Enzo Fernandez's Transfer to Manchester City: Ranking Among Premier League's Biggest Deals
Manchester City secured the signing of Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez just before the September 1 transfer deadline. The Argentine international was a key target for Enzo Maresca, who is leading a major overhaul at City during his first season as manager.
The transfer fee hit £125 million ($169 million), making Fernandez the first player ever to be transferred twice for over £100 million. His previous record-breaking move was from Benfica to Chelsea earlier in 2023.
Premier League’s Most Expensive Transfers
This £125 million deal places Fernandez as the joint-most costly player in British football history, sharing the top spot with Alexander Isak's 2025 transfer from Newcastle United to Liverpool.
Liverpool's recent acquisition of Bradley Barcola from PSG in August 2026 could reach £123 million if all performance-related add-ons are met. Meanwhile, Morgan Rogers' summer transfer from Aston Villa to Chelsea made him the most expensive English player ever, shortly after teammate Elliot Anderson’s move from Nottingham Forest to Manchester City.
Top 10 Premier League Transfers by Fee
- Rank 1: Alexander Isak, Newcastle to Liverpool, £125m, September 2025
- Rank 1 (tie): Enzo Fernandez, Chelsea to Manchester City, £125m, September 2026
- Rank 3: Bradley Barcola, PSG to Liverpool, £123m, August 2026
- Rank 4: Morgan Rogers, Aston Villa to Chelsea, £117m, July 2026
- Rank 5: Elliot Anderson, Nottingham Forest to Manchester City, £116m, July 2026
- Rank 5 (tie): Florian Wirtz, Bayer Leverkusen to Liverpool, £116m, June 2025
- Rank 7: Moises Caicedo, Brighton to Chelsea, £115m, August 2023
- Rank 8: Enzo Fernandez, Benfica to Chelsea, £106.8m, January 2023
- Rank 9: Declan Rice, West Ham to Arsenal, £105m, July 2023
- Rank 10: Jack Grealish, Aston Villa to Manchester City, £100m, August 2022
- Rank 10 (tie): Sandro Tonali, Newcastle to Tottenham, £100m, July 2026
Elliot Anderson’s £116 million transfer matched the value of Florian Wirtz’s 2025 move to Liverpool, which had set a British record until Isak’s arrival at Anfield overshadowed it the same window. All top 10 transfers took place within the last four years. Jack Grealish’s 2022 switch to City remains the oldest on this list as the first British footballer to cross the £100 million mark.
Chelsea, Manchester City, and Liverpool each have three signings worth over £100 million on this list. Aston Villa and Newcastle United share the record for the most player sales above this threshold, each with two.
Global Transfer Records
The worldwide transfer record remains held by Neymar and Kylian Mbappe’s 2017 moves to Paris Saint-Germain, priced at £198 million and £163.3 million respectively. These figures are expected to stand for some time.
Beyond those, the Premier League dominates six of the top ten most expensive global transfers. Fernandez’s latest move ranks him as the joint-third most expensive footballer ever. This also pushes his previous Chelsea transfer out of the global top ten.
Top 10 Most Expensive Football Transfers Worldwide
- Rank 1: Neymar, Barcelona to PSG, £198m ($252m), August 2017
- Rank 2: Kylian Mbappe, AS Monaco to PSG, £163.3m ($207.5m), August 2017
- Rank 3: Alexander Isak, Newcastle to Liverpool, £125m ($170m), September 2025
- Rank 3 (tie): Enzo Fernandez, Chelsea to Manchester City, £125m ($169m), September 2026
- Rank 5: Bradley Barcola, PSG to Liverpool, £123m ($166m), August 2026
- Rank 6: Morgan Rogers, Aston Villa to Chelsea, £117m ($157m), July 2026
- Rank 7: Elliot Anderson, Nottingham Forest to Manchester City, £116m ($153m), July 2026
- Rank 8: Florian Wirtz, Bayer Leverkusen to Liverpool, £116m ($135m), June 2025
- Rank 9: Moises Caicedo, Brighton to Chelsea, £115m ($147m), August 2023
- Rank 10: Joao Felix, Benfica to Atletico Madrid, £113m ($143.5m), July 2019
