Luis Diaz, Eder Militao, Radamel Falcao and James Rodriguez are among the names Porto have sold on for big money over the years
Portuguese giants Porto have earned a reputation as one of Europe's top producers of young talents over the years.
The Dragons' excellent youth academy and worldwide scouting network allows the Primeira Liga champions to bring in promising players and provide them with a platform to improve before selling them on for major profits.
James Rodriguez, Radamel Falcao, Hulk and Eder Militao are some of the mega stars who have come to prominence at Porto before moving on to bigger and better things.
Like their arch-rivals Sporting CP, Porto invest heavily in their youth academy to give the youngsters the best facilities and coaching to help them on their way to fulfilling their potential.
But, who is their most expensive sale?
Let's take a look!
Season
Biggest sale
Fee
Total sales
2022-23
Vitinha
€41.5M
€86M/£77.40M
2021-22
Luis Diaz
€47M
€72.25M/£65.03M
2020-21
Fabio Silva
€40M
€76.15M/£68.54M
2019-20
Eder Militao
€50M
€88M/£79.20M
2018-19
Ricardo Pereira
€22M
€72.55M/£65.30M
2017-18
Andre Silva
€38M
€70.20M/£63.18M
2016-17
Maicon
€5.75M
€15.06M/£13.55M
2015-16
Jackson Martinez
€35M
€140.65M/£126.59M
2014-15
Eliaquim Mangala
€45M
€95.96M/£86.36M
2013-14
James Rodriguez
€45M
€81.42M/£73.28M
2012-13
Hulk
€40M
€73.84M/£66.46M
2011-12
Radamel Falcao
€40M
€46.80M/£42.12M
2010-11
Bruno Alves
€22M
€38.78M/£34.90M
2009-10
Lisandro Lopez
€24M
€72.80M/£65.60M
2008-09
Ricardo Quaresma
€24.6M
€55M/£49.50M
2007-08
Anderson
€31.5M
€71.35M/£64.22M
2006-07
Diego
€6M
€10.83M/£9.74M
2005-06
Maniche
€16M
€48.80M/£43.92M
2004-05
Ricardo Carvalho
€30M
€95.25M/£85.73M
2003-04
Helder Postiga
€9M
€10M/£9M
2002-03
Jorge Andrade
€13M
€18.20M/£16.38M
2001-02
Esquerdinha
€3M
€3M/£2.70M
2000-01
Jardel
€17M
€17.05M/£15.35M
TOTAL
€1.36B/£1.22B
*All figures are taken from Transfermarkt unless stated otherwise.
Porto's top 10 most expensive player salesGetty10Jackson Martinez | €35m | Atletico Madrid | 2015
After joining from Mexican side Chiapas in 2012 for €8.8 million, Jackson Martinez featured in 90 Primeira Liga games for Porto, scoring 67 goals over three seasons.
In his first season at the club, he was the league's top scorer as he helped his side go unbeaten and win their third consecutive title.
Martinez repeated his heroics the following year, becoming the first player to be the division's top scorer in consecutive seasons since Mario Jardel topped the chart four times in a row between 1996 and 2000.
The Colombian's best performance came as a substitute against Shakhtar in a Champions League group stage game in 2014-15. The forward scored twice in four minutes to help Porto pull level after going two down to the Ukraine side.
At the end of that season, Atletico Madrid came calling and paid a hefty €35m for him.
AdvertisementGetty Images9Andre Silva | €38m | AC Milan | 2017
After making his debut for Porto in December 2015, Andre Silva became a mainstay in the team for the best part of two seasons.
Silva made 41 appearances for Porto over two years, scoring 17 goals before AC Milan came calling and agreed to pay a €38m fee for the Portuguese striker.
He spent three seasons at Milan but was sent on loan to Sevilla and then Eintracht Frankfurt.
Frankfurt decided to sign him permanently in September 2020 before RB Leipzig snapped him up for €23m in the summer of 2021.
Getty Images8Fabio Silva | €40m | Wolves | 2020
At 17 years and 22 days, Fabio Silva became the youngest player ever to feature for Porto.
He made just 12 league appearances in his breakout season in 2019-20 as he played for both the first and the reserve teams simultaneously.
After that solo season in the first-team, Porto struck gold as Premier League side Wolves agreed to pay a club record €40m for the striker.
The Portugal international spent two underwhelming seasons in the Premier League and was then loaned to Anderlecht in the summer of 2022.
At just 20 years old, he remains one to watch out for the future.
Getty Images7Radamel Falcao | €40m | Atletico Madrid | 2011
Radamel Falcao's name was making waves in European football from his days at River Plate, where he scored 45 goals in 111 appearances in all competitions across five years.
Porto's scouting team had been watching Falcao in early 2009 and signed him in the summer of that year for €3.93m after selling Lisandro Lopez to Lyon for €24m.
In his two seasons at Porto, Falcao put Europe on high alert as he scored 41 goals in just 51 matches.
Atletico Madrid were the first club to pounce on the opportunity to sign him and paid €40m for his signature in 2011.
Falcao went on to make over 90 appearances for Atletico, scoring 70 goals before moving to Monaco in 2013, followed by loan spells at Manchester United and Chelsea.
He joined Galatasaray in 2019 before featuring for his current team Rayo Vallecano in 2021.