Published 20:35 2 Sep 2026 GMT+1

All 155 Premier League transfers ranked from best to worst by journalist

All of the Premier League's 155 transfers have been ranked from best to worst, and Morgan Rogers is in 80th...

Thomas Griffin

The summer transfer window closed at 11pm on September 1, and as always, all 20 Premier League clubs can now reflect on another astonishing 78 days of drama-filled chaos in the market.

An eye-watering £3.46bn was spent on 155 players, and in doing so, the previous mark of £3.14bn from 12 months ago was shattered.

Astonishingly, the British transfer record was smashed not once, but twice, as Elliot Anderson completed his £116 million switch to Manchester City from Nottingham Forest before Chelsea paid Aston Villa £117 million for attacking midfielder Morgan Rogers.

Anderson was one of nine arrivals at the Etihad Stadium this summer, and he wasn't the most expensive. That title goes to Enzo Fernandez, whose £125 million transfer from Chelsea to City on Deadline Day equalled Alexander Isak's record transfer to Liverpool last summer.

The Reds weren't shy in throwing more money around, too, as they shelled out a whopping £123 million to sign forward Bradley Barcola from Paris Saint-Germain after chasing the Frenchman's signature for most of the summer.

Tottenham spent around £300 million on 10 new players, breaking their transfer record twice to sign Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali, while landing Tosin Adarabioyo and Mykhailo Mudryk from Chelsea in a double deal on Deadline Day.

But which Premier League clubs did the best business this summer? The Athletic has ranked all 155 transfers from best to worst and given a reason for each placement.

Premier League transfers ranked from best to worst

Emi Martinez tops the pile after completing a £7.5 million move from Aston Villa on a two-year contract. Xabi Alonso was crying out for a quality goalkeeper, and in Martinez, he has one of the best on the planet.

Bruno Guimaraes is second following his £75 million switch from Newcastle United to Arsenal. Having established himself as one of the Premier League's most talented midfielders, the Brazilian is seen as a vital reason why Mikel Arteta's men are favourites to win successive Premier League titles.

The rest of the top five is made up of Mamadou Sangare - who has already impressed at Brentford since completing a club-record £38.5 million move from Lens in Ligue 1 - while Anderson and Barcola are in fourth and fifth, respectively, after joining Man City and Liverpool.

The top five didn't throw up many surprises, but further down the list there are some questionable placements, including Rogers in 80th, with The Athletic citing that his extortionate transfer fee 'knocks him down the list'.

Rogers has already started his Blues career with a goal and an assist in his first two Premier League games, making that ranking all the more baffling - and he isn't the only high-profile player low in their estimations.

Andrey Santos is 104th following his £50m move from Chelsea to Manchester United, and they also have Nicolas Jackson in 135th after joining Aston Villa for a club-record £65m fee. Tonali, meanwhile, is 95th for his £100m transfer from Newcastle to Spurs.

Other notable rankings include Liam Delap in 151st (fifth from bottom) after making a £50m move to Nottingham Forest from Chelsea, where he scored just once in the Premier League after netting 12 for Ipswich Town in the season prior.

Emmanuel Emegha's £21m switch to Stamford Bridge from Strasbourg on a seven-year contract is ranked as the worst transfer of the summer, while Loum Tchaouna (Burnley to Coventry City), Mudryk (Chelsea to Spurs) and Jonah Kusi-Asare (Bayern Munich to Fulham) make up the bottom four.