Spain had hit the billion-Euro mark before the madness had even really begun.
And while clubs were doing their business surprisingly early – whatever happened to manana, manana? – it wasn’t over yet. There were still sixand-a-half weeks left, and some of the biggest, most complex deals still awaited.
Everywhere, everyone was going wild. Well, almost everyone; as usual, Athletic Bilbao were a case apart.
At the very start of the summer, one La Liga coach confided that this might be the busiest summer anyone could remember. In all probability there would be more arrivals and more departures than there had ever been. He was talking about his own club, but he could just as well have been talking about them all.
Joao Felix €126million, Antoine Griezmann €120m, Eden Hazard €100m: they led the way, the stars that captured the early imagination, but there were others. Many others. Even the Premier League trailed behind.
For the first time in 11 years, Spain was outspending England – for a while, at least.
By mid-July, five of the eight most expensive signings in Europe had been made by Spanish clubs. Two of the other three – Rodri to Manchester City and Lucas Hernandez to Bayern Munich – had come from Spanish clubs, which helps to explain things. And while most of the headlines, as usual, were for Real Madrid and Barcelona, it was Atletico who are the real outliers, with their vast expenditure driven by sales.
Denne historien er fra August 2019-utgaven av World Soccer.
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Denne historien er fra August 2019-utgaven av World Soccer.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Going for Gold in Paris- There are plenty of candidates vying for the Olympic gold medal in the women's football tournament this summer
There are plenty of candidates vying for the Olympic gold medal in the women's football tournament this summer
Face to face - Tom Sainfiet- The final goal is to reach the World Cup and write history - The Belgian coach speaks to World Soccer
The well-travelled Belgian coach speaks to World Soccer after taking charge of the Philippines-his 11th international coaching role
Inter cruise to title number 20
Simone Inzaghi's Internazionale shrug off all challengers before sealing the Serie A title in style against their biggest rivals
HAT-TRICK HERO
Ademola Lookman wrote his name into European football's history books with a hat-trick in the Europa League final
GOING UP
The story of Sweden striker Viktor Gyokeres' career has been one of upward trajectory - and there's plenty more to come from the Sporting superstar
Palau soldier on alone
The isolated Pacific nation faces a long and lonely battle to improve football on the island
Brazilian clubs eye Copa number six
As the Copa Libertadores group stage concludes, a sixth consecutive Brazilian winner is looking likely
AI Hilal sweep to another Saudi crown
The first edition of the Saudi Pro League's glamorous new era ends with a familiar title winner
Disasters brewing
There is still a long way to go in World Cup qualifying, but dysfunction reigns at Cameroon, Congo and Nigeria after four matchdays in the group stage
Second round of World Cup qualifying underway
Favourites perform largely as expected, yet Cayman Islands dominate the headlines