Manchester City completed a double swoop for Inter defender Maicon and Swansea winger Scott Sinclair as the Premier League champions set the pace in the frantic final hours before the transfer window closed last night.
With only a few hours left to bring in new players before the window shuts until January, England’s top-flight clubs were engaged in a frenzy of last-minute dealing.
City boss Roberto Mancini has endured a frustrating time in the transfer market since the end of last season, but there has been a late flurry of activity at Eastlands.
The £6 million move for Sinclair was followed by the capture of right-back Maicon for £3 million, as well as the arrival of ex-Arsenal keeper Richard Wright on a free transfer.
To make room for his fresh recruits, Mancini sold Nigel de Jong to Milan, while Paraguay striker Roque Santa Cruz moved to Malaga on a season-long loan.
Fulham boss Martin Jol sealed a significant coup for his club as he signed Dimitar Berbatov from Manchester United for £5 million.
Berbatov rejected interest from Juventus, Fiorentina and Tottenham to be reunited with Jol, who worked with the forward at Spurs.
“I’m delighted to have signed for Fulham and I look forward to playing under Martin Jol once again,” Berbatov said.
“As soon as I was aware of Fulham’s interest my decision to join was an easy one to make.”
Jol also brought in former England left-back Kieran Richardson from Sunderland, who then landed Tottenham defender Danny Rose on loan as a replacement.
Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers continued his Anfield clear-out as Scotland international Charlie Adam was sold to Stoke for £4 million, while fellow midfielder Jay Spearing joined Bolton on a season-long loan.
Across Merseyside, Everton signed Bryan Oviedo from FC Copenhagen as the Costa Rica defender penned a four-year deal.
Tottenham’s midfielder Rafael van der Vaart headed to Germany to re-sign for his former club Hamburg, while the north London club allowed Mexico forward Giovani Dos Santos to move to Mallorca.
Southampton finally signed Gaston Ramirez from Bologna for around £12 million after chasing the 21-year-old Uruguay playmaker for several weeks.
Swansea, needing a replacement for Sinclair, signed Spain winger Pablo Hernandez from Valencia for a club record £5.55 million.
Arsenal allowed South Korea striker Park Chu-young to go out on loan to Celta Vigo with a view to a permanent switch, while Denmark striker Nicklas Bendtner agreed a season-long loan with Italian champions Juventus.
Aston Villa signed young striker Jordan Bowery from Chesterfield for £500,000 and then turned their attention to securing Genk’s Belgium striker Christian Benteke and Crewe midfielder Ashley Westwood.
Nicklas Bendtner also looks to be heading out of the Emirates Stadium as the Denmark striker is reportedly undergoing a medical with Italian champions Juventus.
Elsewhere in the Serie A, Marco Borriello joined Genoa, one of his former clubs, from Roma for an undisclosed fee. His return to Genoa was made possible following the departure of Alberto Gilardino who has joined Bologna on loan.
Veteran striker Luca Toni has rejoined Fiorentina from United Arab Emirates club Al Nasr.
The 35-year-old returns to the Stadio Artemio Franchi after a five-year absence.