Ranking the top 10 best transfers of June 2023

The summer transfer window has been wild with majority of players leaving their clubs and joining new ones

The summer transfer window of June 2023 has brought about a wave of exciting transfers that have the potential to reshape the football landscape. Clubs around the world have secured the services of top talents in their quest for success.

The 2023 summer transfer window is officially open and Real Madrid have gone top of this list with their big-money capture of Jude Bellingham, here are the biggest deals so far. Players are ranked by size of the initial fee, with add-ons stated.

Let's rank the top 10 standout transfers that promise to have a significant impact on the teams involved in the upcoming season:

10. Raphael Guerreiro

A Bundesliga veteran of seven years, Guerreiro crosses the Klassiker divide after opting against renewing his contract with 2022-23 Bundesliga runners-up Borussia Dortmund. The Portugal international played his part in pushing new employers Bayern in last season's thrilling title race. He scored four times and registering a league-leading 12 assists, he will challenge Alphonso Davies for a starting berth at left-back but has also proved himself to be a top-level operator in the centre of midfield, where he played at times not just last term but in his debut Bundesliga season at Dortmund under current Bayern boss Thomas Tuchel. 

9. Mateo Kovacic

After Gundogan's departure, Manchester City were looking for a replacement and had shown interest in Declan Rice and Kovacic. Rice's deal was rejected by West Ham but Chelsea received a decent fee for a midfielder with just a year left on his contract, Manchester City got a passable impersonation of Ilkay Gundogan for a relatively small fee and Kovacic himself landed on his feet by joining the best team in the world.

8. Alexis Mac Allister

The World Cup winner after helping Brighton make it to European football decided to leave the side and move on to perform in a better team and play for a better manager. So, Brighton and Liverpool kept the fee under their hats but some Liverpool fans want you to believe they bagged the World Cup winner for the cost of a Tesco meal deal. We have to assume that if Mac Allister is a success, it could turn out to be a bargain, especially if he adapts to playing a deeper role.

7. James Maddison

We all the story of Leicester City, a club that went on to win the Premier League under Ranieri and shock the world but the tables turned this season and it is a shock after they were relegated from the Premier League this season. A couple of players have decided to leave the Foxes and Maddison is one of them. A bloody good bit of business was done by Tottenham, Maddison's deal is a decent deal all around, as Maddison’s Leicester contract was set to expire next year. The Foxes can now reinvest to gain promotion back to the Premier League at the first time of asking.

6. Christopher Nkunku

The top goal scorer of Bundesliga finally decided to make a move to Chelsea for the 2023-24 season, it is a deal that is going to help both Nkunku develop as a player and Chelsea as they would like to fill the striker position that has been missing. Finally, Chelsea confirmed what we all knew already: French forward Nkunku has signed a six-year contract with the Stamford Bridge club after a 16-goal season. So, it will be fascinating to see how Chelsea perform now.

5. Kai Havertz

Mikel Arteta is on a roll this summer transfer window. He has already signed Havertz from their London rivals Chelsea and is very keen on signing the young English midfielder-Declan Rice, a player that he wants to sign this summer and Arteta is adamant as two of the initial offers were rejected by West Ham. Yet another player to switch from Chelsea for Arsenal, joining ex-teammate Jorginho six months after he moved to the Emirates. This move is a bit strange considering how poor Havertz has been for the Blues, but Mikel Arteta seems to know what he is doing so we will give him the benefit of the doubt.

4. Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi's transfer was a hot topic this transfer window. There were speculations that he would sign for Barcelona and make a return to his home, Saudi Arabia was going to make him the most expensive transfer but he chose David Beckham's Inter Miami. Messi will have a contract run till 2026 with MLS club and people in U.S. expect him to bring more marquee players in MLS just like Cristiano Ronaldo did with Saudi League.

3. N'Golo Kante

One of the most humble players to ever play this game is former Chelsea man N'Golo Kante. He helped Leicester gain promotion, helped them win the Premier League and then went on to join Chelsea where he won everything including Premier League and Champions League. The 2018 World Cup winner will join his French teammate Karim Benzema in Al-Ittihad for the upcoming season.

2. Karim Benzema

Carlo Ancelotti expressed his views on Karim Benzema before a move to Saudi Arabia took place. The manager insisted him to stay and quoted "Legends should retire in Real Madrid" but Benzema had different plans. He signed a two-year deal with Al-Ittihad and his deal will have add-ons as he is going to be the brand ambassador for the World Cup going to be held in 2030, which Saudi Arabia is bidding to host.

The Frenchman will find himself with a team that has just won the Arab League, beating Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr and Al-Hilal, who had just played against Real Madrid and Benzema in the final of the Club World Cup six months ago.

1. Jude Bellingham

This is the biggest deal of the summer and we actually think this might be a bargain. Bellingham is a phenomenal footballer and is still only 19. The 19-year-old has played more minutes than any young footballer in the past few years. His rise from Birmingham City to taking up his idol-Zinedine Zidane's number 5 is nothing short of excellence. The youngster is explosive on both ends of the field and it will be a delight to watch him play with Kroos and Modric.