Chelsea completed an extraordinary spending spree by landing World Cup star Enzo Fernandez from Benfica, the biggest deal of transfer deadline day.
It was Premier League clubs that featured front and centre as big-name players found new homes on Tuesday, with Manchester United, Arsenal and Manchester City kept busy.
Deals struck on this day can be born of desperation; however, if the right player becomes available, those that jump at the opportunity to reinforce might be thankful they took that choice come May.
Here Stats Perform assesses five deals that went through and could prove hugely significant come the season's end.
Enzo Fernandez: Benfica to Chelsea, £106.8million
A World Cup wonder for Argentina, Fernandez's stock soared over four weeks in Qatar, to the point he became linked to the wealthiest clubs in Europe.
It was Chelsea owner Todd Boehly who lasted the distance in the race for his signature, adding Fernandez to the previous window deals for Mykhaylo Mudryk, Benoit Badiashile, Andrey Santos, David Datro Fofana, Joao Felix, Noni Madueke and Malo Gusto.
Fernandez has only played half a season in Europe after moving to Benfica from River Plate, so there is an element of risk in Chelsea's investment, regardless of his national team performances alongside Lionel Messi and co.
He has played five Champions League group games, and the 22-year-old has looked the part, with his arrival handing Graham Potter another expensive plaything. This means there can be no excuses now for the head coach as he looks to turn the Blues into a winning machine.
Marcel Sabitzer: Bayern Munich to Manchester United (loan)
Bayern Munich decided they could afford to part company with Sabitzer, with the former RB Leipzig midfielder jetting out to secure a move to Manchester United, swapping one European giant for another.
It was reported Erik ten Hag fancied Ryan Gravenberch, his former Ajax player, but Bayern were said to have resisted that interest and instead allowed United to take Austria international Sabitzer.
He emerged as a surprising spare part for Bayern coach Julian Nagelsmann, with Sabitzer having featured in 23 games for the Bundesliga leaders this season, albeit starting only 11 times.
Ten Hag will certainly like the fact Sabitzer has a duel success rate of 58.77 per cent – the highest of his career – this season.
He is not a like-for-like replacement for the injured Christian Eriksen, but Sabitzer brings his own qualities, will want to prove a point, and should not let United down over the coming four months.
Jorginho: Chelsea to Arsenal, £12million
Arsenal wanted Moises Caicedo and were prepared to pay a king's ransom for the Brighton and Hove Albion midfielder. They settled for Jorginho, a Euro 2020 champion with Italy and Champions League winner with Chelsea, paying a small fraction of the fee they would have had to spend on Caicedo.
A deal worth around £12million looks sensible business, and Jorginho makes the jump from 10th-placed Chelsea to the table-topping Gunners, seeking the first domestic league title of his career.
He played 25 games this season for the Blues, scoring three penalties but not managing any goals other than those spot-kicks, nor any assists.
Some Arsenal fans have grumbled over the signing, but Jorginho brings defensive qualities and experience of winning, which for Arsenal in recent years has been in short supply.
Joao Cancelo: Manchester City to Bayern Munich (loan with option to buy)
Bayern brought in goalkeeper Yann Sommer earlier in the window after Manuel Neuer suffered a season-ending broken leg. That was a deal that many saw coming, but the move for Cancelo came out of the sky blue, reportedly after a disagreement with Pep Guardiola saw City happy to offload the full-back.
It went through on Tuesday, opening up the possibility of Cancelo being a Premier League and Bundesliga winner in the same season.
He looks set to feature at right-back for Bayern, with Alphonso Davies featuring on the left. It means Bayern will have a pair of attacking full-backs that will put the fear up opponents.
With Bayern in a slump, drawing their past three Bundesliga games, it felt important for there to be a new face coming in. Cancelo, until very recently a favourite of Guardiola, is used to winning things with City so should fit in well at Sabener Strasse.
Pedro Porro: Sporting CP to Tottenham (loan with obligation to buy)
Three and a half years since he joined Manchester City, Porro should finally make his debut in English football after being recruited to fill the right-back role for Antonio Conte at Spurs.
This has the makings of a masterstroke signing, with Spain international Porro having caught Spurs' eye in the Champions League group stage earlier this season. He previously played for Real Valladolid while farmed out on loan from City, for whom he never played a competitive senior game.
He represents an upgrade on Matt Doherty, who was released to join Atletico Madrid, and may have the edge on Emerson Royal, with Conte bringing in a player with serious defensive and attacking qualities.
Among defenders with 10 or more appearances and at least 10 tackles, Porro's 78.95 per cent tackle success rate ranks as the sixth-best in the Portuguese Primeira Liga this season.
Meanwhile, only one defender, Benfica's Alejandro Grimaldo, has created more chances than Porro's 34 from 14 games, which have brought him six assists.
Porro ranks second among defenders in the Portuguese top flight for the most crosses played too, with 108 to Grimaldo's 116. Significantly, though, Porro has played 526 minutes fewer than Grimaldo, illustrating how effective the Spurs new boy has been when on the pitch.
Guardiola has 'no words' for hat-trick hero Haaland
Pep Guardiola was lost for words to describe Erling Haaland after his eighth Premier League hat-trick fired Manchester City to a 3-1 victory over West Ham.
Having scored a treble to help City claim a 4-1 win over Ipswich Town on matchday two, Haaland did likewise on Saturday to keep them perfect as they edged out the Hammers at the London Stadium.
Haaland's seven goals this season are the most any player has ever netted in the first three matches of a Premier League campaign, while only Sergio Aguero (12), Alan Shearer (11) and Robbie Fowler (nine) have ever helped themselves to more match balls in the competition.
Across English football's top four tiers, he is also the first player to score two hat-tricks in a team's first three games of a league season since Bradford City's Paul Jewell in 1994-95.
The Norwegian has now scored more than once in 26% of his Premier League matches (18/69, eight hat-tricks, 10 braces), leaving Guardiola in disbelief.
"There are no words for him," Guardiola told BBC Sport.
"All we can do is make him play better and better and give him as many balls as possible into the box. It's what we have to do. We are there and we added quality.
"This is a team. When you have to run backward, no one asks who has to do it. Everyone has to. When we see Erling doing that, it is fantastic."
Haaland himself, meanwhile, believes having an extended pre-season due to Norway missing out on Euro 2024 has helped him start the season in peak condition.
"I feel good. I feel energised. I had a long vacation and a long pre-season. I'm feeling good," Haaland told City's website.
"The years here have gone quick and it's been going like, 'bam bam bam', now I have a little bit of rest in my body and my feet. I feel really good now and I'm ready for more.
"I feel more refreshed and more energised. So when you do that you can practice on things you want to become better at in training. I feel good. I want to become better. I'm happy."
City sit top of the early-season table with nine points from nine available and saw last season's runners-up Arsenal slip up on Saturday, drawing 1-1 with Brighton and Hove Albion.
Haaland, though, feels it is too early to think about the title race, adding: "They [City's rivals] haven't slipped up yet. Three games, nine points. This is a great start.
"But let's not think too far ahead, because there’s potentially 70 games left this season. Let's breathe a bit and take it game by game."
Lopetegui rues missed opportunity as West Ham lose to Man City
West Ham manager Julen Lopetegui was not encouraged by the performance of his team despite losing 3-1 at home to Manchester City in their third league game.
“It is true that City is one of the best teams around the world for sure… but it is also true too that in the second half we have been very close to a draw,” he said speaking to BBC Match of the Day.
“I think we have played one very good second half. The start has been very good for us too.”
West Ham threatened for extended periods of the match and had chances to level the match at 2-1 down, with the best coming from Mohammed Kudus as he smashed a shot against the bar in the second half.
They also started the game brightly before going a goal down inside 10 minutes.
“In my mind we started very well, being aggressive,” said Lopetegui.
“We know in this plan normally they have initiative, it’s very difficult to not concede initiative then. That’s why you have to do a lot of very good things to overcome them.
“In the second half we had chances, I think we kept the ball much more, much more, and didn't concede a lot of chances."
But the hosts were ultimately undone by the brilliant finishing of Erling Haaland, who scored his second hat-trick in as many matches.
“He is one of the best players in the world, that's why he plays for Manchester City,” he said.
“You have to compete with these kind of players. City has the power and the quality to create chances.”
But ultimately, he was left frustrated at the sense of a missed opportunity and that his team were unable to earn themselves a draw that hadn’t seemed implausible during the match.
“Today I think the first goal was a pity for us but I’ve said it. I was happy with the performance think we were able to draw but again they damage us,” he said.
“Against this kind of team, if you make a mistake they don’t forgive. This is the difference they have… A little mistake they punish you, they punish us.
“We have to improve, to know to compete against this kind of team to be close to perfection.
“Don't make mistakes, be calm, defend well… we have quality players too.”
Bayer Leverkusen 2-3 Leipzig: Visitors fightback halts unbeaten streak for Alonso's side
Bayer Leverkusen suffered their first defeat in 36 Bundesliga matches, as Leipzig came from behind to stun Xabi Alonso's side 3-2 at BayArena.
Lois Openda struck twice for Marco Rose's, who recovered from 2-0 down to make it two wins from two and move to the summit of the table.
It looked like business as usual for the reigning Bundesliga champions when they scored twice in the last seven minutes of the first half through Jeremie Frimpong and Alejandro Grimaldo.
However, Leipzig replied deep into first-half stoppage time with Kevin Kampl reducing the deficit.
Openda then brought the visitors level in the 57th minute, before a stunning long-range strike completed the turnaround 10 minutes from time, condemning Leverkusen to their first league defeat in 15 months.
Data Debrief: Leverkusen's long streak comes to a shuddering halt
Leipzig became the first side to beat Leverkusen in a Bundesliga match since Bochum achieved the feat a staggering 462 days earlier.
The visitors have begun a Bundesliga season with two wins from two for only the second time, also doing so in 2019-20.
They are also now unbeaten in 13 league matches, their longest such streak since Rose took charge.
As for Leverkusen, their invincible streak is officially history, as is their 29-game unbeaten run on home soil.
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