The recently-ended transfer window saw plenty of teams splashing the cash in an unusual manner for Championship standards.
So much so that the record for most expensive Championship signing of all time was broken twice over the summer.
First when Burnley’s initial loan for Benfica’s Florentino Luis was made permanent for approximately £21 million. Though the Clarets immediately sold him for Ipswich Town for less money. And then when West Ham paid Celtic £22 million for Arne Engels.
Fans of teams in the second tier aren’t used to seeing these large sums of money being spent. But modern football has brought, among many things, a new-look, inflated transfer market. Teams are much more willing to spend big on potential than before.
Still, three of the five most expensive signings in the Championship this season have shown good indicators to be considered good moves.
Arne Engels
- From: Celtic
- To: West Ham United
- Fee: £22 million
English sides had already been observing Engels for a few months. The current Scottish champions reportedly turned down bids from Nottingham Forest back in January/February.
While it’s hard to predict how players will deal with the leap from the SPFL to the Premier League/Championship, the Belgian midfielder seems to be handling it smoothly.
Engels walked into Nuno Espirito Santo’s starting XI after arriving at London Stadium and immediately took charge of set-piece duties. He has one assist in five games for the Hammers so far.
He has created 14 chances in the Championship so far, which is the second most of any player. Only teammate Jarrod Bowen tops his tally (16).
Will Lankshear
- From: Tottenham Hotspur
- To: Middlesbrough
- Fee: £10 million
Middlesbrough willingness to spend big on Will Lankshear raised a few eyebrows. The 21-year-old striker had a decent loan spell at Oxford United last season, though he struggled a little to put chances away. He converted just eight of the 15 clear-cut goalscoring opportunities in the 2025/26 Championship campaign, at a rate of 35%.
However, Boro and Kim Hellberg took a ‘glass half-full’ approach on Lankshear, banking on him improving his finishing while mantaining the ability to put himself in good positions often.
The Tottenham academy graduate has repaid their faith in him so far: seven goals in seven games across all competitions in 2026/27. This includes two braces in the Championship, against Lincoln City and West Bromwich Albion.
Lankshear also has the highest percentage of goals scored relative to the team’s total in the division, being responsible for 63% of Boro’s goals (5/8).
Ethan Galbraith
- From: Swansea City
- To: Stoke City
- Fee: £10 million
Considering Engels and Lankshear are 22 and 21 years old, respectively, a large sum of money makes more sense in the current scenario. Stoke City signing 25-year-old Ethan Galbraith from Swansea for £10 million was a big surprise.
Especially considering he only has one full season’s worth of Championship experience. Galbraith spent the previous four between League One and League Two at Doncaster Rovers, Salford City and Leyton Orient.
However, he has already equalled his goalscoring tally from last season (3 in 39 matches for Swansea) just five league games into his tenure at Stoke.
Galbraith is averaging fewer touches per 90 minutes this year (56.4) than last (82.6). But he’s been more central to the Potters’ overall play, accounting for 10.6% of the team’s total touches, as opposed to 9.3% for the Swans in 2025/26. And the protagonism certainly fits him well.
He also leads Stoke in duels contested (59) in the Championship this season. Mark Robins’ men are currently on a two-game win streak – something they hadn’t achieved in the league since January.
Unsurprisingly, Galbraith scored in both – the winner against Norwich and the second in a 4-0 win over Charlton Athletic.
He could be the face of a ‘new-look’ Stoke side, that invested heavily in transfers during the summer and will try to give themselves a proper chance of competing for the first time in years. And the current run could be the turning point for that.