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The transfer window usually dominates discussions over the summer, but this is rarely the case in tournament years as the market is forced to take a back seat. But business never sleeps and several deals have gone unnoticed at the 2026 World Cup. After five and a half weeks and some 104 matches, the big event is finally over, meaning attention can now turn to the comings and goings at club level.
In the Premier League, an extraordinary amount of money is once again being spent. We saw Tottenham splurge on Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes, Elliot Anderson swapped Nottingham Forest for Manchester City for a huge sum and Chelsea made Morgan Rogers the most expensive British player of all time after
But it’s not just the big hitters who have been spending money this summer, with a number of relatively low-key moves while all eyes were on the tournament across the Atlantic.
So here are 10 Premier League transfers you may have missed during the World Cup…
Emersonn (Toulouse to Ipswich Town, £26.5m)
Ipswich quietly broke their World Cup transfer record after returning to the Premier League after a season away, making a big splash by signing young Brazilian striker Emersonn (yes, with two N’s) from Ligue 1 club Toulouse in a deal worth £26.5 million ($35.5 million).
There certainly appears to be some risk attached to the move, given that the 22-year-old is obviously unproven in England’s top flight and his return of six goals and two assists in the league last season is not particularly promising. When you take into account the potential financial implications of relegation at the end of 2026-27, there is a lot of pressure for this move to go through.
Joao Gomes (Wolves to Aston Villa, £38m)
This isn’t strictly a transfer that happened during the World Cup, with the move being announced the day after the final, but Aston Villa certainly put this deal in place while the tournament was still underway. The Midlands club quickly signed a replacement for Youri Tielemanss, who joined Manchester United only a week ago,
The £38 million ($51 million) fee seems a bit high, but Gomes is a Brazil international and has proven himself in the Premier League since his time at Molineux. A trim, trim midfielder who loves to bite into tackles, he’s not an identical replacement for the more attacking Tielemans, but Unai Emery will be hoping that, at 25, the new man can further develop his game at Villa Park in a more fluid team. He follows
Illan Meslier (Leeds United to Arsenal, free)
Arsenal have a new backup goalkeeper in their ranks after
It remains to be seen whether he will be second or third choice behind David Rayaa, amid uncertainty surrounding Kepa Arrizabalaga’s future in north London. It has been reported that Arsenal would not stand in the way of the 31-year-old former Chelsea goalkeeper if an approach was made.
Oscar Mingueza (Celta Vigo to Crystal Palace, free)
While the rest of the football world was focused on events in North America, Crystal Palace could have pulled off one of the shrewdest moves of the transfer window by bringing in Oscar Mingueza, who was
Trained at Barcelona’s famous La Masia academy, Mingueza has been a standout player in La Liga over the past 18 months and was even linked with Arsenal and Juventus before landing in south London. Despite missing out on a place in Spain’s World Cup-winning squad, the 27-year-old is a full international who brings versatility and experience. This seems like a very smart deal.
Marco Palestra to Chelsea (Atalanta to Chelsea, £47m)
The first signing of the Xabi Alonso era at Chelsea is
A marauding and versatile full-back who was named Serie A defender of the year after an impressive season on loan at Cagliari, the 21-year-old arrived at Stamford Bridge for a fee of £47 million ($62 million). Alonso is understood to have signed the move, with the young defender looking perfectly suited to the Spanish tactician’s preferred three or four-back systems, given he can operate on either flank as a winger or full-back.
Alvaro Rodriguez (Elche to Bournemouth, £26m)
Bournemouth have built a reputation for unearthing young gems in the transfer market, and they hope to have pulled off another shrewd move by bringing in Elche striker AlvarRodriguezez. The 22-year-old Uruguayan, from the Real Madrid academy, impressed last season despite Elche’s flirtation with relegation.
Rodriguez has contributed to 12 La Liga goals, and Bournemouth took a leap of faith by investing a hefty fee of £26 million ($34 million) in his services. The hope will be that he can translate this form to the Premier League as he develops, and he could well replace sensation Eli Junior Kroupi, 20, who is attracting the attention of the ‘big six’.
Bazoumana Touré (Hoffenheim to Newcastle, £43m)
In terms of reporting and big name signings, Newcastle’s transfer window has yet to go exactly as planned. The Magpies have been pointed at a number of key targets for the second summer in a row after their nightmare 2025, including Victor Munozoz, who is joining Liverpool, and the aforementioned Manzambi, who has signed for Aston Villa.
The Tynesiders have, however, decided to add a number of highly-rated youngsters to their squad, with the biggest spend being made.
Touré was quickly followed at St James’ Park by Ajax midfielder Sean Steurur, 18, who himself cost £23 million ($31 million).
Callum Wilson (West Ham to Brentford, free)
West Ham may have been relegated, but veteran striker Callum Wilson won’t be going down with them after jumping ship at the end of his one-year contract and swapping east London for west by joining Brentford on another short-term deal. It follows the arrival of Jaidon Anthonyny in what looks like a £20 million ($27 million) bargain from relegated Burnley.
Wilson is likely to play second fiddle to Tigor Thiagogo at the Gtech Stadium after the Brazilian’s prolific 2025-26 campaign, which earned him a World Cup call-up for Brazil, and the England international has his sights set on reaching 100 Premier League goals. He currently sits at 95.
Harry Wilson (Fulham to Leeds United, free transfer)
Could this prove to be one of the Premier League signings of the summer?! Top clubs were lining up to sign Harry Wilson after his contract with Fulham expired and a sublime individual season yielded 11 goals and eight assists in all competitions, with the former Liverpool man belatedly discovering the form of his life at the age of 29.
Quite unexpectedly, it was Leeds who won the fierce battle to sign Wilson as a free agent. Announcing the Welshman’s arrival, the Yorkshire club said the striker had chosen him from “several offers from elsewhere”, a list which could well include Aston Villa, who were heavily linked earlier this summer and have once again qualified for the Champions League.
Los Blancos then took the lead over their rivals again by bringing in Bosnian centre-back Tarik Muharemovic from Sassuolo following his impressive performances in the World Cup.
Zadok Yohanna (AIK to Brighton, £26m)
You’d be forgiven for not having heard of Zadok Yohanna (neither have we, to be honest!), but he could well be the latest in a string of brilliant deals from the brains behind the infinitely profitable Brighton model. The Nigerian winger isn’t as cheap as some of the club’s biggest hits, but that’s probably because he has a very high ceiling.
Yohanna was signed to Stockholm-based AIK earlier this summer for a cool £26 million ($34 million), but don’t be surprised if he is sold for a significant profit over the next few years. The 19-year-old had already scored nine goals in just 12 appearances during the Swedish 2026 season (which runs from April to November) before joining the Seagulls, who had otherwise been focused on strengthening their backline with Leeds’ Pascal Struijkjk and Tottenham prospect Luka Vuskovicic.
