As more and more money is being pumped into the English Premier League, transfer fees are increasing exponentially from one transfer window to another. During the 2014 summer transfer window that closed on the first of September, a record £835 million was spent by Premier League clubs.

Six of these clubs have broken their club-record transfer fee during this window. Another six club records have been broken since January 2013 making the total of new club-record transfer fees twelve; that’s TWELVE clubs out of the twenty current Premier League sides that have paid an unprecedented amount of money in their history in the past 18 months. Ridiculous? Beyond ridiculous!

However, that’s the reality of modern soccer and below we analyze all the club-record signings of each Premier League side. The list has everything – flops, club heroes, genuine world class stars, mediocre performers and unproven players.

Two players actually appear twice on the list – Andy Carroll and Steven Fletcher – while four of the transfers actually took place in January transfer windows. Exactly half of these transfers have seen players join from foreign clubs with four involving one of the Madrid clubs.

Arsenal
Mesut Özil – £42.5 million from Real Madrid (Summer 2013)

The transfer that caught everyone by surprise a year ago, as the normally miserly Arsene Wenger splashed out the cash big time to get a world class talent to the Emirates. Özil may not have reached the heights expected from him from one game to another last season, but there’s no doubt as to the psychological impact such a move had on his new team-mates.

Fresh from a humbling defeat to Aston Villa on the opening day of the 2013/2014 season, many doubted Arsenal’s ability to retain a top 4 position but this all changed with Özil’s arrival. Players such as Aaron Ramsey, Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla upped their game in the presence of such a unique talent with the Welshman the main reason why Arsenal spent so much time topping the league.

Unfortunately, results started to wane during the second half of the season and so did Özil’s performances. This time round, much is expected from the freshly-crowned world champion.

Aston Villa
Darren Bent – £24 million from Sunderland (January 2011)

It’s fair to say that Bent has not fully enjoyed his time in Birmingham. Once considered the future of England’s forward line due to his pace and finishing skills, Bent has found himself playing second-fiddle to the likes of Gabriel Agbonlahor and Andres Weimann.

Villa have tried to offload their highly-paid striker a number of times but wages have proved to be a significant stumbling block to all potential suitors. He was loaned out to Fulham last year but he failed to rekindle any kind of old form. 21 Premier League goals in a Villa shirt since his arrival 45 months ago says it all really.

9 of those goals actually came in his first six months as Bent helped save Aston Villa from relegation. Well, it went downhill from there.

Burnley
Steven Fletcher – £3 million from Hibernian (Summer 2009)

The Scotland striker scored 8 goals in his single season with Burnley as the Clarets unsuccessfully tried to beat the drop during the 2009/2010 season. This made him their top-scorer and earned Fletcher a £6.5 million move to Wolves which was another joint-club record transfer fee paid.

Strong in the air and having the knack of scoring important goals, Fletcher is undoubtedly one of the Premier League’s more reliable strikers but he still couldn’t save Wolves from suffering the same fate as Burnley.

Chelsea
Fernando Torres – £50 million from Liverpool (January 2011)

The flop that beats all flops? Perhaps. But at least El Nino has a few shiny medals to go with his collection from his time with in Stamford Bridge as Chelsea won the FA Cup, Europa League and Champions League during his four seasons in London.

Still, 20 goals in 110 Premier League matches is a very mediocre return for a £50 million World-Cup winning striker. More so when compared to 65 goals in 102 league games for Liverpool.

Loic Remy will probably prove to be an upgrade on the Spaniard.

Crystal Palace
James McArthur – £7 million from Wigan Athletic (Summer 2014)

One half of the Jameses partnership with Wigan along with McCarthy that so impressed under the guidance of Roberto Martinez, McArthur has finally earned his move back to the Premier League. A combative midfielder with a touch of class, McArthur is now playing in the level where he belongs but the pressure is on him to justify Palace’s efforts in getting him to London.

His new partnership with Mile Jedinak has the potential to excite even the most glum of Palace fans!

Everton
Romelu Lukaku – £28 million from Chelsea (Summer 2014)

This transfer shows that Everton really mean business this season. If nothing else, at just 21 years of age, the Belgian is a pretty sound investment as his price tag is unlikely to plummet any time soon.

Lukaku’s 15 goals and performances were a big part of Everton’s ultimately unsuccessful attempt in breaking into the top four last season. Many critics felt that his time at a big European club such as Chelsea has arrived this time round so for Roberto Martinez and Bill Kenwright to convince the youngster to sign permanently was quite a coup, even if for a club record transfer fee.

Hull City
Abel Hernandez – £10 million from Palermo (Summer 2014)

A transfer record for a player who is certainly not a household name in England. After the sale of Shane Long, Steve Bruce’s forward options became very short. His answer was to bring in the Uruguayan striker from newly promoted Serie A side Palermo. Mad-cap president Maurizio Zamparini had bought the then-teenager Hernandez in 2009 from Penarol and he has since been repaid with 36 goals in 122 games.

Hernandez’s pace makes him a versatile option in attack as he’s comfortable on the wings as well as in a central role. He scored 14 goals in 28 matches during Palermo’s successful promotion campaign but questions will invariably haunt his first few matches in England as to whether or not he can make the transition from Italy’s second tier to the Premier League. That’s £10 million’s worth of questions!

Leicester City
Leonardo Ulloa – £8 million from Brighton (Summer 2014)

Two goals in three matches is not a bad return for a striker just making the step into the Premier. League from the Championship. £8 million was deemed to be too dear a price to pay for an unproven striker at the highest level but if Ulloa’s display against Arsenal is anything to go by, Leicester will have no problems creating and converting chances.

The Argentinean’s 6ft 3in frame makes him an ideal target man but his ball control is more Dimitar Berbatov than Andy Carroll. His movement in the box for his goal against Arsenal showed a predator’s instinct that will prove vital in tight matches. He also has an eye for the ideal pass at the right time and at 28 years of age, now is the the time for Ulloa to impress and put himself on the market for bigger clubs.

Admittedly, this is just the beginning of his Leicester adventure but the early signs are very positive.

Liverpool
Andy Carroll – £35 million from Newcastle (January 2011)

£35 million looked a ridiculous amount in 2011. In 2014 it looks ridiculously ridiculous.

Manchester City
Sergio Aguero – £38 million from Atletico Madrid (Summer 2011)

77 goals in 125 appearances. The championship-winning goal against QPR in his first season. Arguably the best striker in England. £38 million – £3 million more than Carroll? In today’s market that’s a bargain.

Manchester United
Angel di Maria – £59.7 million from Real Madrid (Summer 2014)

The British transfer fee record was broken this summer as last year’s Champions League final man-of-the-match was brought to Old Trafford by the van Gaal machine. Where will he play? Will he justify his fee? Will he inspire the Reds to performances of old? The next few months will give us an answer.

Newcastle
Michael Owen – £16 million from Real Madrid (Summer 2005)

The longest-standing record in this list as Newcastle paid big bucks to get Owen back to England after his one season stay in Madrid with Los Galacticos. His return of 16 goals for Real Madrid was quite decent especially when considering he spent most of his time warming the substitutes’ bench.

Unfortunately, his stay in Newcastle was full of injury problems (the most serious of which occurred whilst he was on international duty!) and his 30 goals for the club didn’t propel the club to the heights so desired by the Toon army; his last season in Tyneside actually resulted in relegation from the Premier League for the black and whites.

Queens Park Rangers
Christopher Samba – £12.5 million from Anzhi Makhachkala (January 2013)

Samba was supposed to be the rock over which the foundations of QPR’s survival battle was to be built. Instead of the athletic, robust and solid defender from his Blackburn days, QPR found themselves with an unfit, cumbersome and error-prone Samba who was unable to get to grips with the speed of the English game after his experience in Russia.

Ten games and a failed survival bid later, Samba was sent back from whence he came as the R’s managed to at least recoup most of the fee they had splashed out 6 months previously.

Southampton
Pablo Osvaldo – £15 million from Roma (Summer 2013)

Another big money striker who ended up being a flop as the Italian striker only really produced one moment of brilliance during his half-season in the South of England – the sublime curling goal against Manchester City that earned his side a point.

He has since been loaned out to Juventus and Inter Milan with his Saints future looking bleak at best. His altercation with Jose Fonte hardly helped as, like Gaston Ramirez, he failed to adapt to the English game following his arrival from Serie A.

Stoke City
Peter Crouch – £10 million from Tottenham (Summer 2011)

Scoring goals was always a problem for Tony Pulis’ Stoke in the Premier League with most of his forward acquisitions failing to light up the Brittania Stadium.

Sunderland
Steven Fletcher – £14 million from Wolves (Summer 2012)

Three summers after Burnley broke their transfer record to get Fletcher, the Scot was bought by Sunderland for ANOTHER club transfer record – the THIRD record transfer fee paid by a club in 4 summers for Fletcher after Burnley and Wolves.

Eleven goals in his first season went a long way in repaying the money paid for his services as Sunderland scrambled to safety. However, injuries impeded his influence in the following season with Gus Poyet unable to rely on his main striker to get him the goals needed to win games.

What will this season hold for Fletcher who only scored once for Scotland?

Swansea City
Wilfried Bony – £12 million from Vitesse (Summer 2013)

Bony’s introduction to the Premier League was quite low key as many critics felt that he’ll play second fiddle to club hero Michu. Nevertheless, with the Spaniard out for most of the season, Bony rewarded the faith shown in him by the Welsh club by scoring 25 goals in all competitions. His physique, heading ability, composure and football intelligence more than make up for his lack of speed. It’s not often that a player is considered a steal for £12 million, but the Ivory Coast striker has to fall in thar category.

Tottenham Hotspurs
Erik Lamela – £30 million from Roma (Summer 2013)

It’s amazing how a couple of games can change all perception of a player in football. Lamela’s 2013/2014 season was hardly awe-inspiring as injuries restricted his transition into English football from the slower and more tactical Italian calcio. He only managed 9 appearances in the Premier League last season.

However, a more prominent role under Mauricio Pocchettino has seen the Argentinean go through a footballing rebirth as his pace, trickery and work rate fit well in his compatriot’s tactics and philosophy.

A season late but Spurs fans are finally rightly excited about their expensive jewel.

West Bromwich Albion
Brown Ideye – £10 million from Dynamo Kiev (Summer 2014)

Not much can be said about Ideye right now as he’s still finding his feet in England. However, West Brom have put their eggs in one basket and that basket is a not-so-prolific Nigerian striker who has mostly made a name for himself in the Ukrainian league. Goals may save clubs from relegation so Ideye will be under pressure to repay his fee as quickly as possible. Quite a gamble!

West Ham United
Andy Carroll – £15 million from Liverpool (Summer 2013)

Many hoped that Carroll’s second club transfer record will be more of a success than the first one but 12 months later the Gateshead-born striker’s career seems to be going in a downward spiral. Injuries have greatly hampered his stay in Upton Park with Carroll only appearing in 15 Premier League matches scoring 2 goals after his permanent move to East London.

The target man’s current season has began just as the previous one ended with no date given for a possible return from injury. Will he ever start repaying the hefty fee?