The January transfer window set several records in the Premier League, with Chelsea's eye-watering spending spree sending shock waves across the football world.
Todd Boehly's takeover last year resulted in major acquisitions ahead of the start of this season, including Raheem Sterling, Wesley Fofana and Kalidou Koulibaly, but it is the mid-season business that has really thrust the club under the spotlight.
Chelsea's spending has split the footballing world down the middle, with some concerned by the outlay and what it means for Financial Fair Play (FFP), while others praised the club's hierarchy for their determination and ambition.
Here, Stats Perform has broken down the Blues' activity, the controversies and FFP impact, as well as the vast differences to Europe's other top leagues.
Spending spree
Eight new faces arrived at Stamford Bridge in the mid-season window, seven of which were permanent signings, and all of whom were aged 23 or under.
Chelsea's business shows a focus on the future, having paid a premium price for talent and potential rather than established stars – the exception perhaps being Atletico Madrid loanee Joao Felix.
Capped 28 times by Portugal, Joao Felix was a statement addition until the end of the season with the hope he can provide the cutting edge Chelsea have lacked in the final third and push the club back into the hunt for Champions League football.
The other seven additions, however, fit a different mould. While they will likely be utilised by Graham Potter this season, they all represent a relatively unknown quantity, despite some impressive feats.
In the record-breaking deal to sign Enzo Fernandez from Benfica, Chelsea paid a fee higher than a British club ever has previously to bring in the Argentine, who was named young player of the tournament in his nation's World Cup-winning campaign.
Yet he does not even have a full year of European football under his belt, with the situation similar for Mykhaylo Mudryk – a player who caught the eye with his Champions League displays, but one who has not featured in a top domestic league.
In total, Chelsea reportedly spent more than £280million on Fernandez, Mudryk, Benoit Badiashile, Noni Madueke, Malo Gusto, Andrey Santos and David Datro Fofana.
Only two, Badiashile and Gusto, were signed from one of Europe's top-five European leagues, and Ligue 1 is widely considered to be the weakest financially compared to the Premier League, LaLiga, Serie A and Bundesliga.
While the figures spent have led to scrutiny, a bigger cause of controversy is the apparent exploitation of a loophole in FFP regulations by issuing long-term deals to spread the fees across several years of financial reports.
According to reports, the Chelsea hierarchy believe they are the first to exploit a football transfer market weakness in the valuation of younger players and with the length of contracts given to signings.
Chelsea controversy
Amortisation of the fees spent in the January window has allowed Chelsea to spread the costs of their spending spree for budgetary purposes across the next eight seasons and beyond, handing out contracts with lengths that have rarely, if ever, been seen before.
Mudryk penned an eight-and-a-half-year deal at Stamford Bridge, tying him down beyond 2030, with similar deals issued to the rest of their January additions.
In fact, the shortest contract issued by the Blues was the six-year deal for striker Fofana, running until 2029, and even that is longer than most of the rest of the Premier League teams have handed new signings last month.
To put how it works into context, the majority of Chelsea's spending spree in excess of £280m will be spread across eight years, resulting in an annual cost of just £35m.
Chelsea can easily offset that cost with player sales which, unlike transfer fees for purchased players, are booked immediately into the financial records in one lump sum – and Potter has a number within his squad who could be sold at the end of the campaign.
This approach, crucially, is not against FFP regulations but UEFA has reportedly identified the loophole and are shifting the goalposts in future by setting a five-year limit for FFP – although this would not change things hugely.
If Chelsea's £280m spree was spread across five years, it would equate to £56m a year. Again, that is a fee the Blues can offset with player sales, TV revenue and sponsorship deals.
On top of this, from 2023-24, the allowable loss limit in FFP will be doubled from €30m (£26.6m) to €60m (£53.2m), while clubs judged to be in good financial health will be granted a further €30m in allowable losses over a three-year period.
That means that Chelsea could be permitted to lose as much as €90m (£80m) over three years, triple the old limit.
European impact
The most eye-catching fact from the January window is that Chelsea spent more than the Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A and LaLiga combined – as well as spending more than the other 19 clubs in the Premier League.
Spending in England dwarfed that on the continent, with a reported outlay of over £800m from the Premier League compared to £110m in Ligue 1, £60m in the Bundesliga, £25m in Serie A and £25m in LaLiga.
While Chelsea's spending made up the majority of the Premier League figures, the divide between English football and the other top leagues in Europe is highlighted by spending elsewhere in the league.
Four of the bottom five clubs in the Premier League spent a reported total of £175m on new players, a figure that eclipses the total spending from any of Europe's other top five leagues.
European clubs, to put it simply, cannot compete. Brighton and Hove Albion staved off bids in excess of £70m for Moises Caicedo and it is difficult to imagine a similar situation had such a figure been offered to a side on the continent amid the current economic climate in football.
The biggest difference is that Premier League sides can afford to take risks and fail in the market, whereas those in Europe have no choice but to be more shrewd in their spending or suffer huge consequences – just take a look at Barcelona.
English clubs, meanwhile, can simply cut ties if things do not work out. Chelsea spent a reported £97.5m to sign Romelu Lukaku, only to loan him to Inter just a year later, while Timo Werner arrived from RB Leipzig in 2020 for a reported £45m and returned to the Bundesliga side last year for almost half that fee.
Chelsea are not alone in that regard. Arsenal's club-record signing Nicolas Pepe, signed for a reported £72m, is spending the season on loan at Nice, Tottenham's club-record signing Tanguy Ndombele is similarly outcast and Paul Pogba left Manchester United for nothing after the club paid a reported £89.5m to capture him from Juventus.
Two years ago, football rallied against the creation of a European Super League but the reality is it already exists – it's just known by a different name.
Atlanta United v Minnesota United: Five Stripes not concerned by winless run
Atlanta United are not concerned by their winless run in MLS, so says Caleb Wiley.
The Five Stripes have not won in four MLS games, ahead of a home meeting with Minnesota United on Saturday.
Wiley, however, believes Atlanta’s attacking play has been such that it is only a matter of time until results start turning.
“It will come,” said Wiley. “We are creating so many chances. I know it is frustrating, but the goals will come. We are not worried because we have the talent to do that [score goals].
“We know that it is still early in the season. We still have a lot more games to go. We have so much more to learn. That is what we are all excited about; that is what I am excited about for this team. We have so much more to do, and to show everybody.”
Looking ahead to this weekend’s fixture, Atlanta coach Gonzalo Pineda said: “We have watched all the games.
“We have prepared tactically for whatever lineup or structure they present. So, it is about our principles and how we play. How we can balance their backline, and how we can create enough chances for our attacking players to be near the goal line.”
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Atlanta United – Thiago Almada
Almada has 11 goals and 13 assists in regular-season home matches since the start of last season, one of two players (Luciano Acosta) with at least 10 goals and 10 assists in home matches in that time.
Minnesota United – Robin Lod
Lod has recorded an assist in four straight matches, equalling Darwin Quintero (2018—19) for the longest regular-season streak in Minnesota United’s history. He is the first Loons’ player to do so within a single season.
MATCH PREDICTION: ATLANTA UNITED WIN
Atlanta’s eight-match home unbeaten run in all competitions (W6 D2) ended with a 2-1 loss to FC Cincinnati on April 20. Atlanta have lost consecutive home matches in all competitions in nearly three years, since losing to New England and Columbus in July 2021.
The Five Stripes have won four of five all-time meetings with Minnesota (L1). The Loons’ lone victory was a 3—2 win at Atlanta in October 2017.
However, Minnesota are off to the best start in club history with 17 points from their first nine matches of the season. The Loons have won three of their four road matches (L1) after winning only three of their final 14 regular-season away matches in 2023 (D2 L9).
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Atlanta United – 47.7%
Minnesota United – 25.2%
Draw – 27.1%
D.C. United v Philadelphia Union: Gazdag eyes response after landmark goal overshadowed
Daniel Gazdag says the Philadelphia Union must "run through walls" against D.C. United on Saturday, after he saw a personal milestone overshadowed by back-to-back defeats for Jim Curtin's team.
Gazdag became Philadelphia's all-time leading scorer on Tuesday, netting his 57th goal for the club against the Seattle Sounders at Subaru Park.
However, that goal wasn't enough to prevent the Union from sliding to a 3-2 loss, just three days after they suffered their first MLS defeat of 2024 against Real Salt Lake.
While Gazdag was pleased to seal his place in franchise history, he was frustrated it didn't count for more and wants to make amends this weekend.
"It's obviously a nice number. I'm happy that I've become the all-time leading goalscorer for the club. That's amazing," Gazdag said.
"When I got here three years ago, I wouldn't have dreamed about it. I'm happy with that, I'll be happy in the future, for sure, but it's just annoying we played like that.
"After two games like this, we have to go out there and just run through walls to win the next game, it doesn't matter who we're up against."
Philadelphia sit seventh in the Eastern Conference with 13 points from nine games, an identical tally to that accumulated by D.C. through 10 matches.
Troy Lesesne's men beat Seattle 2-1 last Saturday to halt a three-match winless run, but he says they are yet to produce a complete performance since he took charge.
"With the ball, what we want to do is keep the tempo high," Lesesne said.
"We want to see out a complete performance, which is still something we're going after, and hopefully against Philadelphia we can have another go at that."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
D.C. United – Christian Benteke
Benteke scored both of D.C.'s goals against Seattle last week, moving to eight goals in MLS this season. Only Lionel Messi, with nine, has outscored the former Liverpool man.
The Belgian has also netted 12 of his team's last 21 MLS goals in a run dating back to late September (0.57 per cent).
Philadelphia Union – Julian Carranza
Carranza scored two hat-tricks against D.C. United in the 2022 season.
The Argentine, who has four goals in MLS this term, is looking to break new ground on Saturday – no player in MLS history has scored three hat-tricks against a single opponent before.
MATCH PREDICTION – PHILADELPHIA UNION WIN
The Union have won six of their last eight regular-season away matches against D.C. (one draw, one defeat), scoring 24 goals in those matches including nine in the last two.
They are favourites to preserve their strong record at Audi Field, having gone unbeaten through their first five road games of an MLS season (two wins, three draws) for the second time (also in 2021).
Since 2015, only the 2022 New York Red Bulls have opened a season with a six-game unbeaten run on the road. Philadelphia have what it takes to replicate that feat, with D.C. not winning consecutive matches within a single season since April 2023.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
D.C. United – 29.2%
Philadelphia Union – 42.4%
Draw – 28.4%
Saudi Pro League: Mahrez and Firmino on target as Al-Ahli tighten grip on third place
Riyad Mahrez and Roberto Firmino were both on target as Al-Ahli tightened their grip on third place in the Saudi Pro League table with a 4-1 win over Damac on Thursday.
Matthias Jaissle's team were four goals up within just 25 minutes as Damac folded, Ziyad Al Johani and Feras Al Brikan netting their first two before Franck Kessie was felled by Dhari Al Anazi for a penalty, converted by Mahrez.
Firmino then tapped home a fourth after being teed up by former Newcastle United winger Allan Saint-Maximin on the break, but Al-Ahli took their foot off the gas from there, Domagoj Antolic's second-half consolation rounding off the scoring.
Elsewhere, 10-man Al-Riyadh scored two stoppage-time draws to earn a dramatic 2-2 draw with Al-Fateh in Al-Mubarraz.
Goals from Djaniny and former Columbus Crew star Lucas Zelarayan put Slaven Bilic's hosts on the brink of victory, with Al-Riyadh playing almost half the game a player down after Khalid Al Shuwayyi's 54th-minute red card.
An astonishing collapse denied them, however, with Mohammed Al Shwirekh halving the arrears one minute into stoppage time before Didier Ndong headed in a left-wing cross three minutes later.
Thursday's other game saw Al-Hazm and Al-Akhdoud play out a goalless draw, keeping the hosts bottom of the table while Al-Akhdoud inched two points clear of the relegation zone.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
