The European Championships are over and teams across Europe and the world are preparing themselves for the season's start in August.
For many, that means making changes to their playing squad in readiness for the new campaign.
Every summer, the top teams in world football vie to buy or sell footballing aces for the best possible price. Sometimes a particular purchase proves to be a bargain. Other times, it can be an expensive mistake. That's the risk of a summer transfer.
With that in mind, we have taken a look through some of the summer transfers that have already been agreed ahead of the start of the 2024/25 season.
And below, we bring you our top ten summer transfers so far, and why the deal is such a good one for the club.
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Of course, the transfer window is not yet closed, so more summer transfers can and will happen. But at the moment, here are our top ten summer transfer deals of the 2024 season so far.
The greatest player in the world at present, moving in his prime, on a free transfer. Whatever summer this transfer happened, it would have been number one on the list of any summer transfer deals.
Since he burst onto the scene as a youngster at AS Monaco, Kylian Mbappe has promised and delivered so much. He has won everything possible in France, but a Champions League winners medal eludes him. However, with four goals in two World Cup Final appearances and one winners medal in that tournament, he still has time on his side to add to that incredible list of honours.
He will do so at Real Madrid, the most successful Champions League team in history and current Champions of Europe. Next season, he will play alongside Vinicius Junior, Jude Bellingham, Jose Valverde, Rodrygo, and compatriots Eduoardo Camavinga and Aurielen Tchouameni.
That is a scary prospect for La Liga and Champions League teams draw against the 15-time winners this season.
Borussia Dortmund are well known for picking up some great value summer transfers and they have done it again by securing the services of striker Serhou Guirassy from rivals VfB Stuttgart for just £15.5m.
The Guinea international may not be a big name in England just yet, but he is valued at £40m and in 58 appearances for Stuttgart over the last couple of campaigns, he has scored an incredible 44 goals.
He should form an impressive front duo for Dortmund alongside German international Niklas Fullkrug and for £15.5m, is an absolute steal for the German Champions League finalists of last season. It looks like they’ve landed another outstanding bargain in the summer transfer window.
Short stocky, compared to players like Romario, with a touch of Ronaldinho, Endrick is one of the new great hopes of Brazilian football. Real Madrid had actually agreed a deal for the Brazilian last summer, but agreed to let him stay on at Palmeiras until he reached 18.
That has happened and he completed the summer transfer a few weeks back. He will now join up a fearsome attack at Real Madrid alongside fellow Brazilians Vinicius Jnr and Rodrygo, plus Kylian Mbappe and England’s Jude Bellingham.
Rumours surrounding Joao Palhinha’s exit from Fulham were in the air in the previous summer transfer window. Although a move did not surface at that time, the Portuguese anchoring midfielder has now made the move, joining Bayern Munich in a deal worth around £45m to the London side.
New Bayern boss Vincent Kompany has been raiding the Premier League for a couple of stars to strengthen his team and Palhinha will do that in midfield where his physicality, engine, height and quality on the ball should make him a firm favourite at the Allianz Arena.
A former Futsal international, Max Kilman made the transition to top-level football relatively late in his career, but he has shone at Wolves over the last few seasons, proving to be an outstanding central defender at Premier League level.
The defender had been linked with moves to Arsenal, Manchester United, and Liverpool, but in the end, West Ham United made the move. Manager Julen Lopetegui, his former manager at Wolves, recognising his talents and bringing him to be the defensive lynchpin at his new-look West Ham United team next season.
Strongly linked with a move to Real Madrid, Chelsea, Paris St Germain and Arsenal over the last few months, it was Erik Ten Hag and Manchester United who finally agreed a price for the exciting 18-year-old central defender. Agreeing a price of over £50m to secure his services from Lille. An expensive but necessary summer transfer for many United fans.
A rangy, pacy defender with a calm demeanour and good on the ball, Yoro has drawn favourable comparisons with an ex-Manchester United French defender Raphael Varane, when Varane was at his peak.
If Yoro can shore up the leaky defence that United suffered from last season, then it will certainly be money well spent, especially on a player who is still a teenager.
I’m loathe to include this deal on the summer transfer list as, to me, it is just another example of how groups like the City Group are ruining football. Troyes, a member of the City Group, signed Savinho as a youngster and loaned him to Girona, another member of the City Group, last season. There, the Brazilian winger was outstanding, leading to Girona qualifying for the Champions League next season.
He scored 9 goals in 37 appearances for Girona and then scored in the Copa America for Brazil in the summer. Then suddenly Manchester City had ‘agreed’ a fee with Troyes, a club their owners already own, for £20m. For a 20-year-old Brazilian international in the team ahead of Endrick, Gabriel Martinelli and a number of other top stars.
It’s a great deal for City, that is for certain. But is it in the spirit of the game? I’m not so sure. Troyes have been short-changed. But their owners won’t care as it helps their main focus. It’s the Troyes fans who will feel his departure most keenly.
Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz has enjoyed a fantastic few years at Villa Park after making thw switch from Manchester City. The talented midfielder was reportedly a target for a number of big teams in the Champions League, and it is Italian giants Juventus who have landed the midfielder on a summer transfer.
Juve paid just £45m for the Brazilian international, which is a bargain given that Luiz’s price a few months back was slated to be around the £60m-£70m mark. Villa boss Unai Emery is making some brave moves in the transfer market this summer ahead of a Champions League campaign. Selling Luiz may not be the wisest of those moves however.
For Juventus, Luiz offers a direct replacement for the departed Adrian Rabiot.
Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner could be forced into a major rebuild this summer. Michael Olise has already left the club to join Bayern Munich in a £60m deal, and rumours are that Marc Guehi and Eberechi Eze could follow in other summer transfer exits.
The Frenchman will play at the Olympics for France before heading to Bayern this summer, but he will prove to be a shrewd signing, offering Bayern an additional option out wide, especially with the futures of Kingsley Coman, Leroy Sane and Serge Gnabry by no means certain.
England striker Harry Kane will be relishing the chances that Olise could provide for him in the team.
Having spent £80m on Rasmus Hojlund last season, United have splashed another big fee on Joshua Zirkzee from Bologna. The Dutch striker enjoyed a great season with Bologna last season, playing a key role as his team qualified for the Champions League.
The tall striker made two appearances for the Netherlands in Euro 2024 too and he looks like being the perfect foil for Hojlund to work off. If United choose to play with two central strikers in the team.
Remember, if you would like to have a bet on some other potential transfers this summer involving some big-name stars, you can do so.
Check out the Specials section at bet365 Sport and select the Transfer Specials to bring up a list of players who may or may not be on the move over what remains of the current transfer window.
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