Man City's Kyle Walker heads up the Premier League's most overpriced stars this summer

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  • Premier League clubs haven’t been shy of spending big this summer.

    Indeed, it’s likely this will be the highest-spending transfer window to date as teams show no signs of slowing down.

    New signings are a delight for fans but has the money been spent right?

    Here’s five picks we think big bucks may have been slightly misplaced, or at least too many extra digits added in the cheque book.

    KYLE WALKER – TOTTENHAM TO MAN CITY

    The Tottenham full-back joined Manchester City in a deal worth up to £50m earlier this month – and the fee itself raised a few eyebrows.

    While Pep Guardiola’s obsession with speedy and attacking full-backs is widely known, few expected City to spend so big on Walker – a man who was ousted from the first-team picture by Kieran Trippier last term.

    In his eight seasons at Spurs, Walker of course won plenty of plaudits for being one of the league’s standout right-backs and has featured regularly for England, but for a player who is often criticised for his defensive frailties and indeed his end product when going forward, his price tag seems very steep.

    While £50million is definitely the new £20million in today’s market, Walker’s value is still richly inflated. That’s no fault of the player but is he good enough to live up to such a billing?

    For starters, he has to fight off fellow new signing Danilo to become the club’s main man at right-back.

    HOUSTON, TX - JULY 20: Marcus Rashford #19 of Manchester United runs down the ball as Kyle Walker #2 of Manchester City pursues at NRG Stadium on July 20, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)

    Walker the Sky Blue.

    MICHAEL KEANE – BURNLEY TO EVERTON

    The 24-year-old centre-back was one bright spark in a miserable campaign for the Clarets last time out and while the former Manchester United man is a solid defender, there’s debate over whether he’s worth £30million.

    Again, another illustration of today’s inflated prices and the fact Burnley knew the Blues had cash to burn.

    Keane will no doubt help sure up what was a leaky Toffees backline at times last season but doubts remain over his pace and certainly his ability to play and bring the ball out of defence.

    He is likely to replace Phil Jagielka as a first-choice central defender and you have to wonder how much Jags would have been worth, if his pomp was in 2017. It’s a generalisation, but there’s not too much between the two.

    DE LUTTE, NETHERLANDS - JULY 19: Michael Keane of Everton runs with the ball during a preseason friendly match between FC Twente and Everton FC at Sportpark de Stockakker on July 19, 2017 in De Lutte, Netherlands. (Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)

    Keane made his competitive Everton debut in the Europa League last week.

    MARKO ARNAUTOVIC – STOKE CITY TO WEST HAM

    On his day, the towering Austrian is one of those players who can wreck havoc on the pitch.

    The sad thing is, he has failed to do this on a consistent basis and his attitude has often been found wanting, something Mark Hughes can probably attest to – and no doubt played a role in his departure.

    The way Arnautovic instigated his exit from the Potters was perhaps par for the course in terms of modern football, handing in a transfer request and then subsequently throwing his toys out the pram.

    That did for West Ham though, with Slaven Bilic’s men shelling out £25million on his signing alongside the most expensive pay package in the club’s history with wages up to £140,000 a week.

    He’ll get his fair share of goals next season but many would say he isn’t as good as he thinks he is, with work-rate, productivity in front of goal and his general enthusiasm on the pitch sometimes not being reflective of the faith managers have placed in him.

    It’ll be interesting to see how it all pans out at the Olympic Stadium given they are in desperate need of goals and he’s only hit double figures twice in his career.

    STOKE ON TRENT, ENGLAND - MAY 13: Marko Arnautovic of Stoke City during the Premier League match between Stoke City and Arsenal at Bet365 Stadium on May 13, 2017 in Stoke on Trent, England. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

    Arnautovic the hammer.

    NATHAN AKE – CHELSEA TO BOURNEMOUTH

    The talented Dutchman didn’t exactly set the world alight during his loan spell with the south coast club last term, but he did enough for Eddie Howe to make the move permanent and pay Chelsea a club-record £20million for his signature.

    Ake registered three goals in 10 Premier League appearances last season – an impressive goalscoring feat for a centre-back – but of greater concern would have been his lack of game time.

    While that could likely change come August, doubts remain over the 22-year-old’s ability as a top-class defender. The fact he failed to ever establish himself at Chelsea only adds further wait to this argument.

    Bournemouth have paid a massively inflated price for his services and it seems risky business when they could have brought in more experience.

    MARBELLA, SPAIN - JULY 15: Nathan Ake of AFC Bournemouth looks on during a Pre Season Friendly match between AFC Bournemouth and Estoril Praia at the Marbella Football Center on July 15, 2017 in Marbella, Spain. (Photo by Aitor Alcalde/Getty Images)

    Now a permanent Cherrie.

    JAVIER MANQUILLO – ATLETICO MADRID TO NEWCASTLE

    Ask Liverpool fans what they remember of the Spanish right-back from his loan stint at Anfield during the 2014-15 season and you’ll be greeted with a wry smile. Manquillo was a huge miss on Merseyside, and since then, has done little to enhance his reputation.

    Last season, he was again on loan in the Premier League, at Sunderland, during their torrid relegation campaign – so that’s why it was so surprising to see Newcastle pay his parent club Atletico Madrid £4.5million for his signature.

    It’s actually a bit of a bizarre signing and a baffling one at that, but Manquillo is still only 23 despite his plethora of clubs to date.

    Toon fans may actually like how Manquillo played a part in their bitter rivals’ drop from the big time – he should definitely use that to his advantage when settling in at St James’ Park.

    HULL, ENGLAND - MAY 06: Javi Manquillo of Sunderland controls the ball during the Premier League match between Hull City and Sunderland at KCOM Stadium on May 6, 2017 in Hull, England. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

    Manquillo was a Black Cat last term.

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