In the end, one last-minute deal overshadowed everything else. Manchester City signed Enzo Fernández from Chelsea FC for £125 million, matching the British transfer record. Even beyond that blockbuster move, however, plenty of money changed hands on Deadline Day – and several deals were completed that would have seemed highly unlikely only a few days earlier.
Manchester City add Ndiaye to their spending spree
Enzo Fernández was not even City’s only major signing of the day. Iliman Ndiaye joined Enzo Maresca’s side from Everton FC for an initial £60 million, with a further £5 million potentially due in bonuses. The 26-year-old Senegal international signed a five-year contract. Before turning to Ndiaye, City had seen an £80 million bid for Liverpool winger Cody Gakpo rejected.
Ndiaye already brings plenty of Premier League experience. Across his two full seasons at Everton, he scored 15 goals and provided three assists in 65 league appearances, before adding another assist in the opening two matches of the new campaign. His biggest strength, however, lies less in classic goalscoring numbers than in one-on-one situations. The two-footed attacker can play on either flank or through the middle and gives City a different profile to many of the more combination-oriented forwards already in the squad.
Danso and Affengruber land in the Premier League
Deadline Day also brought new clubs for two Austrian internationals. Kevin Danso leaves Tottenham Hotspur after only a year and a half and joins AFC Sunderland on loan. A mandatory purchase clause worth around €30 million is expected to be triggered if Sunderland avoid relegation. Danso had recently asked coach Roberto De Zerbi for a move after a major overhaul of Tottenham’s defence significantly reduced his prospects of regular playing time.
David Affengruber’s situation developed even more quickly. Crystal Palace had initially appeared to be the leading Premier League contender, but Fulham FC entered the race on Deadline Day and ultimately secured his signature. The 25-year-old leaves Elche after two highly successful seasons and is expected to cost between €10 million and €12 million, depending on the source. His contract in London runs until 2030. Affengruber made 84 competitive appearances for Elche, first helping them win promotion to LaLiga before establishing himself as one of the club’s key players in Spain’s top division.
Woltemade’s curious detour leads to Turin
One of the most unusual stories of the summer concerns Nick Woltemade. Just a year ago, FC Bayern and Newcastle United were involved in a very public battle for the then Stuttgart striker. Newcastle eventually won the race and paid around €75 million – a fee that was heavily criticised because of its size.
Only a year later, the Germany international is already being sent out on loan. After a strong start in England, Woltemade gradually lost his regular place and finished his first Newcastle season with eleven goals and six assists in 53 competitive appearances. Under new coach Matthias Jaissle, he also began the current campaign as a substitute.
That led to a stream of rumours in recent days. Borussia Dortmund, SSC Napoli and Como were all mentioned as possible destinations. Woltemade initially wanted to stay at Newcastle, but the situation changed quickly once Juventus made a concrete move. The 24-year-old now joins the Turin club on loan until the end of the season. There is no purchase option, with Juventus paying around €4 million for the deal.
The transfer is directly linked to another major move: Juventus allowed Jonathan David to leave and therefore needed another striker.
Mudryk gets a fresh start under De Zerbi
Few Deadline Day transfers come with a backstory as unusual as Mykhaylo Mudryk’s move to Tottenham. The Ukrainian winger joins Spurs on a season-long loan from Chelsea FC, with Tottenham holding a £75 million purchase option. The move also reunites Mudryk with Roberto De Zerbi, who coached him at Shakhtar Donetsk and played an important role in his breakthrough.
Mudryk’s career had come almost completely to a standstill over the past two years. Chelsea signed him in January 2023 for an initial €70 million, with another €30 million potentially due in bonuses. He initially struggled to live up to those enormous expectations, before the situation became far more complicated.
Mudryk had not played a competitive match since November 2024. After testing positive for a low concentration of meldonium, he was provisionally suspended and later handed a four-year ban. Mudryk appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. At the end of July 2026, the suspension was finally lifted. Changes to World Anti-Doping Agency procedures played a major role: under the current guidelines, a comparable analytical result would no longer lead to a charge.
Now 25, Mudryk is effectively starting a second career at Tottenham after even working as a taxi driver for a period. De Zerbi knows his qualities extremely well and is likely one of the main reasons Spurs are willing to take this unusual gamble.
Jonathan David to Madrid, Nwaneri to Dortmund
Jonathan David leaves Juventus after just one season. The Canada international joins Atlético Madrid on a one-year loan, with the Spanish club securing a €25 million purchase option. David had only arrived in Turin on a free transfer from LOSC Lille in 2025, but failed to reproduce the form he had shown in France. He scored eight goals in 46 competitive appearances during his only season with Juventus. At Atlético, the mobile forward offers another option alongside Julián Álvarez, who has recently come under pressure from supporters following his public flirtation with Barcelona.
Borussia Dortmund also made a late move. Ethan Nwaneri joins on a season-long loan from Arsenal FC, with no purchase option included. BVB are reacting to the long-term injury suffered by new signing Giannis Konstantelias. Nwaneri still holds the record as the youngest player in Premier League history and has already made 51 competitive appearances for Arsenal, scoring ten goals. The 19-year-old spent the second half of last season on loan at Olympique Marseille, where he scored twice in eleven appearances.
Newcastle spend €65 million on Fernandez-Pardo
For Matias Fernandez-Pardo, Deadline Day brought the biggest move of his career so far. According to “L’Équipe”, Newcastle United are paying €65 million for the Belgium international, while Lille are also expected to receive 20 per cent of any future resale. The 21-year-old made 71 competitive appearances during his two years back at LOSC and scored twelve goals. He netted eight times in Ligue 1 last season and also broke into the Belgium squad before earning a place at the World Cup.
The transfer is also part of a major rebuild at Newcastle. Fernandez-Pardo brings pace, dynamism and the ability to operate in several attacking positions. His arrival also made it easier for the club to let Woltemade leave temporarily.
Ratkov leaves Lazio after only eight months
From an Austrian perspective, Petar Ratkov’s latest move is also notable. The former Salzburg striker joins Levante on loan from Lazio. The Spanish club will pay around €1 million, while certain sporting conditions would activate a mandatory purchase clause worth approximately €14 million.
Ratkov only joined Lazio from Salzburg in January for €13 million. After initial difficulties in Austria, the 1.93-metre Serbian striker had developed strongly and scored nine goals in 17 Bundesliga matches during the first half of last season. Things never really worked out in Italy, however: nine competitive appearances, no goals and no genuine long-term role under either Maurizio Sarri or Gennaro Gattuso. Gattuso in particular favoured a more mobile striker who could contribute more heavily to combination play, a profile that did not fully suit Ratkov.
Where is the transfer window still open?
The summer window has now closed in Europe’s five major leagues, but transfer business is not completely over. On Wednesday, clubs in countries including the Netherlands and Denmark can still sign players. In Austria, the window closes on Thursday at 17:00, while Belgium also remains open until 3 September. Turkey follows on 4 September, Switzerland on 8 September and Portugal not until 15 September. Saudi clubs have considerably more time, with their window open until 12 October.
Players can therefore still leave clubs in England, Germany, Spain, Italy or France. For the clubs in Europe’s biggest leagues themselves, however, one of the most spectacular transfer summers in recent memory is over – capped by a Deadline Day that once again reached extraordinary levels, particularly in England.
