LAST UPDATE | 18 Jul 2020
N.B. THIS is a list of the Premier League 2019-20 season’s 21 most expensive transfers, starting with the least expensive and going from there, so you won’t find the cheaper likes of David Luiz, Takumi Minamino or Danny Ings on here.
The fees are according to transfermarket.co.uk and the ratings below are calculated through a mixture of achievement, price tag and potential for the future.
21/20. Ryan Sessegnon (Tottenham) £24.30 million
Still only 20, so he might well come good, but Sessegnon’s first season at Spurs was less than encouraging. The youngster has made just six Premier League appearances, four of which have been starts. Reports in recent days have indicated the former Fulham player is frustrated with the lack of game time, while Barcelona are believed to be interested in signing him.
Rating: 5/10
21/20. Kieran Tierney (Arsenal) £24.3 million
Injury problems have restricted the 23-year-old full-back to 13 Premier League appearances this season and while those issues understandably curbed his progress, he has begun to gain some momentum since his recovery post-lockdown and is starting to look an astute purchase.
Rating: 7/10
19. Moise Kean (Everton) £24.75 million
High hopes greeted Kean’s arrival from Juventus, but so far, the striker has just one goal from 32 appearances, while seeing fellow attackers Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison eclipse him in the form department. The 20-year-old’s stay in England could be short-lived, with recent reports linking him with a return to Serie A to join Roma.
Rating: 5/10
18. Pablo Fornals (West Ham) £25.2 million
The jury is still out on Fornals after an inconsistent debut season. With West Ham struggling in the lower half of the table, he was linked with a move to Napoli in May. However, the Spain international still has four years left on his Hammers contract, and has shown enough in his 38 appearances this season to suggest he is worth persevering with.
Rating: 6/10
15. William Saliba (Arsenal) £27 million
A very difficult one to judge, given that after signing with the Gunners, Saliba was immediately loaned back to St-Etienne, making 15 appearances for the Ligue 1 club before the season was prematurely halted owing to the pandemic. The youngster was understood to be “angry and disappointed” after his loan spell was not extended, meaning he is set to miss the 24 July cup final with PSG.
Rating: 6/10
15. Steven Bergwijn (Tottenham) £27 million
Another Spurs signing that can’t be considered an unequivocal success as of yet. Since signing from PSV in January, Bergwijn has enjoyed some great moments, including goals against Man United and Man City. However, the 22-year-old winger has been in and out of the side, with the likes of Lucas Moura and Son Heung-min often preferred.
Rating: 6/10
15. Ismaïla Sarr (Watford) £27 million
Really struggled in the early part of the season, with Watford appearing relegation dead certs. However, Sarr has looked rejuvenated since Nigel Pearson’s arrival and amid the team’s improvement in the second half of the season. In particular, his brace in a shock 3-0 win over Liverpool felt like a real turning point for player and club alike. It says it all that before Pearson’s arrival, he had one Premier League goal and 0 assists, and since, he has four goals and three assists.
Rating: 7/10
14. Alex Iwobi (Everton) £27.36 million
The winger has made 29 appearances in all competitions for Everton, but often does not play the full 90 minutes. As with the Toffees in general, the Nigeria international’s season hasn’t been a disaster, yet you feel like he could be doing much better and it’s no surprise to see the club linked with a similar type of player in Oussama Idrissi of AZ Alkmaar.
Rating: 5/10
13. Ayoze Pérez (Leicester City) £30.06 million
Signed from Newcastle last summer, Perez has had a relatively solid first season with Champions League-chasing Leicester, scoring eight times in 38 appearances, including a hat-trick in the memorable 9-0 win over Southampton.
Rating: 7/10
12. Raúl Jiménez (Wolves) £34.2 million
Bruno Fernandes is his only rival for signing of the season, Jimenez has been superb for Wolves. The Mexico international is a big reason why his club have had such a good campaign that will only see them narrowly missing out on Champions League football. He was loaned to Wolves initially from Benfica in the summer of 2018, before signing permanently a year later. Already, he is being linked with moves to Man United and Arsenal, after a campaign that has seen him register 17 goals and six assists.
Rating: 9/10
11. Joelinton (Newcastle) £39.6 million
Has made 42 appearances in all competitions, albeit a number of which have been off the bench. It’s been well documented that his game is about more than goals, but even allowing for that, the fact that he has found the net just twice in the Premier League is disappointing for a forward.
Rating: 5/10
9. Mateo Kovačić (Chelsea) £40.5 million
Didn’t totally convince in his first season on loan at the club, nonetheless Chelsea still opted to sign Kovačić permanently last summer. And the midfielder has improved in his second season, making 42 appearances in all competitions, though there is still a sense that Chelsea could be getting more from the ex-Real Madrid player and he will have to stay on top of his game given the competition from the likes of Ruben Loftus-Cheek, N’Golo Kante, Billy Gilmour and Jorginho.
Rating: 7/10
9. Youri Tielemans (Leicester) £40.5 million
Joined Leicester for a club-record fee from Monaco after an impressive loan spell, the Belgian international has had another solid campaign for the Champions League-chasing Foxes, making 42 appearances in all competitions.
Rating: 7/10
8. Sébastien Haller (West Ham) £45 million
Has had a disappointing first season, particularly when you consider the fee West Ham paid for the 26-year-old French forward. He has scored just seven goals in 33 appearances — though injury problems haven’t helped — compared with 20 in 41 for Eintracht Frankfurt last season.
Rating: 5/10
6. Aaron Wan-Bissaka (Man United) £49.5 million
The 22-year-old full-back’s first season at United has been impressive. He has shown good pace and energy going forward, while invariably looking a reliable presence at the back. 41 appearances in all competitions shows the esteem in which Ole Gunnar Solsjkaer holds Wan-Bissaka, who could potentially make the right-back slot his own for years to come at Old Trafford.
Rating: 8/10
6. Bruno Fernandes (Man United) £49.5 million
Despite only arriving in January, Fernandes will be most people’s choice as signing of the season. It’s no coincidence that United’s fortunes have improved considerably since he joined the club. In 12 Premier League games, he has registered seven goals and eight assists, with the side now on the brink of a Champions League spot — which seemed unthinkable midway through the season — thanks in large part to his influence.
Rating: 9/10
5. Tanguy Ndombele (Tottenham) £54 million
A club-record signing at £54 million, Ndombele had a dream debut, scoring in a 3-1 win over Aston Villa, but it has been downhill since then. He has fallen out of favour increasingly since Jose Mourinho’s arrival, starting just three Premier League games since the turn of the year, and a recent injury appears to have ended his season prematurely.
Rating: 4/10
4. Joao Cancelo (Man City) £58.5 million
Has made 29 appearances in all competitions, but many of those have seen him fail to complete 90 minutes, with Cancelo struggling to adapt and finding it difficult to displace regular right-back Kyle Walker. When you consider the money City paid for him, he will need a significant improvement if he is to have a long-term future at the club.
Rating: 5/10
3. Rodri (Man City) £63 million
Touted as a long-term replacement for the ageing Fernandinho in the holding midfielder position, Rodri hasn’t quite lived up to this billing yet. City have tended to look more vulnerable defensively this season, conceding 35 goals so far, compared with 23 last season. The Spaniard must accept some responsibility for this failing, though there have been some positive elements to his game as well. As the Manchester Evening News recently noted, he “averages more passes per game (81) than anyone else in the division, and analysis done by Spreadex shows that he has completed 1,069 passes in the opposition half – another league high.”
Rating: 7/10
2. Nicolas Pepe (Arsenal) £72 million
Coming from Lille at £72 million and scoring 22 times for the Ligue 1 club last season, it was always going to be difficult for Pepe to live up to expectations. The general consensus is that that he has failed so far, though there have been some signs of improvement under Mikel Arteta, with the Ivorian scoring an important goal from the penalty spot in their FA Cup quarter-final win over Sheffield United.
Rating: 6/10
1. Harry Maguire (Man United) £78.3 million
It has not been a perfect start to life at Old Trafford by Harry Maguire, but it could have been a lot worse. The Red Devils’ defence has played a big part in their recent resurgence — with 35 goals conceded, champions Liverpool are the only team with a superior record. Maguire has made the odd individual error, but has been steady for the most part. In total, the 27-year-old England international has made 49 appearances in all competitions for United this season.
Rating: 7/10
