Man City net spend: How does it compare to other PL clubs over the last decade? | OneFootball

Manchester City have been the dominant team in the last decade, winning six out of the 10 available Premier League trophies. But just how much have they spent to get there?

Many argue that City are only successful due to the riches that they have at their disposal. And that spending and success has been shrouded in controversy ever since the club were charged by the Premier League for financial breaches this year.

But as we have seen with Chelsea under Todd Boehly, a big outlay does not necessarily guarantee results. And those who contest the idea that wealth breeds success will also point out that City’s recent triumphs in the last five years have come with a lower net spend than that of their rivals.

Pep Guardiola has referred to it in the past, as has Gary Neville, who highlighted the point ahead of City’s match against Chelsea.

“I know some people sometimes focus on the other things around Manchester City, the amount of money that has been spent, but if you look at the amount of money which has been spent in the last four or five years, it hasn’t been too different than other clubs,” he said. In fact, other clubs have spent more.”

And to a point, he is right. In the last five years, City only have the 10th highest net spend in the league, less than the likes of Newcastle, and Aston Villa.

But thanks to Transfermarkt, we can go back further, take a look at the figures for net spend in the last 10 years, and compare City’s expenditure to other clubs in the top flight.

Premier League 10 year net spend. Figures from Transfermarkt.

According to Transfermarkt, City’s net outlay for the last decade is around €984.42 million.

By taking their five-year net spend (€259.64m) away from that, we can see that City’s net spend between 2013 and the end of the 2017/18 season was around €724 million.

That’s nearly triple their expenses in the five subsequent years, and that stint mentioned above is part of the period that they are being investigated over.

Some big sums were forked out in that time for players who made varying impacts at the Etihad. Fernandinho certainly proved to be a hit, but no City fan would argue that the €45 million forked out on Eliaquim Mangala was money well spent.

Within that time though, several players signed for big money that are still playing today. The likes of Kevin De Bruyne, John Stones, Kyle Walker and Bernardo Silva were all signed before the 2018/19 summer window.

City spent heavily and built an elite squad long ago. The last five years have been about refreshing the team. A Raheem Sterling out, and an Erling Haaland in.

Selling high-value players and replacing cogs in the machine has kept their net spend in the last five years comparatively low, but they rise up the rankings once the five years before then are factored in.

United, Chelsea and Arsenal in the top four but not as successful

But City are not the only club to have spent exorbitant sums in the last decade. Three other big teams make up the top-four spots for net 10-year spend, but they have had a fraction of City’s success.

Topping the rankings are United, and it’s hardly a shock to see them there. They have spent big in recent years, as well as over the last decade, which brings in the purchases of Alexis Sanchez and Paul Pogba by the Old Trafford club.

Importantly, both those players left for nothing, keeping United's total outgoings extremely high.

Chelsea’s presence is also unsurprising, especially given the spending spree under Todd Boehly this campaign.

Big-money signings have arrived over the years like Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas, and Tiemoué Bakayoko to name a few, with the latter still on the books - and valued at a fraction of what Chelsea paid for him.

But they rank lower for net spend than both Manchester clubs due to the €115 million sale of Eden Hazard to Real Madrid in 2019.

Arsenal, meanwhile, are more of a shock, given that they are not usually seen as regular big spenders like the aforementioned clubs.

But yearly expenses have rarely been recouped from player sales, apart from 2017/18 where their sales exceeded their spending.

With the exception of Chelsea, none of the teams above have experienced City’s level of success in the last 10 years. Does this just underline that City’s recruitment and transfer policy is simply smarter than that of their rivals?

Only one club in profit

Other teams have varying net spends in the last decade, but to end on a lighter note, we thought it would be fitting to draw attention to two outliers, both embodiments of David vs Goliath.

Brighton and Brentford prop up the table, with the Bees ranking as the only club to make a profit over the last 10 years.

Given their league positions today, it goes to show that you do not need to spend big money to get results.

Granted, each club was only recently promoted to the Premier League and their spending has increased since then. But never to the sort of outrageous level demonstrated by Nottingham Forest upon their return to the top-flight.

With talented players like Ben White and Ollie Watkins also moved on for big sums, it’s a testament to the player recruitment and player development done at both clubs.