Is Liverpool's Summer 2025 Transfer Window the Worst in EPL History?

Photo: Getty Images

Was Liverpool's 2025 summer transfer window the worst in Premier League history? Jamie Carragher has stirred conversation with his comments.

Some of the Worst Premier League Transfer Windows of All-Time:

Liverpool Summer 2025

Photo: Getty Images

IN

Florian Wirtz, Leverkusen — £116m
Alexander Isak, Newcastle — £125m
Hugo Ekitike, Frankfurt — £79m
Milos Kerkez, Bournemouth — £40m
Jeremie Frimpong, Leverkusen — £29.5m
Giovanni Leoni, Parma — £26m
Giorgi Mamardashvili, Valencia — £29m
Armin Pecsi, Puskas Akademia — £1.5m
Will Wright, Salford City — £200,00
Freddie Woodman, Preston — Free

TOTAL SPENT: £446.2 million

OUT

Luis Diaz, Bayern — £65.5m
Darwin Nunez, Al Hilal — £56.6m
Jarell Quansah, Leverkusen — £35m
Ben Doak, Bournemouth — £25m
Caoimhin Kelleher, Brentford — £18m
Tyler Morton, Lyon — £15m
Trent Alexander-Arnold, Real Madrid — £8.4m
Nat Phillips, West Brom — £3m

Sold Trent Alexander-Arnold on the cheap and lost one of their best players in Luis Diaz, plus paid for big money signings that have failed thus far. This window reflects on Liverpool badly right now, but the players they bought have potential to turn around their fortunes and change the narrative of this infamous window.

Chelsea Summer 2022/Winter 2023

Photo: Getty Images

IN

Wesley Fofana, Leicester City — £70m
Marc Cucurella, Brighton — £63m
Raheem Sterling, Manchester City — £47.5m
Kalidou Koulibaly, Napoli — £33m
Carney Chukwuemeka, Aston Villa — £20m
Cesare Casadei, Inter Milan — £16.8m
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Barcelona — £10.3m
Gabriel Slonina, Chicago Fire — £8.1m
Denis Zakaria, Juventus — £2.6m loan fee

OUT

Timo Werner, Leipzig — £25.3m
Emerson Palmieri, West Ham — £15m
Billy Gilmour, Brighton — £10m
Romelu Lukaku, Inter Milan — £6.7m loan fee
Michy Batshuayi, Fenerbahçe — £3.5m
Kenedy, Real Valladolid — £500k
Malang Sarr, Monaco — Undisclosed loan fee
Antonio Rudiger, Real Madrid — Free
Andreas Christensen, Barcelona — Free
Marcos Alonso, Barcelona — Free
Ross Barkley, Nice — Free (Released)
Callum Hudson-Odoi, Bayer Leverkusen — Loan

IN

Enzo Fernandez, Benfica — £106.8m
Mykhailo Mudryk, Shakhtar Donetsk — £88.5m
Benoit Badiashile, Monaco — £35m
Noni Madueke, PSV — £30.7m
Malo Gusto, Lyon — £26.3m
Andrey Santos, Vasco da Gama — £11m
David Datro Fofana, Molde — £10.5m
Joao Felix — Atletico Madrid — £9.7m loan fee

OUT

Jorginho, Arsenal — £12m

TOTAL SPENT: £589.8 million

The Todd Boehly era of Chelsea started in chaotic circumstances. Hundreds of millions spent, huge contracts using a loophole, the start to this new era of Chelsea was a unique one.

Tottenham Summer 2013

Photo: Getty Images

IN

Erik Lamela, Roma — £25.8m
Roberto Soldado, Valencia — £26m
Paulinho, Corinthians — £17m
Christian Eriksen, Ajax — £11.5m
Etienne Capoue, Toulouse — £9m
Vlad Chiriches, Steaua Bucharest — £8.5m
Nacer Chadli, FC Twente — £7m

TOTAL SPENT: £104.8m

OUT

Gareth Bale, Real Madrid — £85.3m
Steven Caulker, Cardiff City — £8m
Clint Dempsey, Seattle Sounders — £6m
Tom Huddlestone, Hull City — £5m
Scott Parker, Fulham — £2m
John Bostock, Royal Antwerp — Free
Jack Barthram, Swindon Town — Free
Nathan Byrne, Swindon Town — Free

The so-called "Bale-Seven" signings were supposed to replace the hole left by the departure of Gareth Bale. Christian Eriksen was a huge success, but six of the seven failed to make any significant impact.

Tottenham Summer 2019

Photo: Getty Images

IN

Tanguy Ndombele, Lyon — £63m
Ryan Sessegnon, Fulham — £30m
Jack Clarke, Leeds United — £9.9m
Giovani Lo Celso, Real Betis — Loan (£14.4m loan fee)
Kion Etete, Notts County — Undisclosed

TOTAL SPENT: £117.3m

OUT

Kieran Trippier, Atletico Madrid — £20m
Vincent Janssen, Monterrey — £8m
Georges-Kevin N'Koudou, Besiktas — £4.6m
Josh Onomah, Fulham — Part-exchange
Marcus Edwards, Vitoria de Guimaraes — Undisclosed
Fernando Llorente, Napoli — Free

The big money deals all failed, culminating in the end of the Mauricio Pochettino era at Tottenham.

Manchester United Summer 2021

Photo: Getty Images

IN

Jadon Sancho, Borussia Dortmund — £73m
Raphael Varane, Real Madrid — £42m
Cristiano Ronaldo, Juventus — £19.8m
Tom Heaton, Aston Villa — Free

TOTAL SPENT: £134.8m

OUT

Daniel James, Leeds United — £25.0m
Max Taylor, Rochdale — Free
Sergio Romero, Released
Joel Pereira, Released
Jacob Carney, Released
Iestyn Hughes, Released
Arnau Puigmal, Released
Aliou Traore, Released

A second place finish, then on paper an incredibly good window. Then came the poor treatment of Cristiano Ronaldo, then the failed transfers of top players like Raphael Varane and Jadon Sancho, whose career petered out after their deals.

Manchester United Summer 2022

Photo: Getty Images

IN

Antony, Ajax — £86.3m
Casemiro, Real Madrid — £70m
Lisandro Martinez, Ajax — £65m
Tyrell Malacia, Feyenoord — £14.7m
Christian Eriksen, Brentford — Free
Martin Dubravka, Newcastle United — £2m loan fee

OUT

James Garner, Everton — £15m
Andreas Pereira, Fulham — £10m
Tahith Chong, Birmingham City — Undisclosed
Dylan Levitt, Dundee United — Undisclosed
Paul Pogba, Juventus — Free
Jesse Lingard, Nottingham Forest — Free
Nemanja Matic, Roma — Free
Edinson Cavani, Valencia, Free
Juan Mata, Galatasaray, Free

Some huge fees with little return. Casemiro ended his tenure well but most of his United days were average, especially paying £70m for someone in their thirties.

Also Antony.