Yet another eventful summer transfer window slammed shut at 11 PM on 31 August 2016 and it was one that broke records for spending. For the first time in history, the Premier League clubs spent more than a billion pounds in one window, eventually taking their spending to an eye-watering £1.175 billion!
Thanks to the ridiculous amounts of money given to Premier League clubs thanks to the new television deal, clubs received an average of £81.9m from merit money, television deals (both domestic and overseas) and commercial income (money from sponsors that is also equally shared).
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The vast wealth accumulated in England allowed most clubs to break their own record for transfer fees paid for a single player. In all, 13 different clubs broke the record in the summer of 2016.
13) Burnley: Jeff Hendrick – £10.5m
Burnley have had a roller-coaster of a three years so far. They were promoted to the Premier League in 2014 only to be relegated at the end of the season. They are back in the top tier this season and have signed eight players for free, on loan or on a permanent basis.
Their biggest outlay saw Irish midfielder Jeff Hendrick arrive at Turf Moor from Derby on a three-year deal. Having played over 200 matches in the Championship, Burnley paid £10.5m for the midfielder’s services.
“The Premier League was a big draw for me,” Hendrick said. “It’s where I aspire to be after the summer I’ve had [at Euro 2016].”
Hendrick was one of manager Sean Dyche’s “main targets” and he will wear the number 13 shirt. Will it bring them luck?
12) West Bromwich Albion: Nacer Chadli – £13m
West Bromwich Albion signed a total of five players this summer but their biggest purchase was Nacer Chadli from Tottenham Hotspur. Chadli found himself on the fringes of Mauricio Pochettino’s Spurs side and West Brom stepped in to ensure he got some game time.
Spurs drove a hard bargain, though, as club chairman Daniel Levy always does. Tony Pulis eventually got his man after the club paid the London side £13m to sign him.
“He’s a top, top player and I’m delighted we’ve got him,” Pulis said after the signing was confirmed.
11) Watford: Roberto Pereyra – £13m)
Watford had signed as many as 10 players this summer with almost twice the number leaving the club as Italian manager Walter Mazzarri shook things up at Vicarage Road. Among the notable arrivals were Younes Kaboul from Sunderland and Daryl Janmaat from Newcastle.
But their biggest signing was Roberto Pereyra from Juventus. The midfielder, who can also play on the right wing, cost the Hornets £13m but he has already shown what he is capable of.
In their loss to Arsenal last weekend, it was Pereyra who came on and scored on his EPL debut to give them a sniff of a chance against a Gunner side that was struggling in the second half. Pereyra is a strong crosser of the ball and it remains to be seen if Odion Ighalo and Troy Deeney can profit from the same.
10) Hull City: Ryan Mason – £13m
Ryan Mason was another Spurs player who did not get his chance under Pochettino and moved to Hull City on deadline day to get some more game time. A capable defensive midfielder in the right setup, the 25-year-old just couldn’t compete with the likes of Mousa Dembele and Victor Wanyama.
Hull signed eight players this summer but Mason was easily their biggest purchase at £13m – £9.5m more than their next highest purchase.
9) Sunderland: Didier Ndong – £13.6m
Following the departure of manager Sam Allardyce, who took up the England job, Sunderland have failed to get going at the start of the season. While that has been the norm most seasons before a battle for survival in the final months, a draw and two losses in the first three games do not exactly inspire confidence.
David Moyes has come in to ensure they stay in the Premier League this season and avoid the fate of their Tyneside rivals Newcastle who were relegated last season. And he got straight down to business and signed a few players, including three youngsters from Manchester United (two permanent and Adnan Januzaj on loan).
But the club spent £13.6m to bring 22-year-old central midfielder Didier Ndong from Ligue 1 side Lorient. A midfielder with a lean and athletic build, who is both quick and powerful, he was the mainstay in midfield last season. The Premier League might be a different ball game altogether but he has the potential to learm and command the midfield as he grows older.
“It will be an honour to wear the Sunderland shirt,” Ndong said after his transfer. “And I will wear it with a true understanding of what it means.”
8) Bournemouth: Jordon Ibe – £15m
In what is Jurgen Klopp’s first full season in charge at Liverpool, he had the freedom to cull his squad and sign some fresh faces. One of those who did not have a future at Anfield was Jordon Ibe.
In spite of clocking more than 1100 minutes for the Reds last season, the competition was too intense following the arrivals of Sadio Mane and Georginio Wijnaldum. With Adam Lallana and Philippe Coutinho also in the mix, there was no place for Ibe.
Ibe may not be their biggest signing this summer after Arsenal agreed to loan Jack Wilshere to the Cherries. But Bournemouth spent their highest transfer fee ever to bring Ibe to Dean Court.
Ibe preferred the Cherries’ style of play under Eddie Howe and it played a crucial role in signing for the south coast club. “This is a great opportunity for me to help take another step in my career,” he said after signing a four-year contract.
7) Swansea: Borja Baston – £15.5m
Swansea signed nine players this summer and two of them include Spanish forwards – Fernando Llorente and Borja Baston. And it was Baston who cost the Welsh club £15.5m to sign – a new club record.
Although he was officially an Atletico Madrid player, he had spent the last few years out on loan. The 2015/16 season saw him score 18 goals for Eibar in La Liga and it was that which caught the eye of the Swans.
The record fee eclipses the £12m they spent on signing another forward in the summer of 2013 – Wilfried Bony from Vitesse Arnhem.
6) Southampton: Sofiane Boufal - £16m
Southampton were one of three clubs to have a positive net spend at the end of the transfer window this summer. They spent £43.8m but recouped £64.8m in player sales to have a net spend of -£20.2m.
Even though they lost 12 players from last season’s squad, they signed six players this summer. While Nathan Redmond cost £11m to sign from Norwich City, their record transfer fee of £16m went to Lille to acquire the services of Moroccan attacking midfielder Sofiane Boufal.
He is an exceptional dribbler and will be useful when taking set pieces. However, his defensive contribution is one that may need to be worked on.
Boufal joins the Saints on a five-year contract and said it was the best club for him to join. “It was my choice and I took the time to choose the best club for me,” Boufal said. “That was here.”
5) West Ham: Andre Ayew – £20.5m
Having moved to a brand new stadium, West Ham needed a squad worthy of fighting at the top of the table and at least qualifying for Europe. Slave Bilic had overseen a Hammers revolution last season, partly due to the inspired signing of Dimitri Payet.
13 players have been signed this summer and Andre Ayew was their most expensive player. Signing a player from another Premier League club automatically sees a player’s market value increase and the Hammers paid £20.5m to sign him – much more than their previous record signing; Andy Carroll for £15m from Liverpool.
Unfortunately, Ayew suffered a thigh injury in the 2-1 loss to Chelsea that could keep him out for two to four months depending on whether he opted for surgery or not. Eventually opting to undergo rehabilitation instead of surgery, Ayew will be out for a while before he returns.
4) Leicester City: Islam Slimani – £29.7m
Defending EPL champions Leicester City have signed a total of seven players this summer. While their biggest loss was N’Golo Kante to Chelsea, they have tried to add some firepower to the squad.
Jamie Vardy now has some competition up front with two new forwards signed – the exciting, pacy youngster Ahmed Musa and deadline day signing Islam Slimani who cost the club £29.7m to sign from Sporting Lisbon.
Nicknamed the ‘Dragon Slayer’, the 28-year-old Algerian scored 31 goals in all competitions last season and was visibly moved to tears when he played his final game in Lisbon, a club he has played for since 2013.
“I saw the amazing success of last season and the passion of the club’s supporters,” Slimani said. “That’s something that I’m so excited to be a part of.”
3) Everton: Yannick Bolasie – £30m
After manager Ronald Koeman moved to Everton from Southampton, he went about strengthening the squad in defence and attack. While Ashley Williams was prised away from Swansea for £12m, the Toffees spent more than twice that amount to sign Yannick Bolasie from Crystal Palace.
The 27-year-old winger played a key role for Palace last season, clocking more than 2000 minutes on the pitch in 23 starts in the league. But Bolasie saw Everton as a new challenge and was excited to move to Merseyside.
“This is a big club and I know all about it from having played against them over the years,” Bolasie said. “For me, it was a no-brainer to come here.”
Although the fee matches the price they paid for Romelu Lukaku, the club did not announce Bolasie as a record signing. The initial fee is said to be £22.5m with add-ons taking the price to close to £30m.
2) Crystal Palace: Christian Benteke – £32m
Liverpool may have spent around £32m to sign Chrsitian Benteke but they will recoup the amount after Crystal Palace were more than ready to take him off their hands. The Belgian striker never really fit into Klopp’s style of play and found himself playing very little football at Anfield.
In fact, Palace broke their own transfer record in this window. They had previously signed Andros Townsend from relegated Newcastle for £13m. Benteke joins four other players Alan Pardew has brought to the club, including Steve Mandanda, James tomkins and Loic remy (on loan).
“I've met the manager a few times before I signed and that's why I wanted to come here,” Benteke explained. “I was really happy to hear about his project and that is why I am excited to come here.”
1) Manchester United: Paul Pogba – £89.3m
After leaving for virtually nothing but a developmental fee set by a tribunal, Manchester United negotiated a world record fee with Juventus to bring Paul Pogba back to Old Trafford. The £89.3m fee eclipses the previous record held by Real Madrid when they signed Gareth Bale from Tottenham for £86m.
The club had first hired Jose Mourinho to replace Louis van Gaal after a disappointing fifth-placed finish last season and the Portuguese boss went about replenishing the squad with the players he wanted. Eric Bailly, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Zlatan Ibrahimovic arrived before Pogba was signed following protracted negotiations with his agent Mino Raiola.
In spite of there being no Champions League football at Old Trafford, Pogba was convinced to join the Red Devils as they look to reclaim their spot in the top four and also target the Premier League title.
“I am delighted to rejoin United,” Pogba had said after he joined. “It has always been a club with a special place in my heart and I am really looking forward to working with Jose Mourinho. ”
More: 10 most expensive transfers of the 2016 summer transfer window
