Premier League clubs have taken their summer transfer spending to an unprecedented level for the second year running, with the 20 top-flight teams committing approximately £3.46 billion ($4.67 billion).
Key takeaways
- Four of the 11 most expensive players in Premier League history joined clubs during this transfer window.
- Manchester City completed the biggest deals, signing Enzo Fernandez for £125 million and Iliman Ndiaye for £65 million.
- Transfers between Premier League sides accounted for about 38% of all deals, compared with 30% last summer.
- City, Chelsea and Tottenham spent £458 million, £349 million and £303 million respectively.
- Everton’s attempted move for Folarin Balogun and Chelsea’s proposed deal for Lamine Camara both collapsed on deadline day.
Premier League spending reaches new high
Heavy spending continued until the closing stages of Tuesday’s window, with a number of major transactions completed before the 11 p.m. deadline.
Manchester City completed their business by bringing Argentina international Enzo Fernandez from Chelsea in a deal reportedly worth £125 million, matching the British transfer record. The club also recruited Senegal winger Iliman Ndiaye from Everton for a fee understood to be £65 million.
The previous summer was the first time the collective expenditure of England’s 20 top-flight clubs passed £3 billion. Five years earlier, the total had been £1.13 billion.
Fernandez was one of four players to move for more than £100 million during the window. City paid £116 million for Nottingham Forest midfielder Elliot Anderson, while Chelsea acquired Morgan Rogers from Aston Villa for £117 million. Liverpool agreed an initial £107 million fee with Paris St Germain for France forward Bradley Barcola, with the final amount expected to climb to £123 million.
Tottenham Hotspur set a new club record by signing Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali in a package that could eventually be worth £100 million.
Fernandez, Anderson, Rogers and Barcola now occupy four of the 11 highest-valued transfers in Premier League history, all having moved during the current summer window.
Aston Villa confirmed their 11th arrival of the summer with a £47 million deal for Senegal winger Ibrahim Mbaye from PSG. Newcastle United, meanwhile, paid £51.4 million to Lille for forward Matias Fernandez-Pardo.
Premier League clubs are increasingly dealing with one another, with roughly 38% of transfers taking place between teams from the division. That represents a rise from the 30% share recorded last summer.
Major recruitment and deadline-day setbacks
Manchester City topped the spending table at £458 million as new manager Enzo Maresca put together his first squad. Chelsea also invested significantly, paying out £349 million to support new head coach Xabi Alonso.
Tottenham spent £303 million while attempting to reshape their team after two consecutive campaigns in which they came close to relegation.
The three promoted sides — Ipswich, Coventry City and Hull City — spent more than £400 million between them as they prepared for the demands of top-flight football.
Sunderland won the race for 21-year-old Belgian winger Malick Fofana, completing a reported £30 million move from Olympique Lyonnais after beating Crystal Palace to his signature.
Not every proposed deal was completed before the deadline. Everton’s pursuit of United States striker Folarin Balogun reportedly broke down when the player chose not to proceed, while Senegal midfielder Lamine Camara stayed at Monaco after Chelsea’s reported £47.1 million transfer collapsed.
