The 2026/27 summer transfer window was one for the ages. In a bid to reinforce or try to close the gap to Arsenal, big money was spent by some of the surrounding teams as £50 Million became a bargain in the eys of many when compared to some of the highly inflated fees that were thrown around for big players. In this, we will be looking at the five most expensive of the bunch and grade how they have got on to start at their new clubs, with pretty mixed success across the board.
Enzo Fernandez to Manchester City
The Argentine made a controversial move on transfer deadline day from Chelsea to one of their big rivals in Manchester City in the most expensive deal of the summer. Going through so late means that Enzo Fernandez hasn’t been given much time to play and settle in for his new team but we have seen enough to make some judgement. While sitting on the Blues’ bench he would have had time to play Big Bass Bonzanza and made a late move that could see him lacking in match fitness.
His ball progression has remained just as good, moving the ball and dribbling at a high level. His only issue so far is a lower expected assist and expected goal amount than we saw from him in London but he’s been a connector in a strong Cityzens side. He will need more time to show he’s still world class so currently this is harder to give a strong rating to.
Grade: B
Morgan Rogers to Chelsea
The Aston Villa and England man finally made his long anticipated move to Chelsea after multiple windows worth of reported links. Now lining up next to best friend Cole Palmer, he has hit the ground running as one of the league’s leading attackers.
He has 7 goal contributions in 7 appearances, getting 3 goals and 4 assists in his start to life in London. His range of goals and assists has shown that his skillset will scale up to a team that is a bit more dominant than the Villans.
Grade: A+
Elliot Anderson to Manchester City
In an early bid to replace Rodri and support new manager Enzo Maresca, the Cityzens made a huge splash to sign Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest. He has made a perfect transition to a top team, looking like an all-rounder who can pass, progress, and make defensive contributions.
His tackling, clearances, and interception numbers are all among the best for his position without letting his other aspects slack. Anderson is the core of this strong team and looks like an excellent replacement to Rodri so far.
Grade: A
Bradley Barcola to Liverpool
A high profile move from Paris Saint-Germain was meant to unleash Bradley Barcola. Tired of rotating in Luis Enrique’s system with Desire Doue and Kvicha Kvaratskhelia, he was moving to an attack that was desperate for a winger. Unfortunately for Andoni Iraola, his headline new addition has failed to register any goal contributions in 5 appearances. An injury against Atletico Madrid cut him short there so he’s currently looking below the levels he displayed in France.
Grade: D
Sandro Tonali to Tottenham
Roberto De Zerbi received huge backing over the summer with Sandro Tonali as his headline-grabbing new midfielder. As of this writing, the rebuild has been a disaster with the Lilywhites entering the September international break in last place. It’s difficult to adequately judge someone operating in such a weak team but on the surface Tonali looks like he’s been a fine addition but not worth the price tag.
Grade: D
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