Several new spending records were set during the amazing summer transfer window, which came to an end on Thursday.
English ‘Super League?
Antony to Manchester United for £82m broke the record for the highest transfer fee paid for a deadline day signing.
By surpassing the previous record of £1.4 billion set in 2017 and dwarfing the rest of Europe, that deal let the Premier League reach a new spending high of approximately £1.9 billion.
Following two seasons of declining spending due to Covid, nine of the 20 top-flight clubs spent more than £100 million.
Other records:
- Clubs in the Premier League spend more than all of Germany’s Bundesliga, Italy’s Serie A, and Spain’s La Liga combined.
- Chelsea spends more in a single Premier League season than any other team.
- Manchester United breaking their own record for summer expenditure
- Nottingham Forest made the most summer signings of any British club in history.
The sum of the 20 teams’ expenditures during the window, which was open from 10 June to 1 September, beat the previous summer’s total of £1.1 billion by 67%.
The Deloitte Report as per transfer spending
The 2022–23 season has already seen the greatest transfer spend since the two–window season began. It went on to surpass the previous record of £1.86 billion, set in 2017–18, by 3%, according to financial services company Deloitte. And that is prior to the start of the January transfer window.
Other significant data taken by Deloitte from the window includes:
- Gross spending grew by 52% to £3.88 billion across all of Europe’s “big five” leagues, including the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, and Ligue 1.
- The highest percentage since summer 2008 and over three times that of the second-largest spenders came from Premier League clubs, who made up 49% of that spending. (£646m) Serie A
- Premier League teams bought 169 players, up from 148 in the summer of 2021 and 132 in the summer of 2020, as their net transfer spending reached £1 billion for the first time ever.
- From 45% in summer 2021, the percentage of players signed for a fee rose to 66% in summer 2022.
“The high level of expenditure during this transfer window is a strong indicator of Premier League teams’ confidence, as people return to stadiums and a new broadcast cycle begins,” said Tim Bridge, lead partner in Deloitte’s Sports Business Group.
Bridge, however, said on BBC Radio 4 that given the unpredictability of the UK economy, top-flight clubs will not be “cost of living proof.”
He said:
“Whilst we talk about football being recession-proof, it won’t be cost of living proof by any stretch of the imagination. It’s going to be incredibly expensive for clubs and organisations to put matches on and to really work hard to keep attracting fans and keep ensuring that they have the opportunity to engage.
What we have to do is think about the responsibility that the industry has, in general, around financial sustainability. Ensuring that the clubs are there for the long term and recognising their real community asset status.
We must step forward through this cost-of-living crisis and ensure that the football clubs continue to play what is a fantastic role above and beyond these headline numbers.”
Deadline day transfer spending on signings
On deadline day, at least one new signing was made by 14 of the 20 Premier League clubs. Highlights consist of:
Manuel Akanji, a Swiss international, joins Manchester City on a five-year contract from Borussia Dortmund, strengthening their defense.
Along with acquiring Antony, Manchester United also came to an agreement to Martin Dubravka’s season-long loan from Newcastle.
Idrissa Gueye, a midfielder for Senegal, came ack to the Toffees from Paris Saint-Germain, and James Garner went from Manchester United to Everton.
Arthur Melo, a Brazilian international who was formerly playing for Juventus, joined Liverpool on a season-long loan.
Wesley Fofana, who joined Chelsea on Wednesday for roughly £70 million, was replaced by Belgium center-back Wout Faes. Leicester acquired him from French club Reims on a five-year agreement.
This summer, Nottingham Forest added 21 new faces with the signing of three players, with defender Loic Bade being the final to come and coming on loan from Rennes.
Willian, a former midfielder for Chelsea and Arsenal, was one of four players Fulham bought on the final day of the transfer window.
The Big moves
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang joins Chelsea from Barcelona on a two-year agreement. And Switzerland midfielder Denis Zakaria joins on a one-year loan from Juventus, are the night’s final two signings.
With Todd Boehly replacing Roman Abramovich as club owner this summer, Chelsea began a new era. And the American business magnate certainly made his presence known. The Blues made the most purchases in a single transfer window of any Premier League club.
Transfermarkt, a football website, claims
Raheem Sterling, Marc Cucurella, Kalidou Koulibaly, and Pierre Emerick Aubameyang were all bought at more over £250 million. It is also a Premier League record. And after Real Madrid (£292m) in 2019, it is the second-highest summer spending by any team worldwide.
Manchester United outspent themselves to go up to second place in the Premier League.
With the additions of players like Casemiro, Christian Eriksen, and Lisandro Martinez over the summer, their spending totalled roughly £214 million. This made them the fourth-highest summer spender among Premier League clubs. They also got Antony on the final day of the transfer window.
A number of goal scorers made high-profile moves over the summer, including Gianluca Scamacca to West Ham, Gabriel Jesus to Arsenal, Erling Haaland to Manchester City, Darwin Nunez to Liverpool, and Alexander Isak to Newcastle, the latter two of which were club-record deals.
Nottingham Forest’s spending spree
For the first time since 1999, Nottingham Forest is once again a member of the Premier League. And depending on their summer purchases, they intend to remain there.
The team of Steve Cooper has gone on an astounding spending binge, spending £145 million on the acquisition of 21 new players. This went on to shatter the British record for the most signings in a single season.
The previous English record, according to Transfermarkt, was the 17 players that Crystal Palace signed in the summer of 2013. Livingston and Dundee United, who each signed 19 players in 2001 and 2000, previously held the British record.
The same could has been said for Forest. But a last-minute attempt to recruit Chelsea attacker Michy Batshuayi from Belgium fails.
The quieter section of the market
The pressure has grown on those clubs that may not be able or ready to pay such excessive fees due to the lavish sums being spent throughout the division.
Following Liverpool’s 9-0 hammering of Bournemouth last weekend, Scott Parker complained that his team was “ill-equipped” for the Premier League.
Two days later, the owner Maxim Demin sacked him in response, stating, “We must also exhibit belief in and respect for one another.”
Leicester have also had a quiet transfer window, bringing in just two players while letting a number of established stars go. This is including key defender Fofana and goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel. Fofana made it clear he wanted to leave the team for several weeks before ultimately completing his move.
After losing to Manchester United 1-0 at home on Thursday to drop to the bottom of the table, the Foxes have also battled on the field and have drawn jeers from their own supporters.
Brendan Rodgers, the manager of Leicester, shares Parker’s dissatisfaction with the public regarding his club’s lack of transfer activity. But perhaps not in exactly the same manner.
He said:
“I understand the fans’ frustration. They see all their rivals getting players in, and we’re not getting any.
To watch clubs in the top five leagues add players, and we haven’t been able to do that, has been difficult. We needed help, and we haven’t been able to do that.
With the greatest respect, we have not had the help in the market this team needed.”
The failed transfers
Even though spending on transfer in the Premier League hit records, a handful of transactions fell through.
Only a year after joining Manchester United from Juventus, Cristiano Ronaldo chose to leave this summer. But he ultimately had to stay at Old Trafford.
Frenkie de Jong was also the subject of a £63.5 million deal between the Red Devils and Barcelona. But the move fell through due to a disagreement between the Spanish club and the Netherlands midfielder.
Chelsea made a £45 million deal for Everton winger Anthony Gordon. But the Toffees ultimately managed to keep hold of the England Under-21 international.
Douglas Luiz of Aston Villa was the target of a last-minute move by Arsenal. But the Midlands club declined two approaches, the most recent of which was for £23 million.
Bamba Dieng, however, was arguably the most peculiar non-transfer tale of deadline day.
Chairman Andrea Radrizzani said that Leeds was so certain it would sign the Marseille forward. said he would be “welcomed” to Elland Road by the club.
But Nice, a Ligue 1 rival of Marseille, stepped to hijack the agreement as the 22-year-old was about to leave for the UK from France.
But there’s still more.
When Dieng had a slight medical issue, the transaction fell through even though a 9 million euro transfer seemed to be on the horizon.
