We can't ignore what transpired on the final day of the 2025/26 transfer window. Europe was left stunned: Liverpool sealed the signing of Alexander Isak from Newcastle for £130 million. That fee makes the 25-year-old Swedish striker the most expensive player in Premier League history and the third most costly in global football. He arrives at Anfield with the heavy weight of proving he's worth it, second only to Neymar and Mbappé's blockbuster transfers to Paris Saint-Germain. For Liverpool, it's not just a statement signing. After years of careful, considered spending, the club finally loosened the purse strings and went into the market with real intent.
The club that spent the most
No team matched Liverpool's numbers. Together, they spent a sum of €489 million on Isak, Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike. Landing three high-cost signings in the same summer instantly changes the squad's level and is a shift from the more modest policy of the recent past. A club once respected for being selective and patient suddenly stretched itself to acquire players still on the path towards their peak.
That imbalance cannot be overlooked. The Premier League already possessed the financial superiority, but this window showed a new level of ruthlessness. Liverpool alone were responsible for three of the ten biggest transfers in Europe, which would have been unthinkable a while back. Manchester United and Arsenal also chimed in with big buys, though hedging their bets somewhat more. United landed Sesko, Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha, and Arsenal got Eberechi Eze. Bayern and Galatasaray were the only two to intrude into the big signings list outside of England, which only serves to illustrate just how much the English clubs now dictate the market.
The rationale employed in an inflated window
This kind of expenditure comes at a price of its own: pressure. The 2025/26 season starts with the understanding from the clubs that they cannot afford to get left behind. Liverpool will be expected to fight on all four fronts, United needs instant return on its investments, and Arsenal needs to show that it is good enough to keep up with the rest.
Outside of this inner circle, the likes of Milan, Lyon and even Real Madrid hardly figured among the leading transfers. That can only contribute to the feeling of a transfer market increasingly skewed towards England as the real gravity well.