Top 10 transfers of the summer so far

With yet another season fast approaching, clubs the world over are in a race against time to try and get deals over the line. We have already seen some massive moves made, with Cristiano Ronaldo heading to Juventus and Riyad Mahrez signing for Manchester City, among others.

Liverpool spent over £150 million on new signings while new Arsenal manager Unai Emery made a number of smart acquisitions, bringing in the likes of Bernd Leno, Sokratis and Lucas Torreira to name a few. There were a number of other clubs who spent wisely while others remained inactive in the market.

On that note, here is a look at the top 10 transfers of the window so far:

#10 Fred

Manchester United were a bit cautious dipping their toes into the market, with fans growing increasingly frustrated at Jose Mourinho's inactivity.

However, the Portuguese did manage to land midfield genius Fred from Shakhtar Donetsk for £52 million. The Brazilian penned a five-year deal with the club and while he may not get too many opportunities to impress in the initial few games, he is expected to play a major role in Mourinho's plans.

Mourinho recently explained what Fred's role could be in the side.

“People like Nemanja Matic, Marouane Fellaini, Paul Pogba, even Ander Herrera, are physical and strong midfielders,” Mourinho explained. “We think that players like Fred, and Andreas Pereira, are more technical, passing and playing in short spaces and maybe connecting with the attacking players.”

Lee Grant and Diogo Dalot are the only other arrivals at United and Mourinho needs to get the chequebook out if he is to build a squad that can compete with City and Chelsea this season.

#9 Naby Keita

Naby Keita was brought in from RB Leipzig for £54.00m and handed the No. 8 shirt which once belonged to club legend Steven Gerrard. That is not expected to faze the youngster who rose to prominence with stellar displays for his previous club, scoring 17 goals in 71 appearances.

"We got him because he is the player he is and now we want to work with that," Klopp stated while outlining the role of his new signing. "That means, first of all, we let him go and adapt to our system. I see him as an ‘8’, he can play ’10’ as well, maybe in the future, he can play ‘6’ as well."

With Keita, Fabinho, Salah, Mane, Firmino and Oxlade-Chamberlain all liming up in one side, it's safe to say Liverpool will definitely be contenders for the Premier League crown this season.

#8 Gianluigi Buffon

Bayern Muenchen v Paris St. Germain - AUDI Football Summit

Gianluigi Buffon's dream has always been to win the Champions League and while he could not manage that at Juventus, he could find himself lifting the trophy with his new team, Paris Saint Germain, at the end of the coming season.

The Italian joined PSG on a free transfer after over 15 years of stellar displays at Juventus where he won 9 Serie A titles and numerous other cup competitions, making over 600 appearances for the club.

"I know what dreams PSG and its fans have in their hearts," Buffon said.

"I am going to bring all my energy, all my experience and all of my thirst to win to help my new club achieve all the great objectives it has set out for the future."

#7 Radja Nainggolan

During Nainggolan's four year stint with Roma, he established himself as one of the best creative midfielders on the planet. He made a total of 204 appearances for Roma and was a part of the Serie A Team of the Season three years in a row.

Nainggolan completed a £34.20m switch to Inter at the beginning of the window, with Davide Santon and Nicolo Zaniolo heading the other way. The addition of Nainggolan means Inter have one of the best midfields in the league, with Matias Vecino, Marcelo Brozovic and Roberto Gagliardini all a part of the side as well.

Inter finished 23 points off table-toppers Juventus last season and will hope that the Belgian's presence can spark them to a title challenge this time around.

#6 Fabinho

Blackburn Rovers v Liverpool - Pre-Season Friendly

"Other clubs can go out and spend money and collect top players. I want to do it differently. I would even do it differently if I could spend that money," Jurgen Klopp announced confidently in 2016, before going ahead and splurging £163.98m on new players this season.

Fabinho was one of four high-profile arrivals at the Anfield club, along with Naby Keita, Alisson and Xherdan Shaqiri. Having arrived for a fee of £40.50m from Monaco on a four-year deal, Fabinho will slot into the centre of midfield alongside Naby Keita in what is set to be a new-look Reds midfield.

Fabinho spent five years in France with Monaco, helping them to the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2017, and has earned a reputation as a hard-tackling, in-your-face defensive midfielder, not one to shy away from a tackle or two; basically everything Liverpool need in the centre of the park.

#5 Jorginho

Chelsea pulled off a coup this window, securing the services of both Napoli manager Maurizio Sarri and influential midfielder Jorginho. The Brazilian was initially close to signing for Manchester City, but changed course at the 11th hour to link up with his former manager, completing a £57 million switch.

Jorginho is set to earn £102,000 per week at Stamford Bridge, a neat little increase from his Napoli days, and is expected to play a major role as Sarri looks to get Chelsea back on track after an extremely disappointing 2017/18 campaign.

#4 Alisson

Liverpool's goalkeeping woes were well documented and Jurgen Klopp moved quickly to address that issue, signing Roma shot-stopper Alisson Becker for a whopping £56.25m, making him the most expensive keeper in the process.

Alisson is expected to feature right from the get-go, especially after Loris Karius' howler in Liverpool's pre-season friendly against Borussia Dortmund. Karius has come under fire after a series of high profile blunders and while Klopp and his teammates have stood by him, it is unlikely he will get too many opportunities considering just how good Alisson is.

The Brazilian No.1 did not have a great World Cup, but his performances for Roma prior to that showed just why he is rated so highly. He is not the most intimidating from set-piece situations, but his shot-stopping ability and reading of the game are second to none and he could turn out to be the most important signing of the window.

#3 Riyad Mahrez

Manchester City Pre-Season Training and Press Conference

Several clubs were linked with Mahrez last summer, including Manchester City, but a deal broke down at the last moment and he had to stay put at Leicester. However, Pep Guardiola has finally gotten his man, for a club-record £61.02m. Mahrez signed a five-year contract with the Manchester outfit

“I am so pleased to have joined City, a side playing great football under Pep Guardiola,” Mahrez said on the day of his unveiling.

"Watching them from afar has been a pleasure. Pep is committed to playing attacking football, which is perfect for me, and City’s performances last season were outstanding. They’re redefining the English game and I wanted to be a part of it."

The Algerian winger is expected to feature heavily in City's campaign as they look to retain the title. It will be a mouthwatering prospect to watch the likes of De Bruyne, Silva, Sane and Mahrez link up in the coming season.

#2 Thomas Lemar

Paris Saint Germain v AS Monaco - Ligue 1

A move that was overshadowed by many of the other big-money deals this window, Thomas Lemar was poached by Atletico Madrid for a fee in the region of £63.00m. The winger was initially a target of Premier League sides Arsenal and Liverpool, but ultimately decided Spain was the place to go.

Lemar did not feature heavily for France in the World Cup and had a disappointing last season with Monaco, but the 22-year-old remains one of the brightest prospects in world football and will add bundles of pace and creativity to this Atletico squad as they look to dethrone Barcelona from the summit of La Liga.

#1 Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo shocked the world when he announced that he wanted to leave Real Madrid minutes after winning the Champions League. Juventus acted quickly and secured his services for £105.30m. The Portuguese star's arrival also sent Juventus' stock price soaring, hitting new heights within minutes of the announcement.

Ronaldo is still well and truly at his peak and will add massive firepower to an already loaded Juventus side. He has already conquered the Premier League and La Liga and the Serie A is now ready to be graced by his presence. He is expected to make his debut for the Old Lady in their pre-season friendly against the B team on 12 August.