India, Aug. 15 -- The lead-up to the commencement of the European club football season is a lot about player transfers - those big moves where clubs throw open their coffers to buy players to fill critical gaps in their lineup. There are still two weeks left in the summer transfer window, and more trades will happen. But already, two things are clear. One, spending by clubs is likely to close below its all-time high, pointing to a tempering of spending instincts. Two, even with the tempering, the English Premier League (EPL) continues to remain the epicentre of these moves - and widen the financial gap to other top leagues.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Hindustan Times....