Elliot Anderson’s £116m switch from Nottingham Forest to Manchester City makes him the third-most expensive signing in Premier League history, behind only Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz. But a new set of rankings that adjusts historic fees to the spending power of clubs today tells a very different story: on that measure, Anderson is merely the 31st-priciest addition of the Premier League era. Here is how the index works and which past deals dwarf today’s blockbusters.
Why simple inflation doesn’t capture it
Most comparisons of this kind adjust old fees using standard inflation. The problem is that the changing price of a pint of milk says nothing about the roughly 3,500% surge in Premier League revenues that has transformed how much clubs can spend in the transfer market over the past three decades.
To reflect those revenue increases more accurately, football finance expert Kieran Maguire and professor Jason Laws built a new index – recalculating what past transfers would be worth relative to clubs’ resources today. The results are eye-opening.
The adjusted top five
| # | Player | Original fee (year) | Adjusted value |
| 1 | Alan Shearer | £15m – Blackburn to Newcastle (1996) | £237m |
| 2 | Juan Sebastián Verón | £28m – Lazio to Man Utd (2001) | £199m |
| 3 | Rio Ferdinand | £33m – Leeds to Man Utd (2003) | £179m |
| 4 | Stan Collymore | £9m – Forest to Liverpool (1995) | £179m |
| 5 | Fernando Torres | £50m – Liverpool to Chelsea (2011) | £177m |
Anderson drops 28 places on the Laws-Maguire Index, and even Isak – the record signing in cash terms at £125m – ranks only 14th once adjusted. Topping the list is Newcastle’s all-time record scorer, Alan Shearer. The £15m Newcastle paid Blackburn Rovers in 1996 looks modest now, but back then football revenues were a fraction of today’s – and adjusted, it balloons to a staggering £237m.
A list dominated by early Premier League deals
Two Manchester United signings from the early 2000s sit second and third. The £28m paid for Juan Sebastián Verón in 2001 and the £33m for Rio Ferdinand in 2003 adjust to £199m and £179m respectively. Stan Collymore’s £9m move from Forest to Liverpool in 1995 – worth £179m today – places him fourth, with Fernando Torres fifth after his £50m Liverpool-to-Chelsea switch adjusts to £177m.
The rest of the top 10 features Dennis Bergkamp, Andy Cole, Andriy Shevchenko, Dwight Yorke and Paul Pogba – meaning half of the leading ten are Manchester United signings. Ferdinand even appears twice in the top 15: his £18m move from West Ham to Leeds in 2001, two years before joining United, is calculated at £140m today. Combined, his two big transfers are worth around £339m in adjusted terms.
Few modern players make the cut
Alongside Isak, the only other current Premier League players inside the adjusted top 20 are Jack Grealish, Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernández. The takeaway is striking: although headline fees keep climbing, the index suggests that spending relative to clubs’ resources was actually more extravagant in the Premier League’s earlier years.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Laws-Maguire Index?
It is a ranking created by professor Jason Laws and football finance expert Kieran Maguire that adjusts historic transfer fees to reflect the growth in Premier League club revenues – not just inflation – to show what old deals would be worth today.
Who is the most expensive Premier League signing when fees are adjusted?
Alan Shearer. His £15m move from Blackburn to Newcastle in 1996 adjusts to about £237m on the Laws-Maguire Index, making it the most expensive signing of the Premier League era in relative terms.
Where does Elliot Anderson rank?
Anderson is the third-most expensive signing in cash terms at £116m, but only 31st once historic fees are adjusted for clubs’ spending power.
Which club dominates the adjusted rankings?
Manchester United – half of the adjusted top 10 are United signings, including Verón, Ferdinand, Yorke and Pogba.
