Manchester United’s £117m bit-part players: Soccerex study highlights Premier

The biggest flop, according to the survey, was Angel Di Maria, who cost United £59.7m but who was sold after just one season to Paris St Germain for £44m. Serie A is also back in the top 2 with €579m spent on squad renovation. Manchester City spent the highest amount of the summer across Europe (€200m) after their release from the Financial Fair Play limitations.

Premier League clubs spent €1.169bn, a record and a 14 percent increase on previous year, with United the second-biggest buyers followed by Liverpool, Chelsea and Tottenham. Madrid and Barcelona lead the way on Most Expensive Transfers Ever EIGHT of the top ten most expensive transfers ever made were completed by Real Madrid (5) or FC Barcelona (3). They are tied for points with Arsenal and Liverpool.

Toni Kroos believes that English clubs will still struggle against German and Spanish sides in Europe despite record spending levels in the Premier League this summer.

Richard Scudamore the chief executive of the League recently said, ‘Why shouldn’t the England team come from the top 12 teams in the Championship and the bottom 10 of the Premier League if they are English and good enough?’: comment that should hardly fill those hoping to see more English players in the Premier League with hope. Watford (€47m) spent more than every other promoted team combined in the other European leagues.

Nevertheless, the impact on exchange rates from the market crash in China has been far-reaching and significant, not just for those working on Wall Street or Canary Wharf, but for Premier League football clubs in their transfer dealings. In this list, we will also be adjusting for inflation, making this list possibly the true indicator of the Premier League’s most expensive players. Manchester United had to spend money [to return to the top of the Premier League] and it’s not worth talking about Manchester City because they’re in a different type of galaxy.

Some experts mention limiting foreign players within Premier League teams, but doing so would damage the commercial revenue which the league brings in and the clubs rely upon.