A club’s activity in the transfer window can make or break their season. Signing key players, offloading dead weight, making buys for the future, spotting potential talents, strengthening weaknesses and negotiating bargain deals are all part of what makes for an efficient transfer window. Keeping that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the clubs that have proven themselves to be adept at good business in the transfer market over the last few years.
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Please note: All transfer values have been taken from transfermarkt.
1) Arsenal
In spite of losing big name players like Robin van Persie, Francesc Fabregas, Samir Nasri, Lukas Podolski, Thomas Vermaelen etc. over the past years, Arsenal have managed to maintain their performance levels. While they’ve bought some star players for big money like Alexis Sanchez at £36.13m and Mesut Ozil for £39.95m, they also brought in some top talents in good deals, like Gabriel Paulista from Villareal in a deal worth £12.75m, Petr Cech from Chelsea for £11.9m and Santi Cazorla at £16.5m from Malaga FC.
Arsene Wenger made neat profits on some of his high profile sales. Arsenal fans sometimes moan about Wenger’s transfer policies, but he has shown himself to be shrewd in his buying and selling of players. It’s interesting to note that many players once sold by the club never maintained or increased their market value at their new clubs. Their performances and value more often than not take a plunge, implying that Wenger has a knack for knowing when he’s got the best out of his players and when to let them go.
| PLAYER | BOUGHT FROM | BOUGHT FOR | SOLD TO | SOLD FOR | PROFIT |
| Francesc Fabregas | Barcelona | £2.72m | Barcelona | £28.9m | £26.18m |
| Robin Van Persie | Feyenoord | £3.83m | Manchester United | £26.1m | £22.27m |
| Emmanuel Adebayor | Monaco | £8.5m | Manchester City | £24.65m | £16.15m |
| Kolo Toure | ASEC Mimosas | £157k | Manchester City | £15.9m | £15.74m |
| Alexandre Song Billong | SC Bastia | £3.4m | Barcelona | £16.15m | £12.75m |
| Samir Nasri | Olympique Marseille | £13.6m | Manchester City | £23.38m | £9.78m |
2) Sevilla
Ramon Rodriguez Verdejo, also known as Monchi, is the main man behind the success at Sevilla. Once a goalkeeper for the Spanish club, he is now their Sporting Director. The man is a genius in the transfer market, consistently selling good players at considerable profits while signing new and relatively unknown players of high quality in bargain deals. As the new signings prove themselves and attract interest from other clubs, the next set of talented players are already being scouted.
Sevilla are a conveyor belt of quality players. Dani Alves, Martin Cáceres, Adriano, Ivan Rakitic, Júlio Baptista, Seydou Keita, Christian Poulsen, Luís Fabiano and Carlos Bacca are all players Monchi signed for nominal amounts and then sold at large profit margins. Sergio Ramos, Jesús Navas, Alberto Moreno, Luis Alberto and José Antonio Reyes are some of Sevilla’s youth products who were sold for good sums of money.
Despite the constant influx and outflux of players, the Spaniards have performed consistently. Just last season they made history by becoming the first club to win the Europa League three times consecutively.
| PLAYER | BOUGHT FROM | BOUGHT FOR | SOLD TO | SOLD FOR | PROFIT |
| Grzegorz Krychowiak | Stade Reims | £4.68m | Paris Saint-Germain | £28.56m | £23.88m |
| Carlos Bacca | Club Brugge | £5.95m | AC Milan | £25.5m | £19.55m |
| Geoffrey Kondogbia | Lens | £3.4m | AS Monaco | £17m | £13.6m |
| Ivan Rakitic | FC Schalke 04 | £2.13m | Barcelona | £15.3m | £13.17m |
| Alvaro Negredo | Real Madrid | £12.75m | Manchester City | £21.25m | £8.5m |
3) Atletico Madrid
Atletico Madrid are the second Spanish team on this list. Their recent rise in the past few years can be attributed to intelligent use of the transfer windows and Diego Simeone’s set-up and tactics.
Simeone has built a well-balanced squad capable of competing with the very best in the world, which they have proven by reaching the Champions League final twice, although unfortunately losing on both occasions to Spanish rivals Real Madrid.
Atleti have made some notable signings like Yannick Carrasco, Nicolas Gaitan and Antoine Griezmann. In what turned out to be a good move for the club, they sold Filipe Luis to Chelsea at a good price and then just a year later, signed him back on a cut-price deal.
They also managed to recapture their youngest ever captain Fernando Torres on a free transfer from AC Milan. The Spaniard has shown great improvement in his form since rejoining his boyhood club in what looks like another great deal for both the player and the club.
| PLAYER | BOUGHT FROM | BOUGHT FOR | SOLD TO | SOLD FOR | PROFIT |
| Diego Costa | Real Valladolid | £850k | Chelsea | £32.3m | £31.45m |
| Arda Turan | Galatasaray | £11.05m | Barcelona | £28.9m | £17.85m |
| Sergio Aguero | Independiente | £18.45m | Manchester City | £34m | £15.55m |
| Toby Alderweireld | Ajax | £5.95m | Tottenham Hotspur | £13.6m | £7.65m |
4) Borussia Dortmund
Few clubs have been as efficient as Borussia Dortmund in the transfer market. The German club regularly lose their star players to big teams from around the world, most notably their direct rivals in the Bundesliga, Bayern Munich.
Like clockwork, during every summer transfer window, some of the biggest names in the Dortmund squad march out of the team. However, they are invariably replaced with players of equal calibre, or by youngsters who go on to realise their potential and develop into world class players.
Until recently under Jurgen Klopp and now Thomas Tuchel, the club have never spent exorbitant amounts of money on any single player, preferring to buy cheap and sell high.
This season Ilkay Gundogan, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Mats Hummels have all moved to other clubs for a combined total of £90.95m, and Tuchel brought in some really exciting players. Andre Schurrle, Mario Gotze, Ousmane Dembele and Emre Mor make for some brilliant attacking signings, while Raphael Guerreiro, Sebastian Rode and Marc Bartra have been brought in to reinforce the defensive side of the team.
| PLAYER | BOUGHT FROM | BOUGHT FOR | SOLD TO | SOLD FOR | PROFIT |
| Mario Gotze | Hombrucher SV Jugend | Free transfer | Bayern Munich | £31.45m | £31.45m |
| Mats Hummels | Bayern Munich | £3.57m | Bayern Munich | £32.3m | £28.73m |
| Ilkay Gundogan | 1.FC Nuremberg | £4.68m | Manchester City | £22.95m | £18.27m |
| Shinji Kagawa | Cerezo Osaka | Free transfer | Manchester United | £13.6m | £13.6m |
| Henrikh Mkhitaryan | Shakhtar Donetsk | £23.38m | Manchester United | £35.7m | £12.32m |
5) FC Porto
FC Porto are one of the big three clubs in Portugal to have never been relegated, alongside Benfica and Sporting CP. They are the only team in Portuguese league history to have won the domestic league title twice (2010/11 and 2012/13) without losing a game the entire season.
Porto are the only club from Portugal to have won the UEFA Cup/Europa League, the UEFA Super Cup and the Intercontinental Cup, and to have achieved a continental treble of domestic league, domestic cup and European titles. Porto also hold a joint record for the number of appearances in the UEFA Champions League group stage (20) with Barcelona, Real Madrid and Manchester United.
The 27-time league winners consistently challenge for top honours in all domestic competitions while also bringing in a steady stream of money from the sales of their top performers. The club has made over £500 million in player sales over the last decade or so. They are known to extensively scout young talents from South American clubs.
| PLAYER | BOUGHT FROM | BOUGHT FOR | SOLD TO | SOLD FOR | PROFIT |
| Hulk | Tokyo Verdy | £16.15m | Zenit St. Petersburg | £46.75m | £30.6m |
| Radamel Falcao | River Plate | £4.62m | Atletico Madrid | £34m | £29.38m |
| Jackson Martinez | Jaguares | £7.55m | Atletico Madrid | £31.54m | £23.99m |
| Eliaquim Mangala | Standard Liege | £5.74m | Manchester City | £25.93m | £20.19m |
| Danilo | Santos | £11.05m | Real Madrid | £26.78m | £15.73m |
| Joao Moutinho | Sporting CP | £9.35m | AS Monaco | £21.25m | £11.9m |
6) S.L. Benfica
Sport Lisboa e Benfica, commonly known as Benfica, are the most successful club in Portugal in terms of both domestic and overall titles and is also the only club to have won all national competitions. They are also the only club in Portuguese football to win two consecutive European Cup titles.
The Portuguese giants are current champions of the Primeira Liga, completing a hat-trick of titles in the 2015/16 season. It was also their record 35th Primeira Liga title.
Benfica have a deep scouting network in South American and Slavic countries, picking up young potential stars and bringing them into their fold to nurture the talent. They have been shrewd in the transfer market by bringing in Andre Carrillo on a free transfer, and Ezequiel Garay and Axel Witsel were signed in great bargain deals for the club.
Benfica have made massive profits off player sales. Despite selling their biggest names, they always manage to bring in new talent to compensate for it. Thanks to their good scouting system, the incoming talent is of sufficient quality to maintain the team’s overall performance levels.
| PLAYER | BOUGHT FROM | BOUGHT FOR | SOLD TO | SOLD FOR | PROFIT |
| Axel Witsel | Standard Liege | £7.65m | Zenit St. Petersburg | £34m | £26.35m |
| Fabio Coentrao | Rio Ave FC | £765k | Real Madrid | £25.5m | £24.735m |
| Enzo Perez | Estudiantes | £2.04m | Valencia | £21.25m | £19.21m |
| Nemanja Matic | Chelsea | £4.25m | Chelsea | £21.25m | £17m |
| Nicolas Gaita | Boca Juniors | £7.14m | Atletico Madrid | £21.25m | £14.11m |
7) Juventus
Juventus were the first professional football club to be formed in Italy, and they also have the largest fan base in the country. Historically they are also the most successful club in Italy.
All eyes are on Juventus in this summer transfer window, with the ongoing saga between Paul Pogba and Manchester United grabbing attention from all around the world. The signing of Gonzalo Higuain from Napoli for £76.5 million is slightly out of character for the club, who usually acquire top talents in very reasonable deals.
The Bianconeri signed Kingsley Coman, Sami Khedira, Dani Laves, Fernando Llorente, Paul Pogba, Lucio and Nicolas Anelka, all on free transfers.
They also brought in players like Paulo Dybala, Mario Mandzukic, Alvaro Morata, Patrice Evra, Carlos Tevez and Hernanes on good deals.
Clearly, the Italians know how to exploit the transfer market. While they don’t always make huge profits on all of their player sales, they always bring in high-quality replacements, which allows them to consistently challenge for titles.
| PLAYER | BOUGHT FROM | BOUGHT FOR | SOLD TO | SOLD FOR | PROFIT |
| Arturo Vidal | Bayer Leverkusen | £10.63m | Bayern Munich | £31.45m | £20.82m |
| Alvaro Morata | Real Madrid | £17m | Real Madrid | £25.5m | £8.5m |
| Zlatan Ibrahimovic | Ajax | £13.6m | Inter Milan | £21.08m | £7.48m |
