Premier League footballers living in Cheshire's exclusive Golden Triangle are being forced to slash hundreds of thousands of pounds off the asking prices of their mansions to secure sales. Both current top-flight stars and former players for clubs including Manchester United and Manchester City have experienced severe price reductions on their luxury residences across the region.
Manchester City and England player Phil Foden chopped £825,000 off the asking price for his home in Prestbury, dropping the listing from £3.25 million down to £2.4 million. The sale price meant that the 26-year-old midfielder, who lives with his childhood sweetheart Rebecca Cooke and their three children, lost £450,000 compared to the amount he originally paid for the property.
Foden's home features an indoor swimming pool and an indoor gym designed for the player to maintain his fitness.
Price cuts hit current top-flight players
A spate of other high-profile football figures now find themselves in a similar predicament across Cheshire and surrounding areas. Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba lopped £450,000 off the asking price of his mansion in Hale Barns, bringing its new valuation to £3.45 million.
Former Manchester City goalkeeper Ederson, who now plays for Turkish club Fenerbahce in Istanbul, recently reduced the price of his house in Wilmslow by £200,000 to £3.8 million. Everton centre-back Michael Keane cut £200,000 from the asking price of his home in Knutsford in an effort to secure a buyer.
Former Wales national team captain Ashley Williams had to cut £100,000 off the price of his home in Altrincham, leaving a new asking price of £3,650,000. In nearby Formby, a coastal town in Merseyside, former Liverpool midfielder Naby Keita slashed £200,000 off the price of his five-bedroom home, setting a new valuation at £2.8 million.
Long-running property market slump
The real estate struggle in the area has been ongoing for some time, with several notable names caught in the snare of selling up on the relative cheap. Former Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany, who now manages German club Bayern Munich, knocked £300,000 off his property in Hale Barns to reach a revised listing of £3.65 million.
Kompany's former pad included a private sauna along with an outdoor court constructed for playing football and basketball.
Former Manchester City player Joleon Lescott, who now works as a DJ, was forced to chop £250,000 off his home in Alderley Edge. The former England international originally put the property on the market for £4.5 million.
Former Everton skipper Tim Cahill lopped a massive £1.5 million off the asking price of his mansion in Hale after originally attempting to sell it for £6.5 million. The house, which features a luxury interior, eventually sold for £5 million.
Rising crime impact on Cheshire estates
Cheshire's Golden Triangle, comprising the villages of Wilmslow, Alderley Edge, and Prestbury, alongside surrounding areas, has been a hotbed of top-end housing activity driven by Premier League footballers for decades. Players began moving into the leafy district during the 1990s, when former England captain David Beckham and his wife Victoria became one of the first celebrity couples targeted by paparazzi along its private roads.
However, local real estate experts note that security concerns may be partly to blame for falling market valuations, as criminals are increasingly attracted to the area's secluded lanes and gated properties.
In December 2023, criminals targeted the Cheshire home of Manchester City winger Jack Grealish, stealing jewellery and watches worth £1 million while he was playing a match against Everton. In January, intruders broke into the home of Manchester City defender Ruben Dias, where he lived with Love Island host Maya Jama, while both were away working. According to reports, burglars stole thousands of pounds worth of items including designer clothes, jewellery, and electronics. Former Premier League stars Raheem Sterling, Riyad Mahrez, and several others have suffered similar break-ins.
