Premier League clubs played to their reputation as relentless spenders and transfer window protagonists over the course of the 2025–26 campaign.
Last summer’s record spend was somewhat balanced out by an uneventful January window, but billions have still been splashed on new signings over the past year. Unsurprisingly, not all of those moves have worked out.
In the midst of unprecedented transfer chaos, there has been more than a handful of disastrous deals—plenty of expensive talent failing to meet expectations merited by their gargantuan price tags.
Here, Sports Illustrated ranks the unfortunate players to make up the 10 worst signings of the season so far.
10. Conor Gallagher (Tottenham Hotspur)
Conor Gallagher deserves some sympathy for joining the worst Tottenham Hotspur team of the modern era—the midfielder tasked with aiding Spurs in their surprise fight against relegation immediately after arriving for $46.6 million from Atlético Madrid.
However, it’s not untrue to say Gallagher has made next to no impact in nearly two months in north London. Gallagher’s work rate is always commendable, but his lack of quality in possession has already drawn the ire of Tottenham supporters.
A team crying out for their expensive winter hero to make a difference has been left bitterly disappointed by a serious of poor displays, and it really is anybody’s guess whether or not Spurs can survive the dreaded drop.
9. Liam Delap (Chelsea)
There were justifiable question marks over whether Liam Delap could step up from playing for relegated Ipswich Town to Champions League chasing Chelsea. Based on current evidence, that query has been emphatically answered during his debut term at Stamford Bridge.
Delap cost Chelsea $40.6 million and has returned just three goals in his 38 appearances to date—one of which came at the Club World Cup before the current campaign even began. Seemingly more interested in picking a fight than leading the line, the towering striker has been incredibly uninspiring under both Enzo Maresca and Liam Rosenior.
João Pedro’s excellent performances have shone a harsher spotlight on Delap, whose only saving grace is his age and potential. However, players don’t get long to prove themselves for the Blues, as he may find out when the transfer window re-opens.
8. James McAtee (Nottingham Forest)
One would be forgiven for forgetting about the existence of James McAtee altogether, let alone the fact he’s been representing Nottingham Forest since the start of the season. The $40.6 million fee Manchester City extracted for the Englishman now appears to be tremendous business for the eight-time Premier League winners.
McAtee has played just 20 times for Forest this season and while he does have the excuse of a lack of continuity after working under four different managers, the attacking midfielder has passed up each and every opportunity to impress—both domestically and in Europe.
McAtee was not Forest’s only poor summer signing—Omari Hutchinson fortunate to avoid making this list among others—but his anonymity has been almost as frustrating as his sub-par performances.
7. Anthony Elanga (Newcastle United)
Anthony Elanga exploded into life after joining Nottingham Forest from Manchester United. 14 goal contributions in his debut campaign were followed by 18 in the subsequent season, enough to convince Newcastle United that he merited the $74 million fee Forest demanded.
The speedy winger has decelerated significantly since moving to Tyneside, however. It took him until November to register his first goal contribution for the Magpies and, even all these months later, his season tally stands at just three goals and an assist in all competitions.
Still only 23 years old, time is on Elanga’s side after teething problems at St James’ Park, but considering his enormous transfer fee, his debut season has fallen miles short of expectations.
6. Armando Broja (Burnley)
Armando Broja has now played for five different clubs in the Premier League. Only his nine-goal stint with Southampton could be considered successful, with underwhelming spells at Chelsea, Fulham, Everton and now Burnley having seen the striker’s stock plummet.
Burnley’s decision to spend $26.5 million on Broja always looked misjudged. Not only had the Albanian scored no goals across his past two full seasons out on loan, consistent injuries had derailed those temporary spells away from parent club Chelsea.
Unsurprisingly, injury issues have followed him to Turf Moor. Broja has managed just 22 appearances and has scored just the one goal. Burnley took a massive swing and miss with their summer deal for the 24-year-old, and when up against an inevitable relegation fight, such missteps can prove fatal.
5. Arnaud Kalimuendo (Nottingham Forest)
The fact that Arnaud Kalimuendo is no longer playing for Nottingham Forest speaks volumes. Having signed over the summer, he struggled for consistency or first-team exposure under a conveyor belt of managers, with a January loan move to Eintracht Frankfurt ending his nightmare.
The German side have the option to make the Frenchman’s move permanent this summer and they might well trigger that clause after a bright start in the Bundesliga. It’s little surprise to see him scoring again after 40 goals in three seasons with Rennes previously.
Managerial switches undoubtedly robbed Kalimuendo of any momentum early in his Forest career, but with his $35 million transfer yielding just 14 appearances and two goals, there can be no denying it has proven a disastrous switch.
4. Jamie Gittens (Chelsea)
Chelsea collect players like Pokémon cards, but Jamie Gittens has not proven to be the holy grail pull they were expecting. The winger made a slow start at Stamford Bridge, admittedly struggling in an overstocked squad, and injuries have further limited his impact as the campaign has progressed.
After just one goal in 27 appearances—albeit a stunner at Molineux in the Carabao Cup—there is a sense that time could already be running out for Gittens. Competing with the likes of Pedro Neto, Alejandro Garnacho, Estêvão and even Cole Palmer for minutes out wide, he faces an uphill battle knowing that more incomings can’t be ruled out.
Gittens’s impressive form with Borussia Dortmund last season has not translated to success on his return to England, with $61.2 million a mammoth sum to spend on somebody yet to deliver.
3. Harvey Elliott (Aston Villa)
Harvey Elliott had long been an influential impact substitute for Liverpool, but frustrated with his lack of game time under Arne Slot last season, the attacking midfielder opted to leave Anfield over the summer. Aston Villa came calling, snapping Elliott up on a loan deal which would become permanent providing he made a specific number of appearances.
However, it became alarmingly clear preety quickly that Unai Emery didn’t fancy the Englishman, and there has been no route back into the limelight for Elliott. In order to prevent his loan becoming a $40.6 million transfer at the end of the season, Villa have made the brutal decision to snub him for much of the term.
Elliott has made just nine appearances for Villa this season, four of which have come in the Premier League, and it’s difficult not to feel sympathy for the midfielder. Who knows what the future holds for Elliott, but it certainly doesn’t lie at Villa Park.
2. Yoane Wissa (Newcastle United)
Eyebrows were rightly raised when 29-year-old Yoane Wissa swapped Brentford for Newcastle United for an eye-watering $74 million. Yes, he’d had a good goalscoring season in west London, but his age, ability to develop and longevity at the highest level were rightly questioned.
What made matters worse was an injury Wissa suffered during the September international break, just a week after he signed for the Magpies. The issue kept him sidelined until December and his integration into the team has taken some time—and is still in the process of being completed.
Eddie Howe hasn’t seemed particularly convinced by Wissa since his return to fitness, though, and that is evidenced in just four Premier League starts to date. More widely, he’s made 22 appearances and scored just three goals, marking dreadful value for money.
1. Alexander Isak (Liverpool)
The Alexander Isak saga dominated the summer transfer window. Eventually, the former Newcastle striker earned a British record $176 million move to Premier League champions Liverpool, but a dream transfer quickly turned nightmarish for the Swedish sharpshooter.
Isak had enjoyed no preseason with Newcastle—he’d gone on strike to force an Anfield move—meaning he struggled to get up to top speed and full match fitness. Even when the latter improved, Isak’s performances were lackluster, yielding just three strikes in 16 appearances across all competitions.
One of those goals came in Liverpool’s final game before Christmas, but Isak broke his leg in the process of scoring. He’s been sidelined ever since and while he will return before the campaign’s conclusion, he shall once again be starting from scratch.
The Premier League’s record signing has a long, long way to go to make this a good deal.
