English clubs spend big
LONDON. — English Premier League clubs spent 430 million pounds in the January transfer window to shatter the previous mark of 225 million set in 2011, a report by the Sports Business Group at Deloitte said.
The January window closed on Wednesday night after a frantic month of activity during which Barcelona completed the most expensive deal by signing Philippe Coutinho from Liverpool for a transfer fee reported at about 142 million pounds.
“International trade has flourished, with the highest ever January gross overseas outlay in Premier League history (260 million pounds), but also the highest amount of January receipts from abroad (185 million pounds),” said Dan Jones, partner in the Sports Business Group at Deloitte.
“While another record-breaking season catches the eye, Premier League clubs’ expenditure continues to be well within their means in the context of revenue generated.
“The estimated 2017-18 net spend of 755 million pounds represents 17 percent of forecast 2017-18 Premier League revenue, in line with the average over the 15 years since the first transfer window in January 2003.”
The January window also saw the total expenditure by the Big Six – Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool. Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal – come to 265 million pounds, representing 62 percent of total gross spending.
This contrasted against last season’s trend where half of gross expenditure came from the bottom-six clubs in a bid to retain their Premier League status.
“Such is the level of competition for a coveted top-four position in the Premier League, as well as ongoing European battles, that top clubs have been willing to break with more traditional summer investment strategies to steal a march on their rivals mid-season,” Jones added.
In fact, the January transfer window slammed shut on Wednesday after a frantic month of activity during which Barcelona completed the biggest deal by signing Coutinho from Liverpool and Premier League clubs spent heavily across the board.
The English Premier League clubs’ purchasing power was evident again in January but unusually the big money went on defenders.
Early in the window, Liverpool made Virgil van Dijk the world’s most expensive defender by splashing out a world record 75 million pounds to sign the Dutchman from Southampton.
Liverpool badly needed more quality in their back line but the improvement in the squad was undermined by the departure of Brazil attacking midfielder Coutinho to Barcelona for a transfer fee reported at about 142 million pounds.