Good work Shader as always.
The CIES released a post-window transfer analysis today that has some interesting data, although no big surprises.
http://www.football-observatory.com/IMG/sites/mr/mr27/en/
No surprise that 2017 saw more massive increases in spending, particularly in England.
Specifically regarding Chelsea, I keep reading that the club didn't do much in the transfer market. I understand that sentiment, but the club spent over 230 million Euros! That's second only to ManCity and PSG in all of Europe. I understand that Matic wanted to leave based on Bakayoko coming in. He was a pro about it and in those cases, the club will let him go where he wants assuming a decent price is offered - they did the same with Cech, Lukaku, DeBruyne, Bamford, Bertrand, Challoba, Ake and others. The only regret I have with this window is Chelsea could not find a solution for Diego Costa, so that's an ongoing headache that should have been dealt with. Its probably a very difficult situation though, as he went publicly hostile with his negotiations, made clear there's only one destination for him, and unfortunately that club has a transfer ban and doesn't seem to want him as badly as he wants them. Its a pretty informative contrast this summer between Matic and Costa in terms of how a wantaway Chelsea player should conduct himself in order to get what he wants, even if what he wants is to play for a rival.
PL is poised for another entertaining season. Lots of mid-week action and should be a good battle for the league and the top 4 spots.