Most Overpriced Signings of the Summer Transfer Window

The summer transfer window of the 2025/26 season was one of the most memorable ever. Sky’s many pundits, never shy of hyperbole, were quick to declare deadline day itself the greatest of all time. Premier League clubs spent a substantial sum, over £3 billion. They recouped close to £2 billion in player sales, with several major transfers from one EPL side to another. However, even so, the net spend, like the overall outlay, was a new record.

It is too early to tell which deals will be successful and which will not. However, in this article, we will look at the most overpriced signings of the last window. We could opt for a subjective approach, whereby we state players we feel were not worth the fee their clubs paid. However, instead, we will use the figures provided by the respected resource Transfermarkt.

This website provides information on the market value of players. They use a bespoke assessment method that is holistic and looks at a range of factors. We may sometimes disagree with their valuation of a player. However, it does give us a simple metric to use. Moreover, by using their valuation and the transfer fee itself, we can determine an objective view of the most overpriced signings of the transfer window. Note that Transfermarkt uses Euros for market value and transfers.

A deep dive into every permanent transfer made during the summer shows us that many clubs have overpaid significantly. We base this solely on the stats on Transfermarkt and note that often these appear to make little sense to many fans. However, we defer to them, and using their stats, we conclude that there were at least 32 badly overpriced deals.

Several Repeat Offenders

Even restricting ourselves to Transfermarkt data, there are different ways of assessing what constitutes an overpriced player. The two fairest and most obvious to us are: the simple difference between the price paid and market value; and the difference as a percentage of the perceived value.

We will focus on the first of those. However, one or two deals are particularly noteworthy based on the second. There were 32 deals in the summer window where clubs overpaid by at least €10m.

Several clubs were repeat “offenders” in this sense. A number of Premier League clubs bought at least three players, where they overpaid by €10m or more. These were Arsenal, Liverpool, Man United, and Newcastle.

Most Overpriced Players

If we had to name just two players, we suspect both names would surprise many fans. First, we put forward Newcastle’s Nick Woltemade. The giant German is the most overpriced player in absolute terms. According to Transfermarkt, the former Stuttgart man cost the Magpies €75m and had a market value of just €30m. No other Premier League signing was overpriced by more than Woltemade’s €45m.

He boasts 13 goals in 18 matches for his national U21 side. Moreover, he got off the mark early for Newcastle and has looked impressive. He may yet prove a bargain, defying Transfermarkt’s valuation. However, based on current stats, he is the most overpriced signing of the summer window.

Second, and even more surprising to many, we offer up Veljko Milosavljevic. Lots of neutrals will not have heard of the 18-year-old Serbian centre back. Bournemouth signed him from Red Star Belgrade for €15m. However, his meagre market value of just €1m means that the Cherries paid 15 times what he was worth. Using that methodology, he is the most overpriced signing of the summer.

However, Bournemouth have an amazing recent record of signing young, cheap defenders and selling them on for a vast profit. Therefore, there is every reason to suspect their recruitment and development teams know a little bit more than a popular website!

Top Players Don’t Come Cheap

Many of the biggest deals this summer saw players move for sums far in excess of their market value. Competition and scarcity put an extra premium on the best of the best. Moreover, when a club is spending €60m or more, €10m is not necessarily a huge overvaluation.

Below is a list of some of the larger deals where clubs overpaid:

• Martin Zubimendi, Real Sociedad to Arsenal, €70m fee v €60m market value
• Eberechi Eze, Crystal Palace to Arsenal, €69.3m fee v €55m market value
• Noni Madueke, Chelsea to Arsenal, €56m fee v €40m market value
• Joao Pedro, Brighton to Chelsea, €63.7m fee v €50m market value
• Alexander Isak, Newcastle to Liverpool, €145m fee v €120m market value
• Hugo Etikite, Eintracht Frankfurt to Liverpool, €95m fee v €75m market value
• Bryan Mbeumo, Brentford to Man United, €75m fee v €55m market value
• Matheus Cunha, Wolves to Man United, €74.2m fee v €60m market value
• Anthony Elanga, Nottingham Forest to Newcastle – €61.4m fee v €42m market value
• Yoane Wissa, Brentford to Newcastle – €57.7m fee v €32m market value
• Mohammed Kudus, West Ham to Spurs – €63.8m fee v €45m market value

Other Notably Overpriced Summer Signings

With at least 32 very overpriced Premier League deals, we had a lot to go at. We won’t list them all. However, here is a selection of other notable deals.

Charalampos Kostoulas

Kostoulas was valued at €12m, and Brighton paid €35m for the striker. Their record in the market is great. Moreover, at just 18 years old, much of that fee is based on potential.

Lesley Ugochukwu

Ugochukwu is another name few neutrals will know. However, a market value of just €8m suggests the €28.7m that Burnley paid Chelsea was too much.

Jaydee Canvot

Canvot’s meagre market value means that Palace paid over five times his worth when they gave Toulouse €23m for the centre back. Again, at 19, much of that fee is based on the player Palace believe he can become.

Kevin

In absolute terms, the €28m that Fulham overpaid €40m versus a market value of €12m for Kevin makes the exciting attacker one of the most overpriced signings of the summer.

Omari Hutchinson

Not all that far behind Kevin is Hutchinson. Forest paid Ipswich almost double his market value of €22m. They undoubtedly paid a premium for his youth and the fact that he is English.

Chemsdine Talbi

Sunderland paid more than double the market value for Talbi. Our stats rate the winger at €8m, but Club Brugge got a handsome €20m.

Mateus Fernandes

Fernandes also moved for much more than double his market value. West Ham gave Southampton a whopping €44m for the €15m-rated young midfielder.

Fer Lopez

Our last overpriced player puts that overpricing ratio firmly in the shade. Lopez was worth just €5m. However, Wolves paid Celta Vigo €23m for the 21-year-old.