With no end in sight to England's dominance of the transfer market, more expensive signings are likely to arrive from the continent this summer
While the eyes of most football fans are fixed on the business end of the 2024-25 season, some attention has already been drawn to the summer transfer window. Such is the nature of the modern game, which features and is fed by a rumour mill that never stops turning.
Only this week, we've had the revelation that Trent Alexander-Arnold is closing in on a summer switch to the Santiago Bernabeu, which has inevitably provoked heated debate – and not just on Merseyside or in Madrid.
However, while the loss of such an exciting footballer would represent a blow for the Premier League, the world's most popular championship is likely to attract plenty of other stars this summer, as the colossal money made from the sale of TV rights means its clubs will once again be in a position to plunder Europe's top teams for talent.
So, who will England's elite be targeting when the transfer window reopens? GOAL runs through the continent's most coveted players below…
AFPXavi Simons
Manchester United expressed an interest in signing Xavi Simons last summer but the Dutchman wasn't interested in moving to England at the time, preferring instead to join RB Leipzig from Paris Saint-Germain on a permanent basis. Things may be a little different now, though, with the versatile attacker said to be open to the idea of leaving the Red Bull Arena this summer.
United are still said to be keen (Liverpool have also been linked) but the word is that it would take around €80 million (£67m/$86m) to convince Leipzig to part company with a player who has contributed eight goals and six assists despite missing a couple of months of the current campaign with an ankle injury.
AdvertisementAFPAngel Gomes
Thomas Tuchel somewhat surprisingly left Angel Gomes out of his first England squad but the Manchester United academy graduate still has plenty of admirers in the Premier League, making a summer return increasingly likely.
The multi-talented midfielder is quite clearly running down his contract at Lille, which partly explains why he's been seeing less and less game time in recent weeks, and is exploring all of his options as he looks to make a lucrative free transfer this summer.
According to the latest reports, Gomes has already rejected one offer from West Ham and is also of interest to Tottenham. However, the name of Barcelona has also been bandied about, meaning it's by no means a given that the 24-year-old will end up back in England…
Getty ImagesMoise Kean
Moise Kean's time at Goodison Park did not go well. Everton paid Juventus £25m ($32m) for his services but the striker scored just two Premier League goals in 32 appearances.
However, Kean could well be set for a second spell in England having kickstarted his career at Fiorentina. The 25-year-old has scored 20 times in 34 appearances in all competitions this season, while he also struck twice in Italy's 3-3 draw with Germany on Sunday night.
Kean's remarkable revival has allegedly attracted the attention of West Ham, Newcastle and, most intriguingly of all, Arsenal, who are obviously desperately looking for a No.9 they can rely on. Whether Kean really fits the bill is very much open to debate but his situation is definitely worth keeping an eye on.
Getty Images SportBenjamin Sesko
The feeling was that the much-touted Benjamin Sesko would join one of Europe's elite clubs last summer. However, the Slovenia international ended up committing himself to RB Leipzig until 2029. Of course, that deal was done purely to ensure that the Germans make as much money as possible on Sesko when they sell him this year.
It must be said that the striker wasn't particularly impressive at Euro 2024 but, having already hit 17 goals in all competitions so far this season, it should only be a matter of days before he betters his previous haul for a single campaign (18).
Unsurprisingly, Bayern Munich are said to be interested in signing Sesko to eventually take over up top from Harry Kane, but Premier League clubs are queueing up to sign him, with Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham, United and Liverpool all credited with interest in the 24-year-old.
