Football Transfer Review 2019 by Prime Time Sport, supported by Soccerex, highlights stories of the summer.
The European transfer market reached €4.2 billion for second season in a row. After five years of exponential growth the market has become steady with a low fall of -4%. This is one of many conclusions to arise from Football Transfer Review 2019 by Prime Time Sport, supported by Soccerex, which has been presented today. The report provides relevant data and insightful and independent analysis on the variables that influence squad designs and player transfers.
Premier League sides had the highest net investment ever
– It is well known that the Premier League is in a league of their own when it comes to transfer prices, and was once again the driving force in Europe in player signings this summer, surpassing for the €1 billion barrier.
– This means the net investment of the English sides is four times the stats registered by Serie A teams and a staggering ten times that of La Liga teams.
Premier League succeed in keeping their talent
– Five of the top moves that didn’t happen in European football involved players from the Premier League. Clubs were more reluctant than ever to sell them because of the early closure of the transfer market and the difficulty to replace them in time.
– Eden Hazard (Chelsea), Paul Pogba (Manchester United), Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham), Harry Maguire (Leicester City) and Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace), stayed at their clubs despite interest from big European teams.
– Income from player sales at Premier League clubs decreased a staggering 54% to €383 million, returning to 2013 figures. This was a crucial factor in explaining the decline in player signings. The early closure of the transfer market also provoked fears of not being able to replace potential player sales on time.
– The same story happened outside the Premier League in cases such as those of Neymar and Kylian Mbappé (PSG), Antoine Griezmann (Atlético de Madrid) or Ivan Rakitic (FC Barcelona). All of them opted to stay at their clubs after generous renewals or because their clubs couldn’t find a replacement.
Liverpool top Premier League spending
– The Reds spent €182 million, the second highest sum spent by any team in Europe. Liverpool were by far the top spenders in the Premier League, followed by Chelsea, who spent €137 million. Tottenham Hotspur didn’t bring any new players.
– Nine sides made their most expensive signing ever this summer.
Goalkeepers make history
– Kepa and Alisson for €80 million and €63 million respectively became the most expensive goalkeepers in football history.
– These transfers broke the all-time record held by Gianluigi Buffon for 17 years (2001-2002, Parma to Juventus). Thibaut Courtois’s move to Real Madrid and Bernd Leno’s from Bayer Leverkusen to Arsenal mean that four of the ten most expensive goalkeeper transfers ever happened this summer.
Romelu Lukaku and Kyle Walker as the most profitable signings of last season
– Manchester United’s Romelu Lukaku was the most profitable big signing of last season after playing 84% of minutes for Jose Mourinho’s team.
– Kyle Walker at Manchester City (81% of minutes) and Gylfi Sigurdsson at Everton (66%) were in second and third position. Top European signings like Manchester City’s Benjamin Mendy (11%)
and Barcelona’s Ousmane Dembelé (27%) weren’t that profitable due to long-term injuries.
Fulham push a record investment from a promoted team
– Money windfall for all Premier League teams translates into high investments by promoted teams trying to avoid relegation. Fulham invested a record €102 million in their squad.
The Championship – the top second division in Europe
– Championship investment decreased for the second season in a row to €167 million, but is still much higher than all other second division leagues combined.
Juventus the big entertainers around Europe
– The Italian side did not only sign Cristiano Ronaldo for the biggest fee of the summer window, but surrounded the Portuguese star with six more signings that elevated their expenditure to €256 million. This was the third biggest investment by a single club of all time. However, this is still far from PSG’s spending last summer with Neymar and Mbappé costing €418 million combined.