Liverpool have broken a club record for the highest amount of total transfer fees they’ve paid in a single summer transfer window, on the back of becoming Premier League champions.
Back in February, TEAMtalk’s Fraser Fletcher reported that Liverpool were planning for what could potentially be their biggest transfer window ever.
Before the end of June, that forecast has already come true. Liverpool are meaning serious business to build on the squad that Arne Slot led to the 2024-25 Premier League title.
The addition of Milos Kerkez from Bournemouth for £40m has tipped them over the scales to record their biggest ever gross spend in a transfer window.
Here, TEAMtalk breaks down the top 10 transfer windows in which Liverpool have spent the most money on signings.
10. Summer 2016: £65.9m
Players signed: Sadio Mane (£34m), Georginio Wijnaldum (£23m), Loris Karius (£4.7m), Ragnar Klavan (£4.2m), Joel Matip (Free), Alex Manninger (Free)
After making Marko Grujic the first signing of the Jurgen Klopp era in January 2016, Liverpool added six players to his squad ahead of his first full season in charge.
First through the door was Joel Matip after his contract with Schalke expired. The defender went on to earn Klopp’s trust over an eight-year stay before retiring.
Loris Karius soon followed as a new goalkeeper bought from Mainz, but he struggled to meet expectations and only lasted two years as their No.1. Fellow goalkeeper Alex Manninger, signed on a free from Augsburg, never played for Liverpool before retiring.
Defender Ragnar Klavan also joined from Augsburg and earned a decent amount of appreciation for his service as a stand-in defender over two years.
But it was Liverpool’s two most expensive signings of 2016 who also proved to be the best buys. Sadio Mane joined from Southampton for an initial £34m fee, just £1m short of the club’s record signing at the time, and Georginio Wijnaldum joined from Newcastle for £23m.
Both became regular starters – on the wing and in midfield respectively – in the Liverpool sides that went on to eventually conquer the Champions League in 2018-19 and Premier League in 2019-20.
Liverpool funded their summer rebuild for Klopp by cashing in on players like Christian Benteke, Jordon Ibe and Joe Allen.
9. Summer 2015: £67.3m
Players signed: Christian Benteke (£32.5m), Roberto Firmino (£21.3m), Nathaniel Clyne (£10m), Joe Gomez (£3.5m), Danny Ings (Tribunal), James Milner (Free), Adam Bogdan (Free)
Liverpool’s last summer transfer window before the sacking of Brendan Rodgers that October included the purchase of Christian Benteke from Aston Villa for what was at the time their second biggest transfer fee.
But it was the signing of another forward – Roberto Firmino from Hoffenheim – that stood the test of time.
Benteke only lasted a season at Liverpool before being sold to Crystal Palace, whereas Firmino flourished after Rodgers was replaced by Klopp and enjoyed eight seasons in the Premier League.
Joe Gomez, bought as a teenager from Charlton Athletic, and James Milner, picked up at the age of 29 after being released by Manchester City, were two other players who went on to stay at Liverpool long-term.
Nathaniel Clyne suffered from some injury issues but made more than 100 appearances for the club, while Danny Ings’ luck with fitness after joining for a compensation fee – later to be settled at £6.5m – from Burnley was even worse and he only played 25 times.
Finally, Adam Bogdan was merely a backup goalkeeper who played six times for Liverpool in the 2015-16 season but never again.
Liverpool balanced the books in 2015 with the sale of Raheem Sterling to Manchester City, among other exits.
8. Summer 2020: £73.75m
Players signed: Diogo Jota (£41m), Thiago Alcantara (£20m), Kostas Tsimikas (£11.75m), Marcelo Pitaluga (£1m)
Following on from their Premier League title win, Liverpool made three first-team additions to their squad and one investment for the future.
Liverpool’s lengthiest pursuit was of Thiago Alcantara, who they ultimately succeeded in signing from Bayern Munich to add a new element to their midfield – when he wasn’t injured.
A day after the Thiago deal was finalised, Liverpool bought Diogo Jota from fellow Premier League side Wolves. The Portugal forward went on to earn a reputation as one of the best finishers in the Liverpool squad.
Prior to that, the first signing Liverpool made as Premier League champions was to get Kostas Tsimikas from Olympiacos as a new backup left-back.
Marcelo Pitaluga was added in October from Fluminense to bolster the goalkeeping depth department but never made a senior appearance for the club.
Liverpool’s net spend over the summer was positive, although they still managed to raise funds from the likes of Rhian Brewster and Dejan Lovren leaving.
7. Summer 2022: £73.8m
Players signed: Darwin Nunez (£64m), Fabio Carvalho (£5m), Calvin Ramsay (£4.2m), Ben Doak (£0.6m)
Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez
The majority of Liverpool’s spending in the summer of 2022 – partially funded by sales of Sadio Mane, Takumi Minamino, Neco Williams and Ben Davies – went towards the signing of Darwin Nunez from Benfica to become their new striker.
With an initial fee of £64m, which could rise to £85m with add-ons, there were high hopes for Nunez at Anfield, but his first three seasons at Anfield have yielded mixed fortunes.
Nevertheless, he has more Liverpool highlights than Fabio Carvalho, signed from Fulham and then sold to Brentford two years later after loan spells with RB Leipzig and Hull City, and Calvin Ramsay, who is still yet to make his Premier League debut and has had four loan spells away.
Doak was a signing for the academy at first after joining from Celtic. He gained some crucial experience on loan at Middlesbrough in 2024-25 after his first 10 Liverpool appearances.
6. January 2018: £75m
Players signed: Virgil van Dijk (£75m)
Just the one signing accounted for Liverpool’s high spend in the January 2018 transfer window, but what a signing it was.
After withdrawing their interest in a £50m deal for Virgil van Dijk in the summer of 2017 after Southampton threatened to report them to the Premier League for an alleged illegal approach, Liverpool ultimately struck an agreement to sign the Dutch defender at the next opportunity.
The £75m fee represented a world record for a defender, although not all pundits thought Van Dijk was worth it at the time.
Liverpool sold Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona a week or so later for an even higher sum anyway, ensuring they raised more money than they spent that winter.
Fast forward seven years and Van Dijk is Liverpool’s captain, going down as one of the best defenders not just in their history but also the entire Premier League’s.
5. Summer 2017: £79.9m
Players signed: Mohamed Salah (£36.9m), Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (£35m), Andy Robertson (£8m), Dominic Solanke (Tribunal)
Liverpool broke their transfer record to bring Mohamed Salah back to the Premier League in 2017, after the former Chelsea flop got his career back on track in Serie A with Roma.
While the fee raised some eyebrows at the time and was followed up by some add-ons, it now looks like a bargain for a player who has gone on to score 245 goals for the club from 401 games.
Mohamed Salah, 2017/18 44 goals 15 assists, 2018/19 27 goals 10 assists, 2019/20 23 goals 13 assists, 2020/21 31 goals 6 assists, 2021/22 31 goals 15 assists, 2022/23 30 goals 16 assists, 2023/24 25 goals 14 assists, 2024/25 34 goals 23 assists
Salah’s stats over the seasons for Liverpool
The £8m addition of Andy Robertson from relegated Hull City was also exceptional business. The Scotland international went on to become the go-to man at left-back for years to come until an expected phasing out or departure after Kerkez’s arrival in 2025.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain made a decent impression in his first season after joining from Arsenal, but was riddled with injury issues afterwards, while Dominic Solanke joined for a compensation fee from Chelsea and only lasted a year at Anfield before embarking on a more successful spell with Bournemouth and later earning a move to Tottenham.
Meanwhile, Liverpool sold Mamadou Sakho, Lucas Leiva, Kevin Stewart and Andre Wisdom.
4. Summer 2014: £117m
Players signed: Adam Lallana (£25m), Dejan Lovren (£20m), Lazar Markovic (£20m), Mario Balotelli (£16m), Alberto Moreno (£12m), Emre Can (£10m), Divock Origi (£10m), Rickie Lambert (£4m)
After the close-but-no-cigar title charge of the 2013-14 season under Brendan Rodgers, Liverpool underwent what was at the time their most lavish transfer window.
The lucrative sale of Luis Suarez to Barcelona armed them with money to burn and they didn’t pass the opportunity by to reinvest.
Nine players arrived at Anfield (also including Javier Manquillo on loan from Atletico Madrid), although Divock Origi remained at Lille on loan for the 2014-15 season before becoming something of a cult hero further down the line.
Three of Liverpool’s other signings came from the same club, as Southampton were plundered for Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren and Rickie Lambert.
The biggest success stories from Liverpool’s spending spree were Lallana, Origi and ex-Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Emre Can, while Lovren had his moments too.
Alberto Moreno, signed from Sevilla, wasn’t the worst left-back Liverpool have ever had but wasn’t the one they needed, while the less said about the costly purchases of Lazar Markovic from Benfica and Mario Balotelli from AC Milan, the better.
Confirmed: #LFC have today completed the signing of Italy international Mario Balotelli from AC Milan #MarioLFC pic.twitter.com/iSrVb0P3Mw
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) August 25, 2014
3. Summer 2023: £154.4m
Players signed: Dominik Szoboszlai (£60m), Alexis Mac Allister (£35m), Ryan Gravenberch (£34.2m), Wataru Endo (£16.2m)
Jurgen Klopp’s final summer as Liverpool’s manager – not that it was known at the time – saw a mass changing of the guard in midfield.
In fact, every single penny of the £154.4m they spent on new signings went towards midfielders.
Out went Jordan Henderson and Fabinho to put £52m in the transfer kitty, along with the released Keita, James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, and in came Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch and Wataru Endo.
Szoboszlai was the most expensive addition, but Mac Allister was the best value for money, dealing well with the step up from Brighton.
Gravenberch had a quiet first season but was much improved under Arne Slot in his second, while Endo has been an experienced backup option on the whole.
2. Summer 2018: £161.25m
Players signed: Alisson Becker (£56m), Naby Keita (£52.75m), Fabinho (£39m), Xherdan Shaqiri (£13.5m)
After finishing as runners up in the 2018 Champions League final and still with some of the Coutinho money lying around, Liverpool weren’t shy to strengthen their squad.
First and foremost, a goalkeeping upgrade was essential, which prompted Liverpool to make Alisson Becker the most expensive goalkeeper of all time (for a few weeks, until Chelsea spent an even bigger fee on Kepa Arrizabalaga) with an initial £56m deal to buy him from Roma.
Liverpool also won the race for Monaco midfielder Fabinho, adding some crucial steel to their engine room, and picked up Xherdan Shaqiri after Stoke City’s relegation from the Premier League made him available.
The purchase of Keita, meanwhile, had been agreed the year before with RB Leipzig, although injuries would overshadow his Liverpool career.
Liverpool’s investment – especially in Alisson and Fabinho – paid off, as they went one better and won the 2019 Champions League final.
1. Summer 2025: £196m
Players signed: Florian Wirtz (£100m), Milos Kerkez (£40m), Jeremie Frimpong (£29.5m), Giorgi Mamardashvili (£25m), Armin Pecsi (£1.5m)
Exerting their power over the rest of the Premier League after winning the title in Slot’s first season at the helm, Liverpool have hit record heights with their summer 2025 spending.
Florian Wirtz has become their new record signing by completing a move from Bayer Leverkusen worth an initial £100m, which could rise to £116m.
He followed his teammate Jeremie Frimpong – signed as a replacement for Trent Alexander-Arnold, whose anticipated move to Real Madrid ahead of the Club World Cup put £8.4m in Liverpool’s coffers – in making the move from Leverkusen to Liverpool.
And on the other side of defence, Liverpool have reinforced with the signing of Kerkez from Bournemouth in a £40m deal.
Liverpool’s least high-profile signing is of Armin Pecsi, a promising Hungarian goalkeeper, while it shouldn’t be forgotten that they are welcoming £25m man Giorgi Mamardashvili in the same position a year after agreeing the deal with Valencia, in a piece of business believed to be going on this summer’s books.
But it would even be true that this summer is Liverpool’s highest-spending in terms of gross transfer fees had the Mamardashvili deal counted on last year’s records.
There could yet be more spending to come from Liverpool, who will surpass the £200m barrier if they buy someone like Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi or Eintracht Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike, so watch this space.
GO FURTHER – Every completed Liverpool transfer this summer