Hey Big Spender!

Despite the Premier League kicking off this weekend, the transfer window is still wide open and will be for another three weeks. Still, as newly-promoted Burnley are about to host reigning champions Manchester City for the season’s opening match on Friday, it’s worth taking a look at which clubs have been most active in the transfer market this summer.

As has become the norm in recent years, the Premier League has far outspent other leagues in the transfer market so far, and that includes the Saudi Pro League, which has shaken things up this summer after the Saudi Public Investment Fund took over four domestic clubs in June. And while other European leagues have complained about having to compete with the Premier League AND Saudi money, some English clubs actually benefitted from the Saudi push into football, as it enabled them to offload players for above-market rates.

Having signed Declan Rice for a club record fee of £105 million and Kai Havertz for £65 million, Arsenal lead the league in net transfer spending this summer so far. According to Transfermarkt.com, last year’s runner-ups spent roughly £200 million so far, while generating £30 million in transfer revenue. Following last season’s title push, Arsenal’s transfer activity is a clear statement of intent from the North Londoners, as they aim to build on last year’s success rather than settling for another top 4 finish.

At the time of this writing, Tottenham had the second highest net transfer spending so far, but as The Athletic reported today, the club may have reached an agreement with Bayern Munich for the sale of Harry Kane in a deal worth upward of £90 million, which would balance their books quite a bit, even though at least some of the money would likely have to be re-invested in a replacement for their record goalscorer.

Other clubs in the top 8 include regulars such as Manchester United, Saudi-owned Newcastle and Manchester City, but also some surprises such as Burnley, Bournemouth and, to a lesser extent, Aston Villa, who mean business this year after qualifying for Europe last season. Notably absent from the list of big spenders is Chelsea, who were busy cleaning house and downsizing their squad after an unprecedented spending spree last winter.