Why are French players never talked about for being overpriced or Overrated?
But how many French players (high price/ profile) underperformed? Benzema (worth every penny RM Paid for him). Varame ( bought for 20m by Rm). Kante (well worth what Chelsea paid for him). Pogba Can be said to be a flop, but he was in an absolute circus of a situation.
Brazilian players that have been flops? Do you ever hear - Brazilian players are overrated or overpriced? And if you do :
In the book" Soccernomics" (published around 2009) , it was mentioned that two nationality to avoid buying were Brazilian and Dutch (obvious, there is no such premium on Dutch players at the moment ) because they were overpriced in the transfer market. There is no way, for example, Fred costs 50 mil if he is from Moldova. Brazilian players (especially those preceived to have offensive skills)
do have a premium in the transfer market (based on their nationality) that is independent of their accomplishments (see Neymar when he joined Barca, Antony).
I definitely hear much more of a complaint at English players for being overpriced and overrated as a Nationality of football players & so so so many go to win CL’s nearly every season.
English/ British players have a premium associated with them because of their nationality. It doesn't necessarily mean they are bad players, but there
is a premium. Part of the premium is due to marketing, a good looking guy ( who is excellent at football) and who speaks English will have lot of marketing opportunities ( not just in Europe, but also America, China, and a lot of other Asian countries too); also, they might be given an easy ride by the tabloid media (see Harry Maguire vs. Depay). So, it shouldn't neccessarily be looked as someone saying someone is not good. This is why, for example, a club night be willing to pay the premium; Yes, the player may flop, but the executive might not get as big a battering in the media if the player is British.
So yes there is an English/British premium and there is a reason top EPL clubs keep paying it ( because they have decided it is worth it, easier ride in media, player unlikely to leave country if they become a top player, merchandising opportunities in a country that is very parochial (like England is), and also other English speaking countries).