We had the top 10 summer overpays so it’s only fair that we salute the bargains. Not so many Premier League signings on this one.

The market values and the fees are taken from transfermarkt; the former are usually on the low side anyway and the fees are the initial ones before add-ons. So it’s not gospel but it’s a guide to which clubs paid rather less than they should have done…

The small print is that we are not including loans but we will include free transfers.

 

10) Jeremie Frimpong – Liverpool underpaid by £8.66m

Liverpool triggered his release clause, making this by far the simplest transfer they pulled off this summer.

 

9) Antony – Real Betis underpaid by £11.26m

Manchester United were desperate to get him out of the door so were more than happy to take £19m for their massive flop. We would not be remotely surprised if Real Betis double their money within 18 months.

 

8) Alex Baena – Atletico Madrid underpaid by £11.26m

The initial fee for Spanish international winger Baena was less than Nottingham Forest paid for Omari Hutchinson. Let that sink in.

 

7) Jonathan Burkardt – Eintracht Frankfurt underpaid by £12.13m

Eighteen Bundesliga goals cost Frankfurt around £18m; 12 Bundesliga goals cost Newcastle an initial £73m. Go figure. Or don’t.

 

6) Mohamed Amoura – Wolfsburg underpaid by £14.94m

The fee was agreed before the Algerian claimed 10 goals and 12 assists on loan. They could comfortably double their money and more now.

 

5) Florian Wirtz – Liverpool underpaid by £21.28m

There’s not been too much in his early performances that suggest he is worth more than the initial £100m Liverpool paid for the German, but TM have him pegged as the joint-seventh most valuable footballer in the world. It’s only Premier League and Newcastle taxes that meant Alexander Isak cost more. And we should remember that even Kevin de Bruyne flopped at Chelsea first.

 

4) Estevao – Chelsea underpaid by £22.52m

A transfer agreed a year ago already looks like a ludicrous bargain: A starting winger for the Brazil national team for an initial £29m? Chelsea really are very good at this transfer business.

 

3) Leroy Sane – Galatasaray underpaid by £27.72m

Presumably there were clubs across Europe’s top five leagues that wanted Sane, but he has opted for guaranteed starts, guaranteed money and a guaranteed title race.

 

2) Jonathan David – Juventus underpaid by £45m

For a while there it looked like the Canadian international might rock up at a Premier League club, but why would you get your guaranteed goals on a free transfer when you can throw zillions of pounds at the problem?

 

1) Trent Alexander-Arnold – Real Madrid underpaid by £56.31m

And the truth of course is that a Trent Alexander-Arnold with a long Liverpool contract would have cost north of £100m rather than the £8.5m Real Madrid ostensibly paid for him to play at the Club World Cup. And that’s why he had no choice but to run down his deal…Real overpaid for their new left-back and they still didn’t go past £43m for a full-back.