It’s been revealed that Premier League clubs shelled out over £272m in agent fees over the course of the 2020/21 season with Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United the biggest spenders.

The figure represents a £9m increase on last season’s combined total, despite clubs being forced to tighten the purse strings due to the loss of matchday revenue amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

There were no surprises as to which side topped the list released by BBC Sport, with Chelsea forced to spend over £35m in agent fees following their summer transfer splurge.

Former Blues boss Frank Lampard spent roughly £222m in his bid to bolster Chelsea’s squad, with Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, Edouard Mendy, Ben Chilwell and Hakim Ziyech all arriving at Stamford Bridge in big-money deals.

Manchester City were the only other side to break the £30m barrier, with local rivals Manchester United a close third in the list having spent over £29m.

West Brom and West Ham were the only two sides to spend less than £5m on agent fees, yet further testament to the job David Moyes has done at the Hammers this season.

Of the sides currently in the top half of the Premier League table, Aston Villa were the only other team alongside the Hammers to have spent less than £10m, while Newcastle’s total of over £11m represents an eye-watering sum considering their current league standing of 17th.

Here’s a look at how much each club spent on agents‘ fees over the last two transfer windows…

Arsenal – £16,462,480
Aston Villa – £8,928,343
Brighton – £7,496,038
Burnley – £4,458,520
Chelsea – £35,247,822
Crystal Palace – £6,760,093
Everton – £14,071,886
Fulham – £9,347,927
Leeds – £7,034,943
Leicester – £12,518,018
Liverpool – £21,652,589
Manchester City – £30,174,615
Manchester United – £29,801,555
Newcastle – £11,349,953
Sheffield United – £7,081,018
Southampton – £6,804,154
Tottenham – £16,520,177
West Brom – £4,222,059
West Ham – £9,689,567
Wolves – £12,598,466

Total – £272,220,223