It was a busy day at Chelsea on transfer deadline day, with new players coming in and others leaving.

Although, one deal did fall through...

• Midfielder Enzo Fernandez has joined Manchester City in a deal worth £125m.
• Atalanta's 18-year-old Honest Ahanor has signed in a deal worth up to £40m and will officially move to Stamford Bridge next summer.
• Striker Marc Guiu has joined Bundesliga side RB Leipzig for £14.6m, including add-ons.
• Striker Deivid Washington has signed for Strasbourg in a permanent deal.
• Midfielder Dario Essugo has joined Strasbourg on a season-long loan.
• Goalkeeper Robert Sanchez has joined Serie A side Como on loan for the remainder of the season.
• Chelsea forward Dujuan Richards has joined AFC Wimbledon on loan for the rest of the season.
• Winger Mykhailo Mudryk has moved to Tottenham on a season-long loan with an option to buy for £75m.
• Defender Tosin Adarabioyo has signed for Tottenham in a permanent deal.

Worst window in 20 years? That's a big statement, Sean.

Let's move away from the north West and head south to London, because there is plenty to talk about at Chelsea...

Mohamed Moallim
BBC Sport journalist

Bradley Barcola is a left winger by trade, having played almost all of his Champions League minutes for PSG on that flank, but his game is shaped by a centre-forward's instincts. He played as a striker until the age of 17, something reflected in his movement and shot selection.

Last season, he averaged 3.5 shots per 90 minutes in Ligue 1, placing him among the division's most active shooters despite operating from wide areas.

His 9.83 expected goals (xG) ranked in the 95th percentile among wingers across Europe's top five leagues, meaning only around 5% of wide players consistently found themselves in better goalscoring positions.

Barcola converted those chances into 11 league goals, outperforming his xG, while no PSG player or Ligue 1 winger recorded a higher xG total during the 2025-26 campaign.

Those instincts are reflected in how he attacks defenders. Barcola was the only player across Europe's top five leagues to average more than two shot-ending carries per 90 minutes (2.06), illustrating his ability to drive at opponents before creating shooting opportunities for himself.

He also averaged 8.69 touches in the opposition penalty area per 90 minutes - the seventh-highest figure among more than 1,500 eligible players - reinforcing the profile of a winger who consistently occupies goalscoring positions.

His shot map highlights a player who attacks dangerous central areas rather than settling for speculative efforts from distance. Only Ousmane Dembele had a better combined shot volume with chance creation in Ligue 1, underlining Barcola's rare ability to both finish attacks and create opportunities for team-mates.

His work without the ball is another reason Liverpool's recruitment team admired him. Barcola ranked ninth across Europe's top five leagues for possessions won in the final third last season, a metric that reflects the aggressive pressing and intensity demanded under Andoni Iraola.

Phil McNulty
BBC Sport chief football writer

Liverpool's main task this summer after appointing Andoni Iraola to replace sacked Arne Slot, was to somehow compensate for what they would miss without Mohamed Salah after he left Anfield at the end of last season.

Bradley Barcola was the prime target and eventually signed from Paris Saint-Germain for £123m. He possesses lightning pace, creativity and goals, but he is not a like-for-like replacement for Salah, preferring to operate on the left.

Victor Munoz, a member of Spain's World Cup-winning squad, is another wide man who has already shown what he can deliver with a spectacular equaliser in the 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest.

Rather than simply replace Salah, Liverpool's strategy has been to find a way to get goals from the wide positions and elsewhere rather that focus on one single player to replace the Egyptian.

All very well – but Liverpool's opening draws against Newcastle United and Forest showed a fault which holed them below the waterline last season has not been addressed.

The lack of a natural number "6" has left a midfield imbalance that leaves them horribly vulnerable to counter-attacks. Teams can still run straight through Liverpool, but Iraola showed no inclination to make a signing in that position.

Can Liverpool cure that tendency to be exposed? This could be the flaw that stops them making amends for their dismal title defence last season.

Image source, Getty Images

Aadam Patel
Football Reporter

Image source, Getty Images

All summer, Andoni Iraola has said that he will be "comfortable" come the start of September when the transfer window is over and he has certainty over his squad.

That moment has now arrived.

Senior figures at Liverpool said from the outset that this was never going to be a transfer window like last summer, when the club spent a then record £415m under Arne Slot and broke the British transfer record twice by signing Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak.

Last summer, Liverpool also made £188m from selling players such as Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez and Jarell Quansah and ended the window with a net spend of £227m.

If you include Jeremy Jacquet (a deal confirmed in January), then Liverpool's net spend is not hugely dissimilar this summer at just under £200m - having also signed Victor Munoz, Ronald Araujo on loan and Bradley Barcola for a combined total of £217.5m.

But they have lost senior figures with Mohamed Salah, Andy Robertson and Ibrahima Konate all leaving for free and Curtis Jones moving to Inter Milan in a deal worth £30m. Liverpool then rejected a bid worth £80m from Manchester City for Cody Gakpo as they were unable to get a replacement.

On the basis of their first two Premier League games, there is certainly a feeling that Liverpool have left themselves short after their struggles last season.

Where concern lies is the lack of quality squad depth at the back and the absence of an out-and-out defensive midfielder but Iraola's side will end the window having made the second most expensive signing of the summer in France forward Barcola, who chose the Reds despite interest from other clubs including Arsenal.

Anfield needs some excitement after a below-par campaign last season which ultimately saw Slot lose the support of the fanbase and his job, a year after winning the Premier League.

Image source, Getty Images

Liverpool completed the signing of 18-year-old goalkeeper Lucca Brughmans from Belgian side Genk in a deal that could be worth up to £30m including add-ons.

Brughmans, who is 6ft 7in, has agreed a six-year contract with Liverpool and will remain at Genk on loan this season before moving to Anfield ahead of the 2027-28 campaign.

The Belgian keeper has started all four of Genk's games this season and has represented his country at youth level.

BBC Sport understands that there is an initial fee alongside follow up payments and the figure of around £30m is at the top of what can be achieved.

The deal for Brughmans came about as a result of work from Liverpool's global talent department that is led by Matt Newberry.

• Midfielder Harvey Elliott joined La Liga side Valencia on a season-long loan.
• Academy forward Keyrol Figueroa joined League Two Port Vale on a season-long loan.
• Liverpool completed the signing of goalkeeper Lucca Brughmans from KRC Genk. The 18-year-old will remain on loan at the Belgian top-flight side for the remainder of the season.

Earlier, we discussed Everton's chaotic end to the transfer window, so let's check in on their red neighbours and see how they have got on...

BBC Radio Newcastle's Newcastle United commentator Matthew Raisbeck on the Magpies' deadline day:

"It's nice to not have the drama and the anxiety and disappointment of last year's summer transfer window and it's been a relatively straightforward day for Newcastle and a rather positive end to the window as well which maybe at one point in the summer we wouldn't have seen coming."

Former Newcastle defender John Anderson on which of the Magpies new signings will be the biggest success: "I think that [Amar] Dedic has been great, but I think the one I'm really looking forward to seeing is [Sean] Steur."

"I think at 18 years of age, coming from where he's come from, through that Ajax academy, he is what you would expect him to be. From an early age he's brought up with the ball, to be able to control the ball, to be able to pass the ball, to be able to see a pass and he most definitely can do that.

"He's comfortable on the ball, he wants the ball on all areas of the pitch, he goes looking for it, he plays beyond his years of 18 years of age and he can only get better."

Do you agree with Anderson, or will another arrival at St James' Park be the best? Let us know your thoughts by using the 'Get involved' button.

Image source, Getty Images

French football journalist Jibril Diop on Newcastle signing young Belgian winger Matias Fernandez-Pardo from Lille:

"They're getting a player who's obviously very young, 21 years old. His best attribute is probably one-on-one dribbling. He's very technically gifted as well and obviously, he can improve and become the world beater that Newcastle expect him to be at some point."

"When he was in Belgium, in the academy, there was a coach who said that he's Eden Hazard without the finishing product, without the finishing touch. So there's always been that comparison with Hazard, but he's not going to be as good as Hazard. He's not got that 'it' factor Eden Hazard had when he was at Lille."

It seems that Newcastle boss Matthias Jaissle is just as excited as Matias Fernandez-Pardo about the move.

"I am very happy to welcome Matias to our club," Jaissle said. "We were all delighted when we knew we could complete this deal.

"Matias is a highly technical player with explosiveness in his game. He can score and assist, he has courage, and he has the ability to take players on. We're sure our supporters will enjoy watching him play.

"He has already shown in Lille that he can perform on the big stage, and we will work closely with him to keep developing his game further. We are excited to see him in a Newcastle United shirt."

Image source, Getty Images

Matias Fernandez-Pardo says it "made complete sense" to join Newcastle after speaking with head coach Matthias Jaissle.

"I'm really, really happy to be here and very proud to be at such a big club," Fernandez-Pardo said. "I spoke to the head coach and he really showed how much he wanted me to be here.

"In terms of my own career progression, it made complete sense to come so I didn't hesitate at all.

"I know the club, I know about the stadium, I know it's a fantastic atmosphere. I've followed the team. What I've seen is a team that's very ambitious, wants to attack, get forward, really chase teams and go after them, and that's really something I want to take part in as well.

"I'm still young, I'm still hungry, and that's why I'm here, and I want to make that progress with Newcastle. I can't wait to start the wonderful adventure here."

Image source, Getty Images

Former Newcastle defender John Anderson on Nick Woltemade's loan to Juventus:

"We felt that he may be better off going to another European league, where the pace of the game isn't as quick, isn't as physical, may well suit him more."

"I think when Fernandez-Pardo came in, it just opened the door for Nick Woltemade to get away to play regular first-team football because I don't think it was ever going to be the case here."

"Osula has moved ahead of him. Wissa has had an outstanding start to the season and with Fernandez-Pardo coming in, you would think that he was going to jump ahead of him as well. So I think it benefits both sides to be quite honest."