Chelsea were the Premier League’s highest spenders last summer and they certainly didn’t stop there as they continued to break records in January.
The Blues currently sit 10th in the league table and were in need of some reinforcements so Todd Boehly splashed a further £23 million on some of Europe’s most exciting players. A big chunk of that came from Chelsea’s dramatic transfer deadline day acquisition of World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez for a staggering £106.8m.
The next highest-spending team was Southampton (£60.75m), while Arsenal and Liverpool were the only other ‘big six’ clubs to reach double figures in January.
Here is how we have ranked Chelsea’s transfer window signings compared to the rest of the English top flight...
1. Everton - 3
OUT: Gordon, Cannon, Broadhead, Nkounkou, Quirk, Onyango, Rondon, Anderson - Everton have had arguably the worst transfer window in the Premier League after failing to add a single player when they desperately needed a striker. Their only positive was managing to get £45m for Anthony Gordon.
2. West Ham - 5
IN: Luizao, Ings. OUT: Nevers, Dawson, Ekwah, Randolph, Coventry, Greenidge, Ashby, Longelo - West Ham needed to add some real quality to their team as they look to avoid the drop and I’m not sure Danny Ings is that - never mind spending £15m on him. The departure of Craig Dawson is also a huge loss.
3. Liverpool - 5
IN: Gakpo. OUT: cain, Quansah, Chambers - While Cody Gakpo is a very exciting signing for Liverpool, he is not what they needed to turn this season around. The Reds were in desperate need of a midfielder and their failure to sign one could have cost them a place in the top six.
4. Aston Villa - 5.5
IN: Moreno, Duran. OUT: Archer, Wright, Guilbert, Vassilev, Ings, Barry, Ramsey, Bogarde, Sanson, Nakamba - The arrivals of Alex Moreno and Jhon Duran are very positive ones, however Aston Villa failed to replace Danny Ings and surely can’t rely on Duran who joined from the MLS. Their exciting move for Matteo Guendouzi also fell through and they didn’t bring in a midfield alternative.