This season has seen Premier League clubs spend huge sums of money.
Alexander Isak’s British-record switch from Newcastle United to Liverpool stole the headlines in the summer. Meanwhile, the cash was splashed well into January, not least with Antoine Semenyo moving from Bournemouth to Manchester City for £64million.
As you can see above, there was plenty of movement between Premier League clubs, with some looking to cash in on key assets to balance the books.
That got us thinking about the record transfer fee received by each current English top-flight side…
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Arsenal – Folarin Balogun
- Fee: £35m
- Sold to: Monaco
Folarin Balogun only ever showed flashes of his future brilliance coming through at Arsenal — and on loan at Middlesbrough — including two goals and an assist in their run to the 2020-21 Europa League semi-finals. However, it’s in France where the striker has thrived, netting 22 goals for Reims in 2022-23, before joining Monaco the following summer for £35m.
Balogun has 31 goals to his name in 89 games for the Principality, and is battling to be the United States’ starting striker at this summer’s World Cup, netting eight goals in 25 caps for the Stars and Stripes so far.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was also sold by Arsenal for £35m, joining Liverpool in 2017.
Aston Villa – Jack Grealish
- Fee: £100m
- Sold to: Man City
Jack Grealish’s £100m move from Aston Villa to Man City remains the joint-second-most-expensive move between two English clubs, only being beaten by Alexander Isak’s transfer from Newcastle to Liverpool last summer.
Grealish has since notched 17 goals and 23 assists in 157 appearances to help Man City win a host of major honours, including three Premier League titles and a Champions League. Grealish is currently on loan at Everton after falling out of favour at the Etihad Stadium.
Bournemouth – Dominic Solanke
- Fee: £65m
- Sold to: Tottenham
Bournemouth have pulled in some huge fees in recent years, but Dominic Solanke tops the lot, joining Tottenham Hotspur for £65m in the summer of 2024 after a 21-goal campaign with the Cherries. Solanke has been stuck in relegation trouble with Spurs since then and has struggled for consistency, though he has picked up a Europa League title.
Brentford – Bryan Mbeumo
- Fee: £65m
- Sold to: Man Utd
Like Bournemouth, Brentford have made some big sales in recent times. Manchester United’s £65m acquisition of Bryan Mbeumo is the biggest, arriving at Old Trafford after posting 70 goals and 51 assists in 242 appearances for the Bees. The Cameroon international has since hit 10 goals and three assists for Man Utd, helping them return to the Champions League.
Brighton – Moises Caicedo
- Fee: £100m
- Sold to: Chelsea
Each of Brighton and Hove Albion’s top three, and four of their top seven, record sales have been to Chelsea, and Moises Caicedo’s £100m move in 2023 tops the lot. The energetic Ecuadorian midfielder is one of the few players who can really hold his head high at Stamford Bridge over the last few turbulent years, and is a genuine top-class operator.
Burnley – James Trafford
- Fee: £31m
- Sold to: Man City
James Trafford became Burnley’s record sale and the most expensive English goalkeeper of all time last summer — pipping Jordan Pickford by £1m — following a stunning 29 clean sheets and 16 goals conceded in 45 Championship appearances in 2024-25. Trafford has struggled for regular minutes at Man City, thanks to the subsequent signing of Gianluigi Donnarumma, but he undoubtedly has the talent to solve that problem soon enough.
Chelsea – Eden Hazard
- Fee: £89m
- Sold to: Real Madrid
Chelsea spend big, but they also sell big. Eden Hazard is comfortably their biggest outgoing, with Real Madrid signing him for £89m back in 2019. Los Blancos were left kicking themselves as Hazard’s career was subsequently ruined by injuries, failing to show any of the utter brilliance that made him a legend at Stamford Bridge.
Crystal Palace – Eberechi Eze
- Fee: £68m
- Sold to: Arsenal
Eberechi Eze enjoyed a dream end to his time at Crystal Palace, scoring the winner in the FA Cup final and lifting the Community Shield, before joining Arsenal last summer. The England international has been well worth his £68m fee so far, and may yet help the Gunners to a historic Premier League and Champions League double.
Everton – Romelu Lukaku
- Fee: £90m
- Sold to: Man Utd
Romelu Lukaku was a force of nature for Everton, to the point where Man Utd paid £90m for him in 2017 after he’d just finished second to Harry Kane in the Premier League Golden Boot race. The Belgium record scorer has never consistently recreated his Goodison Park form since, but has still been a regular source of goals, including during Inter Milan’s 2020-21 Serie A title-winning season.
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Fulham – Aleksandar Mitrovic
- Fee: £50m
- Sold to: Al Hilal
The Saudis struck in west London back in 2023, dropping £50m for Aleksandar Mitrovic, who boasted a phenomenal record of 109 goals in 190 league games for Fulham. The Serbian went on to win three domestic trophies and score 68 goals in 79 games for Al Hilal, and now plays for Qatari side Al Rayyan.
Leeds – Raphinha
- Fee: £55m
- Sold to: Barcelona
Raphinha had been impressive for Leeds United over two Premier League seasons, but many felt he wasn’t worth the £55m Barcelona paid for him in 2022. Seventy-three goals, 59 assists, three La Liga titles and a Copa del Rey later, he’s proved the doubters wrong.
Liverpool – Philippe Coutinho
- Fee: £145m
- Sold to: Barcelona
For all their success, Liverpool are club that has never been afraid of selling when the price is right. Given the trophies they’ve won since and his struggles at Barcelona after leaving Anfield, their £145m cashing in of Philippe Coutinho was utterly justified. Even if he was ruthlessly effective during his time in a red shirt.
Man City – Julian Alvarez
- Fee: £81.5m
- Sold to: Atletico Madrid
Man City pulled off a masterstroke sale of Julian Alvarez in 2024, fetching £81.5m for a player who had largely been used as cover for Erling Haaland. That said, the Argentine has scored at least 20 goals in each of his two seasons at Atletico Madrid so far, while Omar Marmoush has struggled to provide a viable alternative to Haaland.
Man Utd – Cristiano Ronaldo
- Fee: £80m
- Sold to: Real Madrid
Given his unquestioned standing in the game, it’s quite fitting that Cristiano Ronaldo remains Man Utd’s record sale. His achievements need no summarising here. He’s simply one of the greatest we’ve ever seen.
Newcastle – Alexander Isak
- Fee: £125m
- Sold to: Liverpool
Andy Carroll’s £35m sale to Liverpool in 2011 remained Newcastle’s record departure for just over 14 years, until the Reds returned for another striker last summer. Things haven’t worked out at Anfield for Alexander Isak so far, but injuries haven’t helped. His record at Newcastle, however, tells you all you need to know about his quality.
Nottingham Forest – Anthony Elanga
- Fee: £55m
- Sold to: Newcastle United
The same summer, Newcastle re-invested some of that Isak money into Anthony Elanga, after he’d notched six goals and 12 assists for Nottingham Forest last season. However, he remains stuck on zero goals and one assist in the Premier League, only managing to score in cup competitions so far.
Sunderland – Jobe Bellingham
- Fee: £32m
- Sold to: Borussia Dortmund
Sunderland spent big last summer, but they also made a couple of big sales to balance the books. Jobe Bellingham was top of the pile, going to Borussia Dortmund for £32m — £2m more than previous record sale, Jordan Pickford. Bellingham has struggled in Germany so far, but he’s recently won his place back in the Dortmund line-up.
Tottenham – Harry Kane
- Fee: £100m
- Sold to: Bayern Munich
For so long, Gareth Bale was comfortably Tottenham’s record sale, until Bayern Munich dropped £100m on Harry Kane in 2023. Spurs have been on the slide since — though they have won a trophy — while Kane has been worth every penny to the Bavarians, notching an astonishing 140 goals and 33 assists in 145 appearances, winning two Bundesliga titles along the way.
West Ham – Declan Rice
- Fee: £100m
- Sold to: Arsenal
Declan Rice left West Ham a hero in 2023, moving to Arsenal off the back of lifting the Uefa Conference League as captain, ending the Hammers’ long trophy drought. Like Eze, he’s on the verge of lifting a Premier League and Champions League double with the Gunners, whose £100m fee remains the joint-second-highest paid by an English club.
Wolves – Pedro Neto
- Fee: £54m
- Sold to: Chelsea
Each of Wolverhampton Wanderers’ top four record sales have been Portuguese players, with Pedro Neto coming out on top at £54m when he signed for Chelsea in 2024. The winger was excellent at Molineux, but has been inconsistent at best so far in a struggling Blues side.