Nick Seddon is back ahead of the new football season, ranking the top 5 Premier League signings of all-time. Read his write-up exclusively for kwiff.
Ranking the top 5 Premier League signings of all-time
No sport is able to encapsulate the drama of the football transfer market, where one deal can potentially make or break a side’s season.
There have been some corkers during the Premier League era, though considering there’s been an estimated 15,000 transfers since the top division began in 1992, picking out the top five is a thankless task. We’ve thrown caution to the wind and given it a go for you below.
Erling Haaland, Borussia Dortmund to Manchester City (£51m, June 2022)
Our opening entry is a fairly obvious one, seeing as ‘the robot’ took no time at all to prove his £51 million acquisition from Borussia Dortmund in 2022 was a fine move.
It’s rare to be able to say such a huge amount of money proved to be a bargain, but Haaland would be worth far more than that if he was sold now, especially after notching seven goals for Norway at the World Cup.
Having scored a brace on his Premier League bow, Haaland bagged a scarcely believable 15 goals in his first 10 league games, finishing the season with a tally of 36 goals from 35 matches. In hindsight, it’s astonishing that the Norwegian was freely available at around 4.00 to be top scorer at the start of the campaign, with plenty taking the view that a certain Darwin Núñez was a shrewder signing!
The records have continued to tumble from there, with Haaland becoming the fastest player to reach 50 goals by some margin (doing so in just 48 games, 17 matches quicker than next fastest Andy Cole), before hitting a century in just 111 appearances.
Still only 26 at the time of writing, the sky is the limit for the Norwegian in terms of how many EPL records he wants. It will all come down to whether he decides to pursue a move elsewhere.
Thierry Henry, Juventus to Arsenal (£11 million, August 1999)
Up next is a striker who is widely considered to be the best to have ever graced the division, meaning it’s impossible to leave Thierry Henry off this list.
When the Frenchman joined Arsenal for £11 million from Italian side Juventus in 1999, he wasn’t really considered to be a traditional striker, having played the majority of games for his previous side on the wing. Arsène Wenger saw his potential, however, paying an amount that would translate to more than £100 million in today’s money according to football finance expert Kieran Maguire.
It took a while for Henry to make an impact at Highbury, scoring just four times before Christmas, but he’d soon light up the division, hitting the net 17 times in his first campaign. A grand total of 175 goals in 258 league games would follow, alongside four Golden Boots and two league titles. Henry had supreme skill and athleticism, but it was his swagger that set him apart, cementing him as one of the best signings we’ve ever seen.
Roy Keane, Nottingham Forest to Manchester United (£3.75 million, July 1993)
Those of a younger generation will know Roy Keane for his blunt assessments as a television pundit, but he was a serious player in his time.
Back in 1993, the then 21-year-old was one of the hottest prospects in the league, having played a star role in a Nottingham Forest side that ultimately succumbed to relegation. Keane was pursued by plenty of suitors, and while he had shaken hands with Kenny Dalglish on a move to highly ambitious Blackburn Rovers, Sir Alex Ferguson jumped in at the 11th hour to seal a £3.75 million transfer to champions Manchester United, a British record at the time.
Signed as a replacement for Bryan Robson, it didn’t take Keane long to make the midfield his own, eventually being made club captain in 1997. Seven league titles were lifted in a 12-year spell, as Keane’s unique brand of aggression and discipline took United to new levels.
Keane had a will to win like no other and while he didn’t always project it in the right way – ask Patrick Vieira and Alfie Haaland – his world-class tactical awareness and ability on the ball marked him out as a Premier League great. Not worth the money? Do me a favour.
Frank Lampard, West Ham United to Chelsea (£11 million, June 2001)
After a 13-year spell at Stamford Bridge, you’d be forgiven for thinking that Frank Lampard was a product of Chelsea’s academy, but he was a marquee signing from West Ham at the turn of the century.
Chelsea were on the periphery of the elite at the time, but they had plenty of ambition that would ultimately be kicked into overdrive with the acquisition of the club by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich in 2003. The Blues were already well on their way to establishing themselves by then, with the purchase of Lampard being one of the main reasons why.
It’s difficult to summarise the impact Lampard had on the Premier League, but the move to Chelsea allowed him to flourish into one of the finest midfielders the division has ever seen. Lethal in front of goal, he notched 177 league goals in his career, which puts him seventh in the all-time standings and two in front of a certain Thierry Henry.
Lampard was the full package, also recording 102 league assists, and he’s one of just three players to have a century of EPL goals and assists alongside Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney. His output led to relentless success, with 11 major honours for the Blues including three league titles and a Champions League medal. The fee wasn’t cheap, but he was worth every penny.
N’Golo Kanté, Caen to Leicester City (£5.6 million, July 2015)
Judging the success of a transfer is subjective at the best of times, opening the door for a slightly left-field selection to finish this list.
Leicester City came into the 2015-16 season having just sealed Premier League survival by the skin of their teeth and the acquisition of N’Golo Kanté from mid-table French side Caen barely registered with fans and pundits alike, especially as the fee was very modest.
Kanté was quiet and unassuming, but he had quickly surged through the leagues in his native France and caught the eye of Leicester’s scouts as a leader in tackles and interceptions on the stats. He quickly proved to be a monster on the field for his new club, recording eye-watering figures, with 175 tackles (31 more than anyone else) and 156 interceptions across the season.
That output, alongside the attacking performances of Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez, propelled Leicester into an unexpected title challenge, which they would of course pull off as 5000-1 outsiders. Kanté played a monumental part in that success, as he showed when repeating the feat after moving to Chelsea the following season.
Notable mentions
Alan Shearer (Southampton to Blackburn – £3.6 million, 1992)
Eric Cantona (Leeds United to Manchester United – £1 million, 1992)
Dennis Bergkamp (Inter Milan to Arsenal – £7.5 million, 1995)
Alan Shearer (Blackburn to Newcastle – £15 million, 1996)
Patrick Vieira (AC Milan to Arsenal – £3.5 million, 1996)
Jay-Jay Okocha (Paris SG to Bolton – Free, 2002)
Rio Ferdinand (Leeds United to Manchester United – £30 million, 2002)
Claude Makelele (Real Madrid to Chelsea – £16 million, 2003)
Wayne Rooney (Everton to Manchester United – £26 million, 2004)
Didier Drogba (Marseille to Chelsea – £24 million, 2004)
Xabi Alonso (Real Sociedad to Liverpool £10.7 million, 2004)
Pascal Chimbonda (Bastia to Wigan – £500,000, 2005)
Ashley Cole (Arsenal to Chelsea – £5 million, 2006)
Vincent Kompany (Hamburg to Manchester City – £6 million, 2008)
Sergio Aguero (Atletico Madrid to Manchester City – £38 million, 2011)
Eden Hazard (Lille to Chelsea – £32 million, 2012)
Robin van Persie (Arsenal to Manchester United – £24 million, 2012)
Mohamed Salah (Roma to Liverpool – £34 million, 2017)
Virgil van Dijk (Southampton to Liverpool – £75 million – 2018)
By Nick Seddon
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