The January transfer deadline day was in full swing yesterday with clubs scrambling to see out negotiations and book medicals before the cut-off, and it was undoubtedly one of the busiest in recent memory.
Premier League clubs smashed their own record set in 2018 for most money spent in a single January window, with well over £600m forked out by English sides throughout this month.
Chelsea’s pursuit of Benfica’s World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez, which was further fuelled by the £10m sale of midfielder Jorginho to fellow Londoners Arsenal, was not only be the most expensive Premier League transfer of all time, but it also catapulted the Blues to the top of the single-window spending list.
Below you will find some of the other windows in which clubs have dropped considerable sums in order to bolster their squads.
All-Time Biggest Transfer Window Spenders
5. Paris Saint-Germain (Summer 2017) – £209m
Just managing to sneak into the top five are PSG, who single-handedly changed the transfer market forever in 2017 after spending £198m, which still remains the most expensive signing of all-time, to bring Neymar to the French capital.
Little-known Yuri Berchiche was also brought in as the only other paid transfer that summer, but both Dani Alves and Kylian Mbappe, who initially joined on a year-long loan so the club could evade Financial Fair Play regulations, rounded off a window that sent seismic waves through the market that are still being felt today.
4. Barcelona (Summer 2019) – £240m
Despite being one of the most frivolous transfer windows ever, Barcelona’s 2019 spending-spree has proven to be, by and large, fairly disastrous.
Only two arrivals, Frenkie De Jong and Pedri, out of the five that arrived in Catalonia that year can be classed as worthwhile, with the pair remaining integral to Xavi’s current table-topping Blaugrana side.
However, the fifth most expensive transfer of all-time to bring Antoine Griezmann to the Nou Camp proved relatively unsuccessful after failing to tap into the goalscoring exploits witnessed in Madrid, while Junior Firpo and Martin Braithwaite would last just two seasons before being shipped out last year.
3. Chelsea (Summer 2022) – £248m
The first of two Chelsea appearances on this list saw them rack up a near-£250m transfer bill immediately after new owner Todd Boehly arrived to set in motion a quite remarkable, ongoing spending spree.
Record-breaking is seemingly the name of the game at this moment in time, having spent £75m on injury-ridden Wesley Fofana – the biggest ever price for a defender. Elsewhere, £58m was spent on Brighton’s Marc Cucurella, another £50m on Raheem Sterling, while also adding Kalidou Koulibaly, Carney Chukwuemeka and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for a combined total of £135m.
Despite a considerable cash injection, Champions League-winning manager Thomas Tuchel was sacked after a lacklustre start, which has continued well into the season under his replacement Graham Potter, leaving the Blues all the way down in 10th place and 10 points off the top four.
2. Real Madrid (Summer 2019) – £282m
Of course, this list wouldn’t be complete without Real Madrid, who despite opting to not bring in any fresh faces this winter, have dominated previous windows with several world-record fees down the years.
The summer of 2019 was an expensive one for La Liga‘s two most successful clubs, but Los Blancos outspent rivals Barcelona by over £40m to register the biggest expenditure ever witnessed in a transfer window, up until this month.
Following a trophy-less season the year before, Madrid explored the market to great effect in an attempt to rejuvenate a seemingly stagnating squad. They managed to bring in Eder Militao, Rodrygo and Ferland Mendy who all remain important members of Carlo Ancelotti’s squad, and helped the club secure a 14th European title in 2022.
Included in their spending spree was also Eden Hazard, who’s arrival at the Bernabeau also signalled a steep personal decline that has since failed to switch course. At £90m, the Belgian’s arrival in the Spanish capital is one of the most expensive buys ever, but just eight goals in 127 appearances across four seasons makes it one of the more disastrous career changes in recent memory.
1. Chelsea (January 2023) – £350m
And so, we arrive back at Stamford Bridge.
January windows are usually a time for clubs to reinforce their squads mid-season with one or two market opportunities, should they arise.
Chelsea have gone about their business similarly to how they infiltrated the 2022 summer market with a seemingly endless supply of acquisitions, which also features further down on the list.
Chelsea have spent twice as much as every team in the Bundesliga, Serie A, Ligue 1 and La Liga COMBINED in this January transfer window 😳💰 pic.twitter.com/SXxnyzckgR
— ESPN UK (@ESPNUK) January 30, 2023
Todd Boehly has made good on his promise to inject the necessary capital for Chelsea to build a squad worthy of competing now and in the future, and this current window has seen the American owner splash the most cash ever witnessed in a winter window.
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