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Traditionally, the last day of the transfer window, also known as transfer deadline day, is one of the most eventful days in the world of football. While clubs ideally prefer to get their business done before the rush of the final day unfolds, sometimes negotiations do venture into the dreaded deadline day.
Even though the winter transfer window falls short in front of its summer counterpart in duration, both deadline days are drenched in equal amounts of intensity and excitement. Often, breakdown in negotiations makes clubs pry for alternative targets on deadline day, as they become desperate to procure targets before the end of the window.
Also Read: 4 strikers Chelsea could target if they fail to sign Moussa Dembele
With time becoming a limiting factor, the urgency to complete a deal often leads to clubs breaking the bank to get players. The Premier League has seen clubs go to a great extent on deadline day to procure a target of their choice, even paying astronomical transfer fees in the process. Today, we take a look at the five most expensive deadline day deals completed in the history of the Premier League.
#5 Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal to Liverpool) and Andy Carroll (Newcastle to Liverpool) – £35m
Liverpool signed Andy Carroll on the final day of the January transfer window in 2011 from Newcastle United in a fee believed to be around £35 million. The Englishman arrived at Anfield along with Luis Suarez, who was signed from Ajax. Liverpool’s bid for Carroll was accepted by the Magpies in the afternoon and he completed his move just before the end of the transfer window.
However, Carroll’s association with the Reds was far from rosy. The Englishman struggled for form and could only manage 58 appearances, scoring 11 times. He was loaned to West Ham United in the 2012-13 season and completed a move to the Hammers in the following year. Carroll is currently back at Newcastle United.
Six years later, Liverpool invested big in the summer transfer deadline day, this time getting Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain from Arsenal for £35 million. At that time, The Englishman had appeared 198 times for the Gunners and had scored 10 goals. He had generated interest from Chelsea and had also rejected Arsenal’s offer for a contract renewal.
The Englishman joined Jurgen Klopp’s side on 31st August 2017 and impressed in his first season with the Reds. However, he picked up a knee injury at the end of the season, which restricted him to just two appearances last term. This season, he is back to his best form and has become an important member of the Liverpool squad.
#4 Anthony Martial – £36m (Monaco to Manchester United)
In the summer of 2015, in his second year at Old Trafford, Louis van Gaal went on a spending spree, signing five players in July. However, his best bit of business was done on the final day of the transfer window, and it certainly turned out to be one of his most memorable contributions to the Manchester United cause.
On 1st September 2015, the Red Devils signed a relatively unknown teenager called Anthony Martial from Monaco for £36 million. That made the Frenchman the world’s costliest teenager at that time and he certainly enjoyed a blockbuster start to life at Old Trafford. Martial was introduced to United fans in the home game against Liverpool, where he scored from a fine solo effort to help his team win 3-1.
The Frenchman ended his first season with 17 goals from 49 appearances but struggled for form under Van Gaal’s successor, Jose Mourinho. However, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s appointment brought some much-needed respite and Martial has enjoyed a renaissance of sorts this season, scoring 12 goals in 27 appearances already.
#3 Mesut Ozil – £42.4m (Real Madrid to Arsenal)
In the summer of 2013, Arsenal broke their club transfer record to secure the signature of Mesut Ozil. The German midfielder joined the Gunners from Real Madrid for a fee of around £42.4 million, signing a five-year deal. It was a statement of intent from Arsenal, who backed Arsene Wenger in the transfer window to get a player the Frenchman had openly expressed his admiration for.
The German started his football career with Schalke 04, before finding his feet with Werder Bremen, where he attracted the attention of big clubs around Europe. Real Madrid secured his signature in the summer of 2010, and Ozil played at the Santiago Bernabeu for three seasons, scoring 27 goals in 159 appearances. He eventually joined the Gunners on the final day of the summer transfer window in 2013.
Since then, Ozil has been both admired and criticized for his performances for the north London club. While the German can be absolutely brilliant on his day, he does have a tendency to blow hot and cold in the same game. Ozil is in his seventh season with Arsenal and has won three FA Cups and one Community Shield during his stay at the Emirates so far.
#2 Fernando Torres - £50m (Liverpool to Chelsea)
Fernando Torres joined Liverpool from Atletico Madrid in the summer of 2007 and immediately became the darling of Anfield. In his first season, the Spaniard scored 33 times from 46 appearances and by January of 2011, he had scored 81 goals in 142 appearances. However, on the deadline day of the 2011 winter transfer window, Chelsea managed to secure the player’s signature for a then-British transfer record fee of £50 million.
The player had initially submitted a transfer request which was rejected by Liverpool. Chelsea tested the waters with an initial £35m offer, which was turned down by the Reds. However, Liverpool were finally convinced to part with their prized asset after Chelsea returned with an improved bid on the final day of the window. The Spaniard joined Carlo Ancelotti’s side which also contained Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka.
Sadly, Torres’ much-publicized move failed to live up to the expectations. The striker was a shadow of his former self and endured a prolonged loss of form during his much-troubled stay at Stamford Bridge. He managed 45 goals from 172 appearances in over four seasons and then spent the next two seasons on loan, first with AC Milan and then with Atletico Madrid before he permanently moved to the Spanish side. After two seasons with J1 League side Sagan Tosu, Torres retired last year.
#1 Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang - £56m (Borussia Dortmund to Arsenal)
The costliest deadline day deal in the history of the Premier League unfolded a couple of seasons ago in January 2018. The Gunners had broken the bank to get Alexandre Lacazette in the summer of 2017 but were prepared to go big once again six months later. The club had been tracking Borussia Dortmund's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and began their pursuit of the player during the winter transfer window.
Aubameyang had scored 141 goals from 213 appearances for the Black and Yellows and was considered one of the best strikers in Europe at that moment. After two failed offers, Dortmund finally agreed to a deal on the final day of the window. The Gunners paid the Bundesliga side £56 million for the services of Aubameyang, which was a club record at that time.
The Gabon international took to life in the Premier League like a fish to water and scored 10 times from 14 appearances in the second half of the 2017-18 season. Last season, he managed 31 goals from 51 appearances and even won the Premier League Golden Boot, scoring 22 times in 36 games in the league. This season too, Aubameyang has been in top form and remains one of Mikel Arteta’s most important players.
