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Clubs are increasing transfer spend

The authoritative Swiss Ramble has taken a look at transfer spend over the last decade. It is evident that clubs are increasing transfer spend, particularly since the new Premier League TV deal in 2017.

In the last three years (2016-18) the highest gross transfer spend of around half a billion came at Manchester City £559m and Manchester United £487m, followed by Chelsea £416m, Liverpool £351m, Arsenal £288m and Everton £259m. Lowest spend of the Big Six was at Tottenham Hotspur £182m, surprisingly behind Leicester City £195m and Newcastle United £184m.

In the last three years (2016-18) Chelsea recouped most with £274m player sales, followed by four clubs around £200m: Liverpool £225m, Spurs £221m, Southampton £207m and Manchester City £191m. Lagging behind were Manchester United £137m and Arsenal £103m, though Aston Villa did well to earn £102m.

In terms of net spend in last three years (2016-18), City and United again led the way with similar outlays: £368m and £350m respectively. There was a large gap to Arsenal £185m. Tottenham Hotspur and Southampton had net sales.

It is striking how similar net spend is over the last five years (2014-18) at City £525m and United £516m. This is nearly quarter of a billion more than their closest rivals: Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool.

Over 10 years (2009-18) Manchester City is the clear leader in gross transfer spend with £1.4 bn, nearly £400m more than Chelsea £974m, followed by Manchester United £927m and Liverpool £821m. The importance of player sales to Chelsea's business model is again underlined by them leading the way over the last 10 years (2009-18) with £527m.

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