There have been some truly honking decisions made by Premier League clubs this year.<\/p>\n
That covers botched transfer pursuits, botched completed transfers, botched transfer windows\u2026and even botched wardrobes.<\/p>\n
Here are what we deem the worst mistakes by each club in 2025. You can check out our best decisions right here<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 after reading this, obviously.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Arsenal: Picking Viktor Gyokeres<\/p>\n In hindsight, Arsenal<\/a> probably should have gone for Hugo Ekitike.<\/p>\n It was between Gyokeres and Benjamin Sesko for Andrea Berta, who was hell-bent on signing the former. But Ekitike was right there.<\/p>\n The Frenchman went to Liverpool after Newcastle United failed to sign him and has registered eight goals in 16 Premier League matches, scoring in six separate matches.<\/p>\n Gyokeres, meanwhile, scored twice (one penalty) against Leeds United, one against Burnley, one against Nottingham Forest, and one (penalty) against Everton<\/a>. He\u2019s struggling to avoid the flat-track bully allegations and has looked a shadow of the player who banged them in for fun at Sporting.<\/p>\n There is an argument that Mikel Arteta and Gyokeres\u2019 teammates are not utilising their new centre-forward very well. He is making all sorts of runs that are being ignored, and the service to him hasn\u2019t been great as Bukayo Saka, Ebere Eze, and Martin Odegaard all struggle to create.<\/p>\n He is hardly missing sitters every game, and his mere presence up top has been enough to make a positive difference. But most big-money strikers would have done the same.<\/p>\n READ: Arsenal top, Gyokeres flopping \u2013 10 of the 2025 storylines we DID see coming<\/a><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Aston Villa: Taking Harvey Elliott on loan<\/p>\n Just a s**t move for everyone involved, really. It actually looked like the perfect move at the time. Elliott was ready to assume an important role at a decent club, and Villa gave him the platform to do so, only to swiftly decide they have no intention of triggering his buy option.<\/p>\n A return to Liverpool<\/a> following the termination of Elliott\u2019s loan in January looks on the cards. The Reds could have done with having him around during a testing first half of 2025\/26.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Bournemouth: Not extending Andoni Iraola\u2019s contract<\/p>\n In case you weren\u2019t aware, Iraola is out of contract next summer. That is flying under the radar, isn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n He has been linked with every big club in Europe during his time at little ol\u2019 Bournemouth, but his stock is quite low at the moment. The Cherries are winless in eight Premier League games<\/a> as they continue to be the streakiest of all streaky teams, and that means Iraola isn\u2019t being linked with anyone. But the streaky Cherries will soon be on an 11-match unbeaten run, making the Spaniard the most sought-after manager in Europe again.<\/p>\n Perhaps their poor form offers the perfect time for the club\u2019s hierarchy to sit down with Iraola and offer him a new deal. It could come across as a huge display of faith, and then Bournemouth will benefit financially when Manchester City or someone else pays a hefty compensation fee<\/a>.<\/p>\n Finances are obviously not the biggest positive of renewing Iraola\u2019s contract. They should be desperate to keep the man who\u2019s led them to 12th and 9th in the Premier League.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Brentford: Waiting to unleash their secret weapon<\/p>\n Gambling on Keith Andrews felt like a guaranteed inclusion when he was chosen as Thomas Frank\u2019s replacement, but Brentford\u2019s in-house style has not come back to bite them in the backside. We all tipped them to go down<\/a>, and while that\u2019s still realistic, the Bees are doing much better than most expected following the departures of head coach Frank, star players Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo, and club captain Christian Norgaard.<\/p>\n Brentford might\u2019ve enjoyed even more success last season if Kayode was allowed to properly channel his inner Rory Delap, and not unleashing it sooner \u2013 or at least more often last season \u2013 is their biggest mistake of 2025. Yes, we are struggling a bit.<\/p>\n Brentford are 10th for throw-ins taken this season with 325, but Kayode is top in the player ranking with 191 \u2013 that is 58.77% of his side\u2019s throws and the highest in the Premier League for an individual by 33.<\/p>\n Kayode\u2019s long throws were in Brentford\u2019s arsenal last season, but it\u2019s certainly cranked up a notch this term.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Brighton: Letting Fabian Hurzeler choose his matchday attire<\/p>\n Brighton\u2019s record when Hurzeler is wearing a tracksuit: six wins, four draws, two defeats, 29 goals scored, 12 conceded. Brighton\u2019s record when Hurzeler is wearing his boohooMAN nonsense: one win, two draws, three defeats, six goals scored, ten conceded.<\/p>\n Someone has to have a word with him. Or just deactivate his boohooMAN account.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Burnley: No Granit Xhaka signing<\/p>\n It\u2019s obviously not a simple task for Burnley to sign a player on the level of Granit Xhaka following promotion to the Premier League, but people would\u2019ve said the same thing about Sunderland, who did sign Xhaka and instantly handed him the captaincy.<\/p>\n If there is a blueprint for avoiding immediate relegation, Sunderland have found it. Clubs have spent big following promotions but nowhere near as savvily as the Black Cats. Their signing of Xhaka has been the biggest factor in their success, and Burnley\u2019s recruitment didn\u2019t include anyone close to Xhaka\u2019s experience and ability. Amazingly, it could\u2019ve made such a significant difference.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Chelsea: Being stingy with AC Milan<\/p>\n We are again questioning why Chelsea<\/a> still don\u2019t have an elite striker or goalkeeper after spending so much money.<\/p>\n Joao Pedro showed us at the Club World Cup that he is capable of being a world-class No.9<\/a>, but he\u2019s not really played there this season. Meanwhile, Robert Sanchez has never been so comfortably No.1 at Stamford Bridge. Still, it\u2019s weird that Chelsea were properly stingy with Milan in negotiations for France goalkeeper Mike Maignan.<\/p>\n Maignan is one of the best goalkeepers in the world and was available for around \u00a320million, yet Chelsea didn\u2019t want to pay over \u00a312m<\/a>. Yes, he is out of contract next summer, but we\u2019re completely baffled that a club so scattergun and trigger-happy in the transfer market were unwilling to pay an extra ~\u00a38m to fix a problem position with a world-class signing.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Crystal Palace: Making Glasner\u2019s exit all the more inevitable<\/p>\n Palace are going to lose Oliver Glasner. That is obvious<\/a>. When? Probably at the end of 2025\/26. Where will he go? That\u2019s anyone\u2019s guess.<\/p>\n After guiding the Eagles to their first-ever trophy<\/a> and subsequently their first-ever European campaign, Glasner wanted more backing in the summer transfer window. He felt massively let down by chairman Steve Parish and let the media know as much, while Parish couldn\u2019t fight his corner as losing the Austrian before 2025\/26 started would\u2019ve been an absolute disaster.<\/p>\n It\u2019s felt inevitable that Glasner would take the step up to a bigger club, and a disappointing summer is one of the biggest reasons he won\u2019t renew his contract and walk away in June, if not sooner.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Everton: Pursuing the wrong striker<\/p>\n Everton have lacked a prolific goalscorer for a while. It\u2019s something they desperately needed to address last summer, and they did so by signing a top, young player with bags of potential in Thierno Barry. It\u2019s safe to say it hasn\u2019t worked out for him so far.<\/p>\n Dominic Calvert-Lewin, at his absolute best, scored 16 Premier League goals in 2020\/21, the most for the Toffees since Romelu Lukaku backed up an 18-goal campaign with a 25-goal 2016\/17.<\/p>\n Everton should probably stick to recruiting strikers from English clubs. Their list of top scorers in each Premier League season goes as follows (centre-forwards only): Calvert-Lewin, Richarlison, Calvert-Lewin, Richarlison, Calvert-Lewin, Richarlison, Wayne Rooney, Lukaku x4, Nikica Jelavic, Tim Cahill, Louis Saha, Cahill, Yakubu, Andy Johnson, James Beattie, Cahill, Rooney, Tomasz Radzinski, Radzinski and Duncan Ferguson, Kevin Campbell x3, Ferguson x2, Paul Rideout, Tony Cottee x2.<\/p>\n Jelavic and Ferguson hadn\u2019t played in England before joining but were signed straight from Scotland. Radzinski is the only non-Brit there playing for his first English club.<\/p>\n The moral of the story is: keep your striker recruitment a little more local, Everton.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Fulham: An unadventurous summer<\/p>\n After watching Crystal Palace win their first major trophy, Fulham must\u2019ve felt desperate to experience the same. Their summer transfer business suggests they\u2019re happy where they are \u2013 winning sod all but comfortably avoiding relegation every season.<\/p>\n Kevin was an exciting signing, and Samuel Chukwueze has shown promise, but it was a very underwhelming summer window for the Cottagers<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Leeds: Not signing Harry Wilson<\/p>\n As the alphabet would have it, Leeds follow Fulham, and the latter\u2019s best decision of 2025<\/a> has created the former\u2019s worst.<\/p>\n Leeds were reportedly interested in signing Wilson in the summer transfer window but couldn\u2019t get a deal over the line. Who knew that he would become a bloody revelation at Craven Cottage a couple of months later? We certainly didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n Daniel Farke was actually let down badly in the end after a strong start to the club\u2019s summer business. He needed more in attack. At least Calvert-Lewin is doing well now.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Liverpool: The Marc Guehi debacle<\/p>\n Choosing Jeremie Frimpong as Trent Alexander-Arnold\u2019s replacement, picking Florian Wirtz over Rayan Cherki, and signing a player who might be the biggest flop of all flops in Premier League floppyville<\/a> were big gaffes, but it\u2019s hard to argue that they were worse decisions than waiting until deadline day to have a bid accepted for Marc Guehi.<\/p>\n Guehi leaving could have been the straw that broke the camel\u2019s back for Glasner at Palace, and it could have made a huge difference in an awful first half to the season for the Reds.<\/p>\n He would\u2019ve been able to take a struggling Ibrahima Konate out of the firing line and surely played well enough to stay in the team. Had Guehi been playing well next to Virgil van Dijk, the Liverpool<\/a> captain and the two full-backs would also look a lot more comfortable.<\/p>\n Yes, Liverpool can get Guehi for nothing next summer<\/a>, but they have desperately needed him this term.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Manchester City: Re-signing James Trafford<\/p>\n This isn\u2019t a huge error on City\u2019s side, but a case of hindsight being a wonderful (or gut-wrenchingly frustrating) thing for young Trafford.<\/p>\n An honourable mention is rejecting big money from Tottenham for Savinho. We\u2019re really not sure what either side was thinking there.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Manchester United: Europa League final preparation<\/p>\n How long have you got with this lot? It\u2019s pretty difficult to pinpoint the worst decision United<\/a> made in 2025. Sir Jim Ratcliffe has done and said some very odd things. Ruben Amorim might\u2019ve been sacked four or five times. Spending all of their summer budget on attackers might not have been the best move. Not signing a goalkeeper in January was also a bit silly, if not completely forced by a shoestring budget.<\/p>\n We have landed on a specific part of their Europa League final preparation.<\/p>\n Basically, Amorim opted for continuity and confidence<\/a> by playing his strongest team in the weeks building up to the final. Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou, meanwhile, rested everyone to ensure his players were fit and well-rested for an absolutely monumental game of football.<\/p>\n Ultimately, one decision aged well, earned the club \u00a3100m, and qualified them for the Champions League<\/a>. And the other decision might\u2019ve cost United the \u00a3100m windfall and Champions League football, which Amorim swears he didn\u2019t really want anyway.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Newcastle: Spending \u00a355m on Anthony Elanga<\/p>\n In terms of 2025 transfers, the richest club in the Premier League have had a torrid time. The \u00a355m they spent on Elanga surely goes down as their biggest gaffe, though.<\/p>\n He has really struggled. Like really, really struggled. We don\u2019t want to absolutely hammer the poor lad, so we\u2019ll leave it at that.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Nottingham Forest: Appointing Ange Postecoglou<\/p>\n Eight games, zero wins, two draws, six defeats, zero clean sheets, seven goals scored, 17 goals conceded, 39 days in charge, sacked 18 minutes after losing his final match.<\/p>\n Need we say any more?<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Sunderland: Buying too many AFCON players<\/p>\n Sunderland can\u2019t complain that their January transfer business left them short as they ended up getting promoted. They also seem to have absolutely nailed their summer recruitment as they sit handsomely in the Premier League table<\/a> after 17 games.<\/p>\n If we\u2019re poking holes in their summer recruitment, it would be that they signed quite a few African players in an Africa Cup of Nations season.<\/p>\n AFCON will affect the Black Cats more than any other Premier League club<\/a> with regular starters Bertrand Traore, Noah Sadiki, and Reinildo all representing their countries, while another important player, Habib Diarra, has returned from injury just in time to link up with his Senegal teammates. Morocco\u2019s Chemsdine Talbi and DR Congo\u2019s Arthur Masuaku are also away and have featured plenty this term.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Tottenham: Hiring Thomas Frank<\/p>\n On paper, Spurs<\/a> have a pretty good squad. But football isn\u2019t played on paper, and clearly something is missing. Xavi Simons and Mohammed Kudus should\u2019ve brought an X-factor to Thomas Frank\u2019s squad, but they\u2019ve blown very hot and cold in their early months at the club.<\/p>\n \u2018Hiring Thomas Frank\u2019 is just the tip of the iceberg. It\u2019s maybe harsh on him because he is a good manager who is willing to adapt, but it\u2019s more that he isn\u2019t the right profile for Spurs.<\/p>\n They needed someone with a proper coaching identity, which Frank unfortunately lacks. He is chopping and changing his tactics too often. We honestly don\u2019t know if he\u2019s an attack-minded coach or a defense-minded coach. He does lean more towards the latter, which is fine for Brentford, but not for a ball-dominant team.<\/p>\n Hopefully Frank is given enough time to prove us wrong and does exactly that, but his first six months at Spurs have been concerning.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n West Ham: Appointing Graham Potter<\/p>\n