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With hefty price tags come lofty expectations, but in the Premier League, the priciest players often fail to secure the ultimate prize.
No top-tier club splashes out record-breaking sums just to settle for second or third place. However, in recent years, some of the most expensive transfers have not propelled their clubs to the pinnacle of English football.
Liverpool set a British-record transfer when they signed Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen last summer. Just weeks later, they broke their own record by bringing Alexander Isak over from Newcastle for a whopping $166.8 million.
The Swedish striker, considered one of the best in the world, now faces immense pressure to keep Liverpool at the top of the league. But recent history suggests that the costliest signings rarely deliver the title. In fact, if you look at the 10 most expensive transfers to an English team, only TWO players have a Premier League winner's medal - and even they didn't quite live up to expectations.
These two are Jack Grealish and Darwin Nunez. Grealish, the former Aston Villa star, has three titles under his belt, but few would argue that he has justified his $133.45 million fee since moving to Manchester City.
Nunez left Liverpool last summer, three years after his frustrating $113.4M switch from Benfica, which was more disappointing than successful.
Isak is striving to be more of a success than a disappointment. He joined a team that was a well-oiled machine last season, but has struggled in the early stages of this campaign.
Already, Arne Slot is trying to figure out how to get the best from the Swedish player, with much debate over how to utilise him and the plethora of quality players in Liverpool's heavily stocked attack.
Isak, and initially Wirtz, surpassed the British-record transfer fee previously held by Enzo Fernandez. The Argentine moved from Benfica to Chelsea just months after becoming a World Cup winner. In Qatar, he was named the best young player at the tournament, immediately attracting significant attention.
Fernandez made his move to Stamford Bridge in January 2023 for a then record £140M. So far, he only has a Europa Conference League and a Club World Cup to his name. His teammate Moises Caicedo joined only a few months later for $133.4M.
At the time, he signed a deal that had the potential to rise to £153.4M, which was a record fee. He has formed an impressive partnership with Fernandez in midfield, but the two men have yet to make Chelsea title contenders.
One man who has proved to be a massive success is Declan Rice. After impressing for years at West Ham, he moved to Arsenal with the Gunners investing $133.4M, potentially rising to £140M with add-ons. The England midfielder is now considered one of the best in the league in his position.
He's had some brilliant moments with the north London club, but the coveted title remains elusive. In his two-year stint with Arsenal, they've finished second twice, although they currently sit at the top of the league in this early stage of the season.
Rewind to 2021, when Roman Abramovich was still green-lighting major deals for Chelsea, a record-breaking $130M was splashed out to bring Romelu Lukaku back from Inter Milan. He was viewed as the forward who could propel Thomas Tuchel's team to championship glory.
His debut saw him find the back of the net and the initial signs were promising, but his form soon dipped, leading to public criticism from his manager. The Belgian later moved on to Napoli, where he clinched another Serie A title, but the English title remained out of his grasp.
Paul Pogba briefly held the title of the world's priciest player when he returned to Manchester United. He was Jose Mourinho's headline signing upon his arrival at Old Trafford in 2016. However, the Frenchman's relationship with the Red Devils was far from harmonious.
He secured two trophies in his inaugural season in Manchester, but then endured a five-year trophy drought before leaving on a free transfer. Antony's 2022 move from Ajax is considered one of the biggest flops in top-flight history, and certainly an expensive one.
It goes without saying that he and United never came close to securing the Premier League title.
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