Chelsea and Liverpool's transfer windows compared and why Alexander Isak is a gamble

Chelsea legend Pat Nevin reckons his former club had a better summer transfer window than Liverpool did, despite the Reds' record-shattering summer spending spree. Liverpool grabbed all the headlines by breaking the British transfer record on two separate occasions.

The Merseyside giants ultimately splashed out £446million - the biggest spend in Premier League history, eclipsing the £434m spent by Chelsea in the summer of 2023. High-profile acquisitions including Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz, and Hugo Ekitike underlined their extravagant strategy.

Chelsea's dealings were more modest in comparison, though hardly conservative, with the Blues still spending £284m on fresh talent. Whilst the genuine impact of each club's summer dealings will take time to assess, Liverpool certainly stole the spotlight.

Nevertheless, Nevin contends that Chelsea's more calculated recruitment approach - focusing on promising youngsters with strong resale value - represents the shrewder long-term strategy, one that might deliver better returns compared to Liverpool's high-stakes expenditure.

He additionally cautioned that should expensive acquisitions like Isak fail to perform, Liverpool will find themselves lumbered with an underwhelming, highly-paid player they'll find difficult to offload, especially at a profit.

"Isak is someone I can see Chelsea potentially going for, but if you're spending £125m, you're not making a profit if you sell in four years," Nevin told the Mirror, via Betway. "Isak would do the job for you, but Chelsea don't look at it that way.

"This is Chelsea's method. They won't buy players without a potential resale value. It's happened with plenty of clubs in the past where they've spent big on a player, and when it doesn't work out, there's no resale. Chelsea don't like that. That's not the model."

Nevin, who enjoyed a five-year stint at Stamford Bridge between 1983 and 1988, suggested that Liverpool might have overspent on their headline summer signings, especially compared to Chelsea's acquisitions in similar positions.

"The club have brought Joao Pedro in for half the price of Isak. Is Isak really twice the player that Joao Pedro is? I don't think so," said the former Scotland international. "He's a fabulous player, he's probably better than Joao Pedro at the moment, but if you're looking at smart money, then Chelsea have got the better deal.

"Chelsea would have recouped that Joao Pedro money from the sales they've made this summer and from the Club World Cup as well. The model looks alright to me. Don't get me wrong, Chelsea have spent a lot of money, but they've recouped that money as well.

"Chelsea are right amongst the top when it comes to spending over the past few years, but they would say they've been sensible. They're back in the Champions League, they've won the Club World Cup, so actually, you can see the model is working.

"Some of the players they've brought in are great value," said Nevin, who also had a stint at Everton. "Estevao might be the best value of the lot. He's only a kid, but he looks like a brilliant footballer. If he's this good now, you can only imagine how good he'll be if he keeps on improving.

"So, the way Chelsea look at it is, do we go for this talented 18-year-old or go out and sign Florian Wirtz for £100m+? You'll only know in three or four years who was right, but I think it's a close call from what I've seen."

Chelsea have shown their prowess in selling players in recent transfer windows. In the past few weeks, stars such as Noni Madueke, Nicolas Jackson, Joao Felix and Renato Veiga have all been sold - or in Jackson's case, loaned out - for significant fees, despite not making a major impact in west London.

Their readiness to sell for profit, coupled with a keen eye for bargains, has put Chelsea in a robust financial position, even as one of the world's biggest spenders. This summer alone, the Blues raked in a record £287m from player sales, resulting in a net spend of -£3m.

Liverpool, meanwhile, maintain a similarly strong position, albeit via a different strategy. Their patience in the transfer market - splashing the cash only when necessary - has reaped rich rewards. Players like Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk, Alisson, and Fabinho have lived up to their hefty price tags, becoming key members of the squad.

The reigning champions are banking on the likes of Isak, Wirtz, and Ekitike to replicate their previous successes. However, if these signings fail to perform, they risk being lumbered with £300m of wasted talent that they might struggle to shift.

The club has had its share of expensive missteps - with Darwin Nunez and Naby Keita, who were signed for a combined £140m, proving difficult to offload and temporarily straining the club's finances - and they'll be keen to avoid repeating such errors.

Chelsea, on the other hand, are - generally speaking - steering clear of such high-risk ventures. Instead, they're hedging their bets on less established, lower-profile talent to close the gap on the teams above them in the league - a stark contrast to their lavish spending under previous owner Roman Abramovich.

Of course, they have splashed out on certain players, with over £200m invested in Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo, for instance. Yet, for the fourth window in a row, no single signing has cost more than £55m - a figure Liverpool surpassed three times just this summer.

While Chelsea's strategy may not make the headlines like it once did, it reflects a long-term vision centred on sustainability and smart investment. If Nevin's analysis is accurate, the upcoming seasons could see the Blues reaping the benefits of patience and prudence.

Liverpool, however, have an impressive history of success when splashing the cash, and it's this calculated boldness that could ultimately keep them one or two steps ahead of Chelsea.