Breaking down all the major deals, rumors from transfer deadline day

The summer transfer window for many of Europe's top leagues is closed. Get caught up on all the biggest moves and news items from deadline day.

👉 Analysis and grades for every major summer signing

Isak saga finally ends 🙏

Liverpool sign Alexander Isak

This acrimonious saga cast a shadow over the entire transfer window, but, in the end, everyone ... got what they wanted, more or less? Isak is going to Liverpool after demanding a transfer and sitting out Newcastle's opening three games; the Magpies reportedly collect a British-record £130-million fee for the Swede; and the reigning English champions cap their incredible spree by adding one of the best players in the league to an already stacked squad.

Isak's arrival will force other players - specifically fellow summer signing Hugo Ekitike - to either shift positions or hit the bench, but his tactical fit is a nice problem to have for Arne Slot, whose ownership group has supported him to the tune of roughly £400 million in new signings. Isak and Mohamed Salah were the two leading scorers in the Premier League last season, combining for 52 goals. Now they're on the same team. The rich get richer.

Muddying the waters? 🤔

Strasbourg sign Ben Chilwell

Multi-club ownership is becoming increasingly prevalent in modern soccer, but few clubs use the tool to their advantage quite as blatantly as Chelsea, who sent left-back Chilwell to sister team Strasbourg on deadline day. The French squad is owned by the same BlueCo consortium that operates the London-based giants. Several players have made the identical switch this summer. Chelsea are treating Strasbourg as a feeder team where they can both hoard talent away from other interested clubs, and use deals between the two to help balance their own books. Manchester City, through the City Football Group, have used similar tactics in the past. It's not technically against any rules, but detractors claim it's bad for the integrity of the sport and the transfer market. It's hard to stomach these kinds of moves when Crystal Palace, for example, get kicked out of the Europa League for their affiliation with Lyon. Where is the line? It's becoming ever harder to find it.

Arsenal trust the process 🤞

Arsenal sign Piero Hincapie

Mikel Arteta is committed to the bit. The Arsenal manager believes that grinding out results on the back of a stingy defense is the best way to win matches and, eventually, trophies. It's not uncommon to see the Gunners line up with four central defenders across the backline and two, or even three, "defensive" midfielders in front of them. That's precisely what he did in Sunday's 1-0 loss to Liverpool - although, in his defense, part of that was enforced because of Martin Odegaard's injury issues. Still, Arteta wants to win with an attritional style that wears opponents down into dust. All of that leads to his latest signing. Hincapie is a big, strong, left-footed center-back, not unlike some of the players already at the club, and will provide even more aerial presence, which will certainly make set-piece coach Nicolas Jover very happy. How many defenders can you realistically put on the field at once and still win? We might find out.

Man United take big Ls 💸

Napoli sign Rasmus Hojlund
Real Betis sign Antony

There's plenty of blame to go around for Manchester United's extended malaise, but sometimes the simplest explanation is the most effective: The Red Devils have done a terrible job of recruiting in recent years. Their deals for Rasmus Hojlund and Antony cost around €170 million combined, and both players are now gone after contributing virtually nothing to the club over multiple seasons. Together, the pair scored 19 Premier League goals. Woof.

Even for an institution as popular and valuable as Manchester United, repeated financial mistakes take a toll. Antony and Hojlund have now been shipped to Real Betis (permanently) and Napoli (on loan with an obligation), respectively, with United recouping a small fraction of what they paid. That closes the book on one of the worst signings in Manchester United history and one of the remnants of Erik ten Hag's disastrous reign.

Guehi move collapses ❌

Liverpool fail to sign Marc Guehi

What would deadline day be without some twists and turns at the 11th hour? Liverpool had everything in place to sign Marc Guehi from Crystal Palace for a reported £35-million fee, but the Eagles started waffling after their own move for a replacement - Igor Julio of Brighton & Hove Albion - fell apart at the last minute. The center-back will now remain at Selhurst Park.

The Reds, who already have arguably the best center-back in the Premier League in Virgil van Dijk, were looking to form a daunting duo by partnering the Dutchman with the Palace captain. Guehi, 25, would've been a perfect fit for Arne Slot's team. He's athletic enough to cover large open spaces in transition, something Liverpool have been susceptible to conceding early in the season, and is comfortable on the ball. With Ibrahima Konate slated to become a free agent at the end of the season, Liverpool wanted to be proactive by bolstering their backline with someone who could conceivably become their future captain. This would've been a masterful move, but it didn't come to fruition due to circumstances out of Liverpool's control.

Round 2: Rabiot vs. Rowe 🥊

AC Milan sign Adrien Rabiot

Adrien Rabiot and Jonathan Rowe were immediately put up for sale by Marseille after getting into a violent altercation in August. Roberto De Zerbi described it as a "bar fight" the likes of which he'd never seen inside a locker room. Rowe was quickly shipped off to Bologna. Rabiot, meanwhile, joined Milan, where he'll reunite with Massimiliano Allegri after the pair previously worked together at Juventus. All pretty standard stuff, right? The delicious irony: AC Milan and Bologna are set to lock horns in their first match coming out of the international break Sept. 14. You couldn't script it any better.

World Cup top of mind 🏆

Atalanta sign Yunus Musah
Aston Villa sign Harvey Elliott

Whenever there's a major international tournament on the horizon, transfers take on added meaning. Players who otherwise might consider staying at their existing clubs despite a lack of playing time are more eager to secure a move that will guarantee them minutes - and thus a better chance of impressing their respective international managers.

Musah, who was likely to be pushed way down the AC Milan pecking order after multiple high-profile arrivals at San Siro, needs to show Mauricio Pochettino that he deserves to be a vital member of the United States men's national team in 2026. He can't do that from the bench. Harvey Elliott, very much on the outside of the England scene looking in, was almost certainly going to rot on the bench at Liverpool this season if he stayed. Instead, he should get plenty of opportunities after agreeing to join Aston Villa in a deal that could end up being worth £35 million.

And then there's Kobbie Mainoo, who reportedly asked Manchester United to let him leave on loan so he could impress England boss Thomas Tuchel rather than sit on the sidelines at Old Trafford. Ruben Amorim denied his request. This can now go one of two ways: Either the young midfielder uses the refusal as fuel, which Amorim is surely hoping, or this whole situation sours and we're sitting here in January having the exact same conversation. Given their track record, do you trust Man United to make it work?

Chelsea finally offload Jackson 👋

Bayern Munich sign Nicolas Jackson

He took the scenic route, but Jackson finally gets the switch to Bayern Munich that he wanted after an on-again, off-again saga that surely could've been sorted out well before deadline day. The Senegalese striker traveled to Germany last week to complete his move from Chelsea, only for the Blues to call off the deal after Liam Delap's injury. Jackson's agent used multiple social media posts to make it clear that his client wouldn't return to London as instructed, which essentially forced Chelsea to find another striker. Chelsea called Marc Guiu back from his loan at Sunderland, clearing the path for Jackson to join Bayern on an onerous €16.5-million loan that can become permanent next summer.

Jackson misses his share of big scoring chances, often in baffling and hilarious fashion, but he's an objectively better player than the largely unproven Guiu, so this is a downgrade for Enzo Maresca's squad; Jackson, an underlying-numbers darling, scored 24 Premier League goals over the last two seasons despite his erratic finishing ability. Bayern are getting a capable backup who can give Harry Kane more chances to keep his 32-year-old legs fresh for the games that really matter this season.

Spurs add another forward 💥

Tottenham sign Randal Kolo Muani

Kolo Muani wanted to return to Juventus after spending the second half of last season on loan in Turin, but after Juve and PSG went back and forth all summer haggling over the structure of the deal, the French team finally pulled the plug. That allowed Spurs to swoop in and land the France international on a straight loan for €5 million. This is an extremely low-risk move for Tottenham that could deliver big rewards. Kolo Muani is agile and versatile. At Juve, he showed off the scoring prowess that made PSG spend around €90 million to sign him in the first place. Thomas Frank suddenly has a bevy of exciting attacking options after adding Mohammed Kudus and Xavi Simons to his team this summer. There are a lot of mouths to feed up front for Spurs, but that's a good issue to have for a team that'll be competing on four different fronts this season.

2 for the price of 1 🧠

Juventus sign Lois Openda, Edon Zhegrova

Speaking of Juve, the total outlay for the now-collapsed Kolo Muani deal reportedly hovered around the €60-million mark, with PSG seeking guarantees that an initial loan would become permanent. For a club that needs to watch every penny it spends, that's a lot, even if Kolo Muani would've been a very nice permanent addition. Instead, Juve turned around and added forward Openda from RB Leipzig and winger Zhegrova from Lille. Combined, the two deals will roughly equal the €60 million required to bring Kolo Muani back. If both players stay fit - no guarantee in the case of the dazzling but injury-prone Zhegrova, in particular - this could end up being a wise pivot. Openda, only two years removed from scoring 24 Bundesliga goals, gives Igor Tudor another option up front for a team that suddenly looks a little top-heavy.

Goalkeeper merry-go-round 🔄

Fenerbahce sign Ederson
Man City sign Gianluigi Donnarumma
Man United sign Senne Lammens

Ederson's decorated spell at Manchester City is at an end, with the Brazilian on his way to Fenerbahce for around €14 million. Instead of replacing him with a netminder who's similarly skilled with his feet, Pep Guardiola has gone entirely in the opposite direction, opting for Donnarumma after he was unceremoniously dumped by PSG despite playing a vital role in their maiden Champions League title last season. Cruel world.

The enormous Italian is a sensational shot-stopper, but he's terrible with the ball at his feet, which instantly makes him an awkward fit for a Guardiola-led team. Ederson was basically another midfielder on the pitch, and his incredible passing range was a genuine weapon. That's gone, which will likely result in Man City asking more of their center-backs in the initial buildup phase. When you have a chance to sign Donnarumma, who's still only 26 despite being around forever, you do it, but his arrival forces Guardiola to make more adjustments to a team that's already struggling to start the year.

On the red half of Manchester, Ruben Amorim also has a new No. 1 after a reported €21-million deal with Royal Antwerp to sign Belgian goalkeeper Senne Lammens. For all United's opulent spending on forwards, this absolutely needed to happen before the window closed. Andre Onana has been a disaster at Old Trafford, making glaring - and costly - mistakes since the moment he arrived, and Altay Bayindir has been equally unconvincing in limited opportunities. Is Lammens the solution? Maybe. But at this point, just about anyone would be an improvement. If the 23-year-old simply inspires more confidence in his defenders, that's an upgrade.

The era of player power 💪

Newcastle sign Yoane Wissa
Aston Villa sign Jadon Sancho

Sticking to your guns, no matter how messy the situation gets, actually works! Wissa, following the Isak blueprint almost to the letter, publicly called out Brentford for breaking apparent promises and "standing in the way" of his desired move to Newcastle United. Now, he's completed a £55-million transfer, which helps the Magpies salvage what threatened to be an all-time disastrous window.

Sancho has had a chaotic summer. He couldn't agree to contract terms with Chelsea and got shipped back to Manchester United, who wanted nothing to do with him. Roma had a deal in place to sign him, but he rejected the Italian club's proposal. The winger and his representatives didn't panic when all signs suggested he might eventually have to accept a destination like Saudi Arabia after the European window. He's now landed a season-long loan at Aston Villa, where he'll hope to follow Marcus Rashford's lead and parlay that into a bigger move next summer.

The ones that got away 👀

There's always a handful of deals that, for one reason or another, aren't completed in time on deadline day. Here are some of the moves we were tracking that didn't get announced:

The Turkish transfer window remains open, giving Super Lig teams more time to potentially complete deals.