Manchester City's Late Deadline-Day Raid Lands Enzo Fernandez and Iliman Ndiaye
Main stories
Manchester City agreed a British-record-equalling £125m deal with Chelsea for Enzo Fernandez on transfer deadline day, days after missing an earlier deadline Chelsea had set for bids. The Argentina midfielder signed a five-year contract to reunite with head coach Enzo Maresca, his former manager at Stamford Bridge, in a fee matching what Liverpool paid Newcastle for Alexander Isak on deadline day last year; Chelsea make an £18m profit having signed Fernandez for £107m three and a half years ago.
City also completed a separate deadline-day move for Everton's Iliman Ndiaye, worth up to £65m, after their pursuit of Liverpool's Cody Gakpo fell through. Ndiaye had been close to joining Tottenham earlier in the week before City stepped in, and the Senegal international signed a five-year deal; Jack Grealish joined Everton on loan as part of the surrounding deadline-day business.
Folarin Balogun's move from Monaco to Everton collapsed on deadline day after concerns were raised about his medical, according to Monaco's sporting director. Everton reportedly resolved the medical questions later in the evening and were ready to proceed, but Balogun said he was "not comfortable" with how the club had handled the process and the deal fell through; he has since been left out of Monaco's Europa Conference League squad.
Tottenham completed a double deadline-day deal with Chelsea, signing Mykhailo Mudryk on a season-long loan with a £75m option to make the move permanent and defender Tosin Adarabioyo for around £7m. Mudryk, who had been sidelined since November 2024 during a doping ban that was lifted earlier this summer, said he was excited to reunite with head coach Roberto De Zerbi, whom he previously played under at Shakhtar Donetsk.
Transfer and squad notes
Premier League clubs spent more than £2bn combined over the summer window, with Chelsea the league's highest spenders despite offloading Fernandez, Mudryk and Adarabioyo on deadline day.
Liverpool's Conor Bradley and Hugo Ekitike remain long-term absentees, while Giovanni Leoni, out since an ACL injury in September 2025, is set to return to team training during the international break; Fulham are without Tom Cairney until after the break with a knee problem.
What it means for the league
Manchester City's double deadline-day swoop signals Enzo Maresca reshaping the squad in his own image just weeks into his tenure, adding a familiar midfielder and a forward option in one afternoon. Chelsea's willingness to sell three first-team players on the final day, even at a discount on Fernandez, points to a club prioritising squad turnover over retaining deadline-day leverage. With league fixtures paused for internationals, the transfer fallout and injury updates from clubs like Liverpool and Fulham are shaping how the September fixtures resume from Saturday.