Chelsea don’t have leg to stand on with Liverpool complaints amid £1.3bn reveal
Liverpool have spent heavily this summer, but not everyone is happy about this.
The Reds have sanctioned big-money deals for Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike, and could still add to this with Alexander Isak targeted.
After a year of frugality, Liverpool could end up breaking the British transfer record twice in one window, in an unprecedented level of spending.
This comes after rivals Manchester United, Man City and Chelsea all spent heavily themselves in recent years, but there are complaints coming from other fanbases about Liverpool flexing their financial muscles.
Liverpool miles behind Chelsea’s record spending
With clubs across the Premier League struggling to cope with PSR restrictions on their spending, many have wondered how Liverpool can afford such a significant outlay in one window.
While Liverpool have also sold well, and are set to part ways with a few more players, including Darwin Nunez, the reality is that their spending is still nowhere near what Chelsea’s has been at times in recent years.
| Player | Fee |
| Jarell Quansah | £30m |
| Luis Diaz | £65.5m |
| Darwin Nunez | £46m* |
| Harvey Elliott | £50m* |
| Caoimhin Kelleher | £12.5m |
| Tyler Morton | £15m |
Clearlake Capital completed a takeover of Chelsea in 2022, and invested heavily into the team with mixed results.
After a few poor seasons, they have now returned to the Champions League and won the Europa Conference League, and the Club World Cup under Enzo Maresca.
They were hit by a UEFA fine for breaching spending rules, and as per finance expert Kieran Maguire via X (7 August), they spent a remarkable £1.3billion in their first two years under Clearlake.
- Chelsea broke transfer records to bring in the likes of Mykhaylo Mudryk, Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo in recent years.
- They have also made big sales, with Kai Havertz and Mason Mount among those who departed for big fees.
Despite this heavy spending, Chelsea did not breach PSR, through both sales and other means of boosting their financial records, and Liverpool will not fall foul either.
The sales, and careful financial planning stemming back to last year, means that Liverpool could afford to sign Isak while remaining comfortable in FFP terms.
Rivals cannot complain about Liverpool’s spending
Many have hit out at Liverpool for their heavy spending, despite some also hitting out at them in the past for not spending enough under Jurgen Klopp.
Newcastle fans are now furious that Liverpool appear ready to poach Isak despite signing Ekitike, while they have found their spending limited despite now having the richest owners in football.
Despite all of this, rivals simply have no leg to stand on to complain about Liverpool. They have not fallen foul of PSR, nor have they broken any rules or been hit by any sanctions.
Selling Luis Diaz, Jarell Quansah and potentially Harvey Elliott for huge fees has allowed them to spend, and this is more a case of being a well-run club rather than one which sets out to break the rules to allow them to compete.
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