It's not the Premier League table Manchester United sit at the summit of
Liverpool's Dutch manager Arne Slot (L) and Manchester United's Portuguese head coach Ruben Amorim (R) look on
Arne Slot and Ruben Amorim splashed the cash last summer(Image: DARREN STAPLES/AFP via Getty Images)
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Liverpool's £450million transfer outlay last summer has done little to interrupt Manchester United's top position when it comes to net spend for the past five years. Net spend - which is defined as "transfer fees spent on acquiring players minus transfer fees received on moving players out" - is a term that is routinely bandied about in football.
The Red Devils are regular big spenders in the transfer window and routinely rank among the biggest recruiters in world football. However, their sizeable expenditure is rarely matched by profit earned from outgoings - quite the contrast from the current Premier League champions.
It's closing in on 13 years since United last captured the Premier League crown but a five-year span beginning in the summer of 2021 has Ruben Amorim's side as the undisputed leader of the net spend table.
Their total net spend has come to £-684.61million, which is just -£10m less than second-place Arsenal who've accrued a figure of £-675.77m. It's Chelsea up next with the Blues' net spend total coming in at £-662.04m, as despite spending over £1bn since Todd Boehly's arrival, they've earned huge transfer fees from outgoings in recent years
Tottenham Hotspur are the next club up with their net spend total in the last five years totalling £-569.24m despite their last top four finish coming in the 2021/22 season. That was coincidentally their lowest net spend total across the five-year span.
Rounding out the top five is Newcastle United with a total of £-430.61m - a figure that was certainly bolstered last summer by the British record £125m sale of Alexander Isak to Liverpool. The Reds' position of sixth on this list with a £-426.77m net spend certainly calls to their cleverness when it comes to arrivals and outgoings.
New Manchester United signings Bryan Mbeumo, Benjamin Sesko and Matheus Cunha presented at Old Trafford
Ruben Amorim transformed his Man United attack with Bryan Mbeumo, Benjamin Sesko and Matheus Cunha
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In their maiden Premier League title win in the 2019/20 season, Liverpool actually boasted a positive net spend of £29.14m that campaign, given Takumi Minamino's £7.25m signing in January was their biggest across the summer and winter windows.
Their figure of £-228.6m this past summer tells a different story in what was their biggest transfer window ever, and by some distance. The club broke their record transfer twice, first with the £100m acquisition of Florian Wirtz and again a month later by signing Isak.
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Alexander Isak of Liverpool FC and Florian Wirtz of Liverpool FC look dejected during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD3 match between Eintracht Frankfurt and Liverpool FC
Liverpool broke their club-record transfer twice last summer on Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak
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In the case of United's £-154.34m figure last summer - their second-highest total for five years - a majority of their transfer dealings were built around transforming their forward line. Almost £200m was spent on acquiring Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko.
25/26: £-154.34m24/25: £-112.89m (15th)23/24: £-128.48m (8th)22/23: £-191.94m (3rd)21/22: £-96.97m (6th)
25/26: £-246.26m24/25: £-20.81m (2nd)23/24: £-144.26m (2nd)22/23: £-141.39m (2nd)21/22: £-118.26m (5th)
25/26: £-89.94m24/25: £-17.73m (5th)23/24: £-85.79m (7th)22/23: £-141.69m (4th)21/22: £-108.17m (11th)
25/26: £-97.28m24/25: £-15.58m (7th)23/24: £-42.28m (17th)22/23: £-167.48m (16th)21/22: £-5.07m (4th in Championship)
25/26: £-24.32m24/25: £-18.86m (11th)23/24: £-16.55m (13th)22/23: £-42.03m (10th)21/22: £-13.1m (1st in Championship)
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