Soccer Stream

LONDON: Manchester City opened a new era by setting a record for the highest spending in a single Premier League transfer window, while Chelsea made Morgan Rogers the most expensive British player in history.

Tottenham Hotspur also spent big, but defending champions Arsenal failed to land a high-profile striker, while Liverpool and Manchester United may still not have made enough signings.

After EPL clubs broke the summer transfer spending record with a total of 3.49 billion pounds before the transfer window closed last Tuesday, AFP highlights some of the key points.

Pep Guardiola’s departure after a glorious decade as Manchester City manager sparked a massive shake-up by his successor, Enzo Maresca.

Maresca broke the Premier League record for spending in a single transfer window when he spent 458 million pounds on several new players in an effort to restore City as a major force in English football.

City have failed to win the title in the last two seasons and with Rodri, John Stones, Bernardo Silva, Savio and Tijjani Reijnders among the players leaving the club, the Abu Dhabi owners are using their financial strength to act.

Argentine midfielder Enzo Fernandez was brought out of Chelsea for 125 million pounds, equaling the record transfer fee paid by a British club, while Nottingham Forest midfielder Elliot Anderson joined City for 116 million pounds.

Everton winger Iliman Ndiaye was also signed for £65 million, while Lille’s Moroccan teenager Ayyoub Bouaddi cost £85 million.

Chelsea may be missing Fernandez, but new manager Xabi Alonso is still spending 349 million pounds to strengthen the squad that finished 10th last season.

England midfielder Rogers joined Chelsea from Aston Villa for 117 million pounds, while Maxence Lacroix, Emiliano Martinez, Danny Welbeck and Jordan Henderson were among the experienced EPL players who were also brought in.

Chelsea opened the season with two convincing wins. Could they now be ready to challenge for the title?

Already the bookmakers’ top pick to lift the EPL trophy, Arsenal are hoping to land a high-profile striker in their bid to win back-to-back Premier League titles for the first time since the 1930s.

Interest in Real Madrid’s Brazilian winger Vinicius Junior and Atletico Madrid striker Julian Alvarez ultimately failed to lead to any deals.

However, Gunners manager Mikel Arteta has little reason to worry after strengthening his squad with Bruno Guimaraes, Ezri Konsa and Christos Tzolis, and his team has proven their mettle by opening their title defence campaign with two consecutive wins.

MADRID: Real Madrid continued their perfect start to LaLiga by thrashing newly promoted Malaga 4-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Jose Mourinho’s side scored three goals in the first 30 minutes before adding a fourth in injury time to secure a comfortable victory.

Jude Bellingham opened the scoring with a stunning solo effort, followed by an own goal from Malaga goalkeeper Alfonso Herrero and a powerful volley from Kylian Mbappe before half-time.

Substitute Arda Guler then completed the victory in injury time at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The victory saw Real collect nine points from three matches, two points ahead of Atletico Madrid and Alaves.

Barcelona are in fourth place with six points from two matches before hosting Rayo Vallecano tonight.

After fielding the same line-up against Espanyol and Real Sociedad in the opening two league matches, Mourinho made five changes with Marc Cucurella given his first start as a first-team player.

Trent Alexander-Arnold, selected over Denzel Dumfries, almost opened the scoring in the first minute when he curled an effort with the outside of his right foot that went just wide.

Malaga responded in the 15th minute when Joaquin Munoz unleashed a right-footed shot from outside the penalty area that almost beat Thibaut Courtois.

However, the visitors’ resilience did not last long.

Bellingham opened the scoring in the 19th minute with a solo run in the middle of the field.

He collected a loose ball near the penalty area line, passed three defenders before firing a low shot past Herrero.

Real doubled their lead seven minutes later through Mbappe.

Bellingham headed the ball back towards goal and when Herrero collided with a teammate while trying to clear the ball, it ended up bouncing into his own net.

Mbappe then made it 3-0 in the 30th minute when he met Alexander-Arnold’s cross with a stunning volley from the centre of the penalty area.

Real slowed down after the break, but Bellingham almost scored his second goal in the 55th minute when his shot from inside the penalty area hit the post.

The second half then proceeded without much threat until Guler, who had just been brought on, sparked and completed an interesting move.

He first passed the ball to Vinicius Jr before finishing the Brazilian’s pass back to complete Real’s big win.

Real Madrid return to action on Friday when they travel to Seville to face Real Betis in LaLiga action, before starting their Champions League campaign a few days later by hosting Inter Milan.

LONDON: Chelsea advanced to the third round of the League Cup after beating League One side Luton Town 2-0, with Danny Welbeck scoring on his debut in Xabi Alonso’s first competitive home game.

Despite pre-match speculation about the futures of Enzo Fernandez and goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, one of Chelsea’s under-appreciated new signings was a key figure in the victory.

Welbeck scored the opening goal shortly after the second half began when he headed in Malo Gusto’s cross to open Chelsea’s scoring account.

Alonso fielded a strong starting XI with Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and captain Reece James in the starting XI, as Chelsea dominated possession from the start.

“We want to have a squad that is complete in all aspects, in terms of quality, maturity and personality, with a mix of young and experienced players.

“It’s important for young players to get help to develop and in situations like that, experienced players help a lot.

“I’m happy with the energy and attitude of the players. The fans are also great, we’ve needed them all season. Now we’re resting and we’ll be back here (Stamford Bridge) on Sunday,” said Alonso.

Alonso, however, remained tight-lipped about Fernandez, who is reportedly close to joining Manchester City and is not in the squad, as well as Martinez, who is said to be moving from Aston Villa to Chelsea.

Palmer and Estevao were denied their best chances before Rogers rattled the crossbar at the end of the first half.

Luton put up stiff resistance against the hosts for most of the match, but failed to withstand the pressure after the break.

Welbeck’s powerful header finally broke the deadlock and turned the momentum of the match in Chelsea’s favor.

The victory was sealed with 10 minutes to go when Estevao made a dramatic move into the penalty area before missing an attempt, but the goal was ultimately recorded as an own goal by Luton defender Hakeem Odoffin.

Chelsea will face Leeds United in the next round.

Meanwhile, Rodrigo Muniz ended a goal drought of more than a year when he helped Fulham beat AFC Wimbledon 3-0 to advance to the third round and face West Ham.

Emile Smith Rowe opened the scoring for Fulham with a header from Kenny Tete’s cross in the first half before Muniz made it 2-0, also with a header from Tete’s pass.

The victory was Fulham’s first under new manager Alvaro Arbeloa, who made 10 changes after the defeat to Chelsea in the Premier League on Monday.

Summer signing Gonzalo Garcia completed Fulham’s victory with a stoppage-time goal.

MANCHESTER: Manchester United have completed the signing of Brighton midfielder Carlos Baleba for a transfer fee that could reach 70 million pounds, continuing their efforts to overhaul the club’s midfield.

Baleba, 22, signed a five-year contract at Old Trafford with the option of a 12-month extension after reaching personal terms and passing a medical.

United paid Brighton an initial £65 million, with up to a further £5 million in performance-based bonuses.

Brighton also included a resale clause in the deal.

The Cameroon international is currently sidelined with an ankle injury but becomes United’s third signing in the midfield position of the summer transfer window after Andrey Santos and Youri Tielemans.

In total, United spent 85 million pounds to acquire Santos and Tielemans before completing the purchase of Baleba.

Baleba, who has been linked with a move to Old Trafford for over a year, admitted that he cannot wait to wear the jersey of his dream club.

“It’s an incredible feeling to be joining my dream club. Playing at Old Trafford is always special, but to have the opportunity to do it as a Manchester United player is a huge honour.

“I’m looking forward to working with Michael Carrick. His experience and knowledge of the game make him the perfect coach to help me reach the highest level.

“The dreams of everyone at this club are very clear. The future is very exciting and I am determined to play a role in helping us achieve the success that we can achieve together,” he said.

United’s Director of Football, Jason Wilcox, described Baleba as a high-class midfielder who still has a lot of room to develop.

“Carlos is an elite midfielder with great potential to continue to develop. He brings a unique combination of qualities that will complement our squad.

“We are pleased to continue to strengthen our midfield with the arrival of another experienced international player who has proven his ability to perform in the Premier League.

“Carlos’ determination to join Manchester United and his belief that we can achieve our ambitions together make him the right player as we continue to build a dynamic and entertaining team, ready to compete in a variety of competitions,” he said.

Baleba’s presence is expected to relieve United fans who are disappointed with the lackluster start to the season after the team lost 0-2 to Hull City last Saturday.

LIVERPOOL: Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has described the club’s 2025 summer transfer window as potentially “one of the worst” in the history of the English Premier League (EPL).

After winning the league in his first season under Arne Slot, Liverpool spent around 450 million pounds on seven players, including 125 million pounds for Alexander Isak and 116 million pounds for Florian Wirtz.

However, apart from Hugo Ekitike, almost all of Liverpool’s new signings struggled to make an impact in their first season at Anfield as the Reds slipped to fifth place and Slot was sacked.

After Isak and Wirtz again failed to impress in the 2-2 draw against Newcastle on Sunday, Carragher gave a scathing assessment of Liverpool’s transfer dealings last summer.

“It’s only the first game of the season, but my concern is that the transfer window of the last 12 months may have left Liverpool a year or two behind to improve.

“Yes, this is just one game under (Andoni) Iraola, but we are talking about 12 months of below-par performance from all these players except Ekitike.

“If this situation doesn’t change in the next two or three months under Iraola, and these players don’t improve, I think we’re going to see it as one of the worst transfer windows we’ve ever seen in the history of the Premier League, when you consider the transfer fees and the impact on Liverpool,” said Carragher.

After losing four key players this summer – Mohamed Salah, Andy Robertson, Ibrahima Konate and Curtis Jones – the team under new manager Iraola fielded four players bought last season against Newcastle – Isak, Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez.

“The goal of getting these players is not just for them to be good players.

“It’s about building a little dynasty for Liverpool.

“Don’t forget, Liverpool won the league two years ago. These players should do what Manchester City have done in the past few years, or Manchester United in the past, by winning two or three titles in five years,” he said.

Wirtz in particular has been the target of criticism from the former Liverpool defender.

“The idea that players need a year to adapt to the EPL, I think it’s a bit of a myth. I don’t think there are too many examples that show that,” he added.

Carragher added: “I don’t think we’ve seen performance that’s been significantly below his level. What we’ve seen over the last year is probably his level, a neat and tidy footballer.

“Not a player who should be worth £110m, but maybe a player worth £50m to £60m. Neat and tidy, a nice touch. I’m not sure what people expect from him.”

Liverpool will be back in action against Nottingham Forest at Anfield on Saturday.