Every Premier League Club’s Net Spend Since 2022

Summary

• Manchester United have the second-highest net spend since Erik ten Hag took over at Old Trafford.
• Chelsea sit top while Manchester City find themselves almost turning a profit in the transfer market.
• Everton have been forced to sell some of their most valuable assets due to FFP concerns.

The Premier League remains the richest league in the world by a significant margin, with spending reaching extraordinary levels since 2022. While clubs spent over £1.9 billion during the summer 2024 transfer window alone, net spending across the league has continued to rise sharply, reflecting a period of aggressive investment. This ultimately turned out to be the downfall for Erik ten Hag at Manchester United, whose poor recruitment led to poor performances and eventually his dismissal at Old Trafford.

However, the 54-year-old wasn’t the only manager in England’s top flight who was able to break the bank and spend a pretty penny. While significant spending often requires balancing the books with player sales – especially to comply with Financial Fair Play (FFP) and Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) With that in mind, here is how each Premier League club ranks in terms of net spending since 2022.

Chelsea and Manchester United Lead the Way

The two English giants have invested poorly in the transfer market

Unsurprisingly, Chelsea find themselves at the very bottom of the net spend table, a result of Boehly’s wildly aggressive transfer strategy, which has been heavily criticised by pundits like Jamie Carragher. Since Boehly’s takeover, the Blues’ spending spree has brought the tally of new additions to a plethora of players, including high-priced signings such as Pedro Neto and Joao Felix. This brings their total expenditure since 2022 to a staggering £1.15 billion — in excess of £500 million more than any other club. As a result, their net spend stands at over £660 million in the red.

Very close to them are Manchester United, who are now managed by former Sporting CP head honcho Ruben Amorim, with the Red Devils recording a net loss of just shy of £450 million over the same period. The financial mismanagement under the Glazer family’s ownership has yielded little return on investment, with high-profile departures like Paul Pogba and Romelu Lukaku evidencing their poor value-for-money business over the three most recent years.

Although he is now an afterthought following Ruben Amorim’s arrival, the amount the club have spent since Erik ten Hag took charge in 2022 has not helped the pressure on the higher-ups from the Old Trafford faithful. Investments like Antony have appeared to be among the worst transfers in the club’s long and storied history and their decline from where they finished in the Dutchman’s debut season to now is startling. Lisbon-born Amorim, 40, could look to settle their negative net spend of £433.3 million in the coming years.

Everton Make the Most Profit

New boys Leeds United also end up in the green

Everton have recently taken the title of the most efficient club in the Premier League market based on net spend valuations. While other clubs are dealing with transfer debts running well into the millions, Sean Dyche’s team have remarkably managed to turn a profit of £81.4 million over a three-season period since 2022/23.

However, this efficiency is not due to a shrewd transfer strategy of buying undervalued talent and selling for significant profit. Instead, it reflects the club’s deep financial troubles, which culminated in a point deduction last season due to breaches of financial regulations. As a result, the Toffees have been forced to drastically tighten their budget, selling off their most valuable players whenever possible to balance the books and avoid further penalties.

Leeds United, newly promoted back to the Premier League, sit second in terms of market efficiency. Since 2022/23, the Yorkshiremen have accrued a net gain of £66.2 million. This is largely due to a major sell-off of their key players – including Georginio Rutter to Brighton and Archie Gray to Tottenham Hotspur – following their 2024 relegation to the Championship, which helped generate funds and reduce their wage bill. Despite their successful promotion back to the top flight, the Whites still face a challenging season ahead.

Manchester City and Liverpool Both Well Run

Brighton and Wolves also make good viewing

As the likes of United, Chelsea and even Arsenal find themselves deep in the red, it is Manchester City who, incredibly, given their success, are statistically well run. In what can be described as the most dominant era in English football, Pep Guardiola has only managed a net spend of £181.6 million. That, of course, proves that the Catalonia-born boss and his entourage have not been afraid to empty their pockets, but for a club so successful, it’s mightily impressive that they boast a better net spend than the likes of Nottingham Forest and West Ham United.

While the champions have clearly spent a lot of money, they know a) when to capitalise on the market’s ever-changing wants and needs and b) when to put feelings aside and part ways with players at the optimal moment in time. The departures of the likes of Julian Alvarez, Riyad Mahrez and Aymeric Laporte stand out in that sense.

GIVEMESPORT Key Statistic: Julian Alvarez’s £81m move to Atletico Madrid is Manchester City’s club record sale.

Liverpool, too, are well-run in that sense. Arne Slot became just the fifth manager in Premier League history to win the title in his inaugural campaign. The Dutchman hasn’t spent much at all since his arrival, which has alleviated Jurgen Klopp’s departure, but he has a tradition to follow. Liverpool go by the ‘Spend well, sell even better’ motto, it seems by their impressive net spend of -£144.1 million given their success under Klopp and how well they are set up under Slot.

Elsewhere, Brighton & Hove Albion‘s reputation for buying low and selling high remains intact with a net spend of just over £56 million. This, no doubt, would’ve been a profitable score had the Seagulls not broken their transfer record twice in 2024, using the money made off the likes of Moises Caicedo and Alexis Mac Allister the year prior to good use. This has not prevented them from pushing into consistent top half finishers in the division.

There have also been impressive results from Wolverhampton Wanderers, who will have largely benefited from the recent sale of Pedro Neto to Chelsea. Smart recruitment, though, has meant that the Black Country outfit has been able to make the most of the cost-effective deals, although this hasn’t helped with performances on the pitch. Vitor Pereira’s arrival changed that – but whether they’ll perform to the same effect following Matheus Cunha’s big-money move to Manchester United remains to be seen.

All financial information in this article is courtesy of Transfermarkt – correct as of 30/05/2025