France | AJ Auxerre | 1997 | €3.0m |
| 10 |  Yvan Neyou | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Cameroon France | Getafe CF | 1997 | €3.0m |
| 11 |  Obinna Nwobodo | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Nigeria | FC Cincinnati | 1996 | €3.0m |
| 12 |  Artur | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Brazil United States | Houston Dynamo FC | 1996 | €3.0m |
| 13 |  Allan | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Brazil | CR Flamengo | 1997 | €4.0m |
| 14 |  Dejan Ljubicic | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Austria | GNK Dinamo Zagreb | 1997 | €4.0m |
| 15 |  Thiago Maia | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Brazil | Sport Club Internacional | 1997 | €4.0m |
| 16 |  Jon Gorenc Stankovic | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Slovenia | SK Sturm Graz | 1996 | €4.0m |
| 17 |  Marko Grujić | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Serbia | AEK Athens | 1996 | €4.0m |
| 18 |  Casper De Norre | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Belgium | Millwall FC | 1997 | €2.5m |
| 19 |  Vladyslav Kochergin | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Ukraine | Raków Częstochowa | 1996 | €2.5m |
| 20 |  Erick | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Brazil | Esporte Clube Bahia | 1997 | €4.5m |
| 21 |  Danilo Barbosa | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Brazil | Al-Ula FC | 1996 | €2.5m |
| 22 |  Hamza Choudhury | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Bangladesh England | Leicester City | 1997 | €4.5m |
| 23 |  Habib Maïga | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Cote d'Ivoire | Ferencvárosi TC | 1996 | €2.5m |
| 24 |  Mathias Normann | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Norway | Al-Sailiya SC | 1996 | €2.5m |
| 25 |  Amir Hadziahmetovic | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Bosnia-Herzegovina Denmark | Hull City | 1997 | €4.5m |
| 26 |  Charles Pickel | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | DR Congo Switzerland | RCD Espanyol Barcelona | 1997 | €2.4m |
| 27 |  Jalil Elías | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Syria Argentina | Club Atlético Tigre | 1996 | €2.0m |
| 28 |  Ulises Ortegoza | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Chile Argentina | CA Talleres | 1997 | €2.0m |
| 29 |  Dan Barlaser | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | England Türkiye | Hibernian FC | 1997 | €2.0m |
| 30 |  Gabriel Neves | Midfield - Defensive Midfield | Uruguay | Club Estudiantes de La Plata | 1997 | €2.0m |