Whereas Big Four spending fell from £138m last summer to £101m in this summer's window, non-Big Four clubs - particularly Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa - drove their spending up, from £293m to £367. The net result was that Premier League spending as a whole rose by over £37m to £468m in reported transfer fees during the summer window, according to KPMG.
Geoff Mesher, Head of KPMG Forensic's Sports Disputes Team, commented: "The dynamics of the Premiership are changing. We are seeing a new situation where it is not just one heavily cash-backed club that will pay top prices but a number of clubs competing for the very best. While the Big Four have been selective this transfer window, other clubs have really pushed the envelope in order to try to close the gap. There is no sign of the credit crunch here. It is difficult to predict where this will lead but a further smashing of the transfer record in January would not be a surprise. Such price inflation would bring enhanced risks due to the vulnerable nature of such playing staff assets."
Key insights provided by the KPMG Football Transfer Barometer for the Summer 2008 transfer window include:
English based clubs spent over £500 million in reported transfer fees during the Summer 2008 transfer window. Over 47% of Premiership transfer spending (£221.9 million) went to non-English based sides.
The spending power of the clubs involved in the Champion's League is highlighted by the average transfer fee paid by a Big Four Premiership side of £10.1m which compares to an average transfer fee paid by a non Big Four Premiership side of £4.8m (i.e. on average Big Four sides spend £5.3m more per transfer than other Premiership sides). However, the gap in spending power has reduced as in the Summer 2007 transfer window the Big Four sides were outspending other Premiership teams by an average of £6.8m per transfer.
On average Premiership clubs pay a premium price for Forwards over all other positions. The average fee for a Premiership Forward was £10.0m which compares to average fees of £2.4m for Goalkeepers, £4.5m for Defenders and £4.4m for Midfielders.
Players in the 25-28 year old age group command the highest average transfer fees when purchased by Premiership clubs. A player in the 25-28 year old age group will be bought for an average fee of £6.8m which compares to an average fee of £3.4m that will be paid for players in the 29-31 year old age category.
