Premier League wages continue to rise

Barcelona spent the most money on wages in the just-concluded 2016-17 season, but fifteen Premier League clubs also took their places among the top twenty-five wage bills in the world.

In a study conducted by the Daily Mail, the vast amounts that players in England are getting paid was clearly documented, with Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish describing it best -

“The curse of too much money is upon all of us.

“I might have the 20th biggest wage bill in the world, but do I have the 20th best side? I very much doubt it.”

Everton for their part are outside the top ten, coming in at 14th place with a salary bill of £106m. The Blues, who finished 7th in the just-concluded Premier League season, were just behind Borussia Dortmund (3rd in Bundesliga) and ahead of AS Roma (2nd in Serie A).

In an interview with the paper, Toffees chairman Bill Kenwright said that he had expected the figures to keep rising, going up from a £84m last year and with Europa League football on the horizon next season.

The Daily Mail

In spite of the vast amounts of money floating about in the Premier League, the quality of play especially in European competition left a lot to be desired. Despite being able to offer large salaries, there’s still work to be done in England in terms of improving the football itself.

The salary survey tossed up all sorts of oddities and quirks -

• Manchester United’s approximate wage bill of £265m is the highest ever for a single season in English football - they finished sixth, but won the League Cup and the Europa League trophy.
• Premier League champions Chelsea are not far behind that figure, while Manchester City are also close despite not winning anything.
• Bayern Munich swept all teams aside in the Bundesliga, and have the 8th highest bill on this list. They were fifteen points clear at the end of the season.
• Aside from Spanish super-clubs Barca and Real Madrid, the next La Liga side on the list are Atletico Madrid at 23rd, but finished third in their domestic league and made the Champions League semi-finals. They spent less than relegated side Sunderland.
• Champions League finalists Juventus won their sixth straight Scudetto, and are tenth in the list.
• Both Milan clubs dropped a whole lot of cash but weren’t rewarded with success, finishing out of the European spots in Serie A.
• AFC Bournemouth, not on this list, paid out £70m, roughly the same as France’s Ligue 1 champions and Champions League semi-finalists AS Monaco.
• Despite splashing £239m, Paris St. Germain couldn’t get their act together and came in second in France.