Ranking European Clubs on Their Transfer Activity at the End of July
We're into the month of August, which means the dawn of the new European football season is creeping closer and closer. It's about this time when clubs usually start to realise what they're missing and start filling the holes in their squads, but this year, a fair amount of business has been concluded already.
We're back with another ranking, charting who has done the best business so far (measuring both ins and outs), and the Nemanja Matic transfer to Manchester United has shaken things up visibly.
For a transfer to be counted, it must have been concluded by the end of July.
15-11
1 of 11
15. Inter Milan
Inter's transfer window has featured lots of talk but little action. Balde Keita? Ivan Perisic? Big names, but nothing concrete secured for any of them. According to Goal.com, Matias Vecino is set for a medical in the Italian city, but the deal wasn't completed in July and can't be counted here.
14. Liverpool
Things are going from bad to worse for the Reds in their pursuit of Naby Keita. Not only does it seem highly unlikely he'll join this summer, but RB Leipzig are working to remove his release clause for next summer with a new deal, per the Daily Star.
13. AFC Bournemouth
Eddie Howe committed to some early business, acquired his targets—Asmir Begovic, Nathan Ake and Jermain Defoe—early on, and has seen them play full parts in pre-season. The club will be feeling good about that.
12. RB Leipzig
If the summer finished now, RB Leipzig would be feeling pretty smug. They've kept Naby Keita from Liverpool's grasp so far and have bolstered their squad nicely with some low-key, high-quality additions.
11. Barcelona
Barcelona won't even make the top 15 if/when they lose Neymar, which could be as early as Wednesday, per RMC Sport's Mohamed Bouhafsi (h/t GFFN).
10. Juventus
2 of 11
In: Medhi Benatia, Juan Cuadrado, Rodrigo Bentancur, Douglas Costa, Wojciech Szczesny, Mattia De Sciglio and Federico Bernardeschi.
Out: Leonardo Bonucci, Dani Alves, Kingsley Coman, Simone Zaza and Neto.
Juventus haven't stopped overhauling their squad this summer, and with bids reportedly in for Lazio's Balde Keita and Paris Saint-Germain's Blaise Matuidi, per Goal.com, it's clear they're still assessing their options.
They've signed some excellent players already, with Costa and Bernardeschi the highlight acquisitions, and Max Allegri could be forgiven for thinking he has enough in his squad already to retain the Scudetto—even in the face of increased competition from AC Milan, Inter, AS Roma and Napoli.
9. Arsenal
3 of 11
In: Sead Kolasinac and Alexandre Lacazette.
Out: Yaya Sanogo and Wojciech Szczesny.
Same old, same old for Arsenal.
Two first-team signings were made early in the summer; both are integrating nicely and featured in the Emirates Cup.
There have been no developments in the Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil situations either, although Arsene Wenger has, bizarrely, claimed that them having just a year left on their deals is an "ideal" situation, per the Evening Standard.
8. Borussia Dortmund
4 of 11
In: Maximilian Philipp, Omer Toprak, Mahmoud Dahoud and Dan-Axel Zagadou.
Out: Adrian Ramos, Matthias Ginter and Sven Bender, Mikel Merino (loan).
Up until the weekend just gone, every move Borussia Dortmund had made in the transfer window had made sense. Smart acquisitions, sales for decent fees, and some good young players acquired in the process.
But Mikel Merino's departure to Newcastle United is a real shame, and it sees them drop down in our ranking. According to the Chronicle, it's a loan fee of £2.7 million and an option of a further £6.5 million should Rafa Benitez wish to make it permanent.
That's just not a lot of money in this article, and although Merino featured lightly last season, his talent is undeniable. It feels like BVB are cutting him loose too soon.
7. Chelsea
5 of 11
In: Willy Caballero, Antonio Rudiger, Tiemoue Bakayoko and Alvaro Morata.
Out: Juan Cuadrado, Bertrand Traore, Asmir Begovic, Nathan Ake, Christian Atsu, Nathaniel Chalobah, Ola Aina (loan), Ruben Loftus-Cheek (loan) and Kurt Zouma (loan), Nemanja Matic.
True to this summer's narrative, Chelsea have made another good sale that has brought them a healthy profit for a now-fringe player. Nemanja Matic has joined Manchester United for approximately £40 million after it became clear Tiemoue Bakayoko is N'Golo Kante's new midfield partner.
We are getting to the point where we have to question the Blues' strategy here, though. Yes, it's a good fee for a player who did not play that well last season, and it can be reinvested in someone else who Antonio Conte prefers.
But how many senior outfield players do Chelsea have now? It's 15 if you include Kenedy. Unless Andreas Christensen, Jeremie Boga, Charly Musonda and Lewis Baker are all intended for the first-team this season, Conte is ridiculously short for the season ahead.
6. Everton
6 of 11
In: Jordan Pickford, Davy Klaassen, Michael Keane, Henry Onyekuru, Sandro Ramirez, Wayne Rooney and Cuco Martina.
Out: Romelu Lukaku, Gerard Deulofeu, Tom Cleverley, Aiden McGeady and Henry Onyekuru (loan).
For Everton, there's little to update. No developments of note.
That's likely for two reasons: The first is that the Gylfi Sigurdsson saga continues to rumble on, and it feels like if the Icelandic midfielder is signed he will be the final splurge of the Toffees' window; the second is that they've begun competitive football in the form of Europa League qualifiers, so attentions must be split.
Everton's new-look side stuttered a little against Ruzomberok but managed a 1-0 victory, and they will take an aggregate lead to the Slovakian village this week as they look to finish the job.
5. Manchester United
7 of 11
In: Victor Lindelof, Romelu Lukaku, Nemanja Matic.
Out: Wayne Rooney and Adnan Januzaj.
Manchester United stole the global headlines on Monday by finally securing a deal for Matic. The 29-year-old has cost the club £35 million with a potential £5 million in add-ons, per ESPN's Rob Dawson, and he reunites with Jose Mourinho.
There are two distinct sides to this transfer. On the one hand, Chelsea weren't looking to him as a starter so to receive that fee for him is brilliant, and given his age, it's perhaps not the best use of £40 million—even in this market.
But United are getting a Premier League-proven player who has won two titles in three years, and if he's willing to accept the holding role in their midfield, unleashing Paul Pogba, then it's a valuable move in many ways.
Matic is the third starting-calibre player Mourinho has added this summer. They've all cost a lot, but there's no doubt he's made his team demonstrably better.
4. Manchester City
8 of 11
In: Bernardo Silva, Ederson Moraes, Kyle Walker, Danilo, Benjamin Mendy and Douglas Luiz.
Out: Enes Unal, Pablo Zabaleta, Gael Clichy, Bacary Sagna, Jesus Navas, Aaron Mooy, Ruben Sobrino, Nolito, Joe Hart (loan).
It's arguable the only piece left for Manchester City to acquire this summer is a centre-back. With three new full-backs and a goalkeeper, plus Bernardo Silva in tow, they're close to set. That said, Pep Guardiola has stated he wants two more players, with Alexis Sanchez and Kylian Mbappe thought to be high on his wish list, per the Manchester Evening News.
Joe Hart's left on loan, putting that problem out of sight and out of mind for another year. West Ham United are covering £55,000-per-week of his contract, per The Sun, easing the financial burden of his £175,000-per-week contract a touch.
3. Real Madrid
9 of 11
In: Theo Hernandez and Dani Ceballos.
Out: Mariano Diaz, Diego Llorente, Pepe, Fabio Coentrao (loan), James Rodriguez (loan), Alvaro Morata and Danilo.
It feels like there's only one more possible signing for Real Madrid this summer, and that's Mbappe. There's no guarantee they enter the market again, but if they do it'll be for him.
Los Blancos president Florentino Perez is in a great position; he can mull over whether or not to buy the Frenchman this summer or wait until a later date to make him his next Galactico, and all the while, he can watch Barcelona teeter on the edge as Neymar edges his way over to Paris Saint-Germain.
Perez has bought two brilliant young Spanish players for a combined approximate £40 million fee, and he has made more than twice that back in sales.
2. Bayern Munich
10 of 11
In: Corentin Tolisso, Niklas Sule, Sebastian Rudy, Serge Gnabry, Kingsley Coman and James Rodriguez (loan).
Out: Medhi Benatia, Serge Gnabry (loan) and Douglas Costa (loan).
Nothing's changed since we last checked in on Bayern Munich. Over the next two days, they'll host the Audi Cup at the Allianz Arena and further integrate their new signings as they look toward the DFL-Supercup clash with Borussia Dortmund this weekend.
While pre-season results are nothing to worry over, Bayern have recorded some strange ones, with the scores and performances fluctuating dramatically. As long as it all clicks in time for the big Bundesliga kick-off, though, on August 18, all will be well.
1. Milan
11 of 11
In: Andre Silva, Franck Kessie, Ricardo Rodriguez, Mateo Musacchio, Hakan Calhanoglu, Fabio Borini (loan), Andrea Conti, Antonio Donnarumma, Lucas Biglia and Leonardo Bonucci.
Out: Keisuke Honda, Diego Lopez, Andrea Poli, Gianluca Lapadula (loan), Juraj Kucka, Mattia De Sciglio and Leonel Vangioni.
Inter's Joao Mario has revealed to Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t ESPN) that he's told his compatriot, Renato Sanches, to join him in Milan as soon as possible. The Portuguese has been heavily linked to the club and would do well to go and find some regular playing time.
The only problem is, Carlo Ancelotti has come out and said Sanches will be staying in Munich for the season, so unless there's a dramatic U-turn or a mega bid (neither of which are impossible to foresee), this one's cut and shut.
This, really, has been the only story rumbling when it comes to Milan—other than when the money they need for the Leonardo Bonucci and Lucas Biglia deals will arrive.
They were forced to play their first competitive game without the duo, in the Europa League early qualifying rounds, and claimed a tight 1-0 victory in Romania thanks to a Rodriguez free-kick.
All transfer fees mentioned are according to Transfermarkt unless otherwise noted.
.jpg?w=600 "Post-Lawrence Trade Mock Draft 📝")
