Winners and Losers of the Transfer Window, Cristiano Ronaldo’s Saudi League Leads

• The Saudi Pro League are undeniably the biggest winners of the 2023 summer transfer window
• The League attracted top talents such as Karim Benzema, Neymar and Sadio Mane
• Sports Brief takes a look at the winners and possible losers of the transfer window

The summer transfer window across major European League closed on September 1, with clubs and players in a characteristic last-minute rush to get deals over the line.

Some, like Bayern Munich and Joao Palinha, weren't as lucky with the Portuguese international returning to Fulham despite having done media duties in a Bayern shirt already.

There were a few surprises, like Getafe taking a chance on Mason Greenwood despite the potential blowback it would have. Barcelona also signed Portuguese duo Joao Felix and Joao Felix.

With the window now over, we take a look at clubs that made decent and poor pieces of businesses and how it could help them going forward.

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Winners

1. Saudi Arabia Pro League

Well, this is a fact that no one can argue with. The Saudi Pro League has roped in at least 20 top names in world football. After Cristiano Ronaldo who joined in January, the league forked out large sums of money to sign the likes of Karim Benzema, Neymar, Sadio Mane and N'Golo Kante.

The players have helped boost the profile of the league. The window in the Middle East is still open and they might as well add a few more players. Liverpool fans will particularly be sweating on Mohamed Salah's future.

2. Manchester United

During his first season in charge, it was apparent that Erik ten Hag desperately needed a modern goalkeeper and a decent striker. Andre Onana and Rasmus Hojlund were signed to address those concerns and on top of that, the Red Devils have shored up their midfield with the arrivals of Mason Mount and Sofyan Amrabat.

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The first few games have been lacklustre, plus the injuries to Luke Shaw and Raphael Varane are a setback, but ten Hag got his missing pieces from last season.

3. West Ham

Selling Declan Rice for a club-record transfer fee to Arsenal was a good piece of business, especially after winning silverware with the England international.

But it has been an ever-better reinvestment with the Rice money being used to bring in James Ward-Prowse, Edson Alvarez and Mohamed Kudus.

The result? They are on top of the Premier League table at the time of this publication.

Losers

1. Real Madrid

Forget what Carlo Ancelotti is saying, the Los Blancos decisions might come back to haunt them. Jude Bellingham's signing has proved to be a masterstroke, but the decision not to look for a proper Benzema replacement, despite the goals the England star has provided so far, might be an oversight on Florentino Perez's side.

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It remains to be seen whether Joselu can live up to the expectations in a competition where clubs have the likes of Harry Kane, Erling Haaland, Robert Lewandowski and Kylian Mbappe leading their line.

The injury to Vinicius Junior, the heir to Benzema's place, couldn't also have come at a worse time.

2. Paris Saint-Germain

It will require just a simple midas touch from Luis Enrique to remove PSG from the losers category to the winners. On paper, the French giants have brought in some key additions led by Marco Asensio, Goncalo Ramos, Ousmane Dembele and Randal Kolo Muani. Convincing Mbappe to stay is also a win in itself.

However, it will be interesting to see how they will cope up with the loss of Neymar and Lionel Messi in one season. Admittedly, the two stars failed to conjure something special during their time in Paris, but ask any coach; he would rather have the duo at his disposal.

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3. Europe's top leagues

For every winner, there must be a loser. Saudi's heavy investment in top players meant that European clubs struggled to convince their top assets to stay put.

Pep Guardiola admitted that Riyad Mahrez received an offer they couldn't match. Liverpool are at the risk of losing Salah with no chance to replace him.

There have been calls to harmonise the two transfer windows or have a way to put restrictions on Saudi spending. They are not restricted by Fair Play Rules, which explains why they were ready to spend 1 billion euros on Mbappe alone.

Let the season begin! Or, continue...