THE razzamatazz surrounding Neymar’s eye-popping £200m transfer from Barcelona to PSG served as a timely dig in the ribs for English football. Being the richest league in the world doesn’t always equate to being able to attract the best players.

Still, if French football’s gain on this occasion is Chelsea, Manchester City or Manchester United’s potential loss, then there has still been sufficient splurging of transfer sums over the summer for fans of the Premier League to salivate over ahead of the start of the new season next weekend. A bumper £5bn television deal tends to go a long way.

Chelsea, last season’s champions, have not stinted as they begin the defence of their title. Persuading Alvaro Morata to join from Real Madrid for around £60m is perhaps one of the most impressive pieces of business of the summer, pre-empting the likely departure of Diego Costa.

Morata could be forgiven for feeling somewhat unloved after being passed from Madrid to Juventus and then back again but his pedigree remains undiminished. Twenty goals on his Bernabeu return last season – despite playing second fiddle to Karim Benzema for most of the campaign – demonstrates his worth. He ought to thrive at Chelsea.

Others have joined him at Stamford Bridge. Goalkeeper Willy Caballero will offer back-up to Thibaut Courtois, while Tiemoue Bakayoko, a stand-out for Monaco last season but currently injured, and German international defender Antonio Ruediger also augment their options, offsetting a raft of departures most notably Nemanja Matic’s £40m move to Manchester United.

Manager Antonio Conte will showcase his new-look side in this afternoon’s Community Shield match against Arsenal at Wembley, although one former player is not sure they ought to be considered title contenders at this point.

“Oddly enough, if I was to make a decision now I wouldn’t put Chelsea as my favourites,” said Pat Nevin who will once again offer his considered views on the BBC this season. “If they can get Virgil van Dijk and sort out the Costa situation then that might change but at the moment I’m not sure they have enough back-up with Bakayoko injured and Matic, John Terry, Nathan Ake and Kurt Zouma all gone. That’s a lot of players to lose. So Chelsea are outsiders for me.

“Last year, though I thought they had no chance unless they bought a left-back and a centre-back and they brought in Marcos Alonso and David Luiz. So it could be the same again if they bring in one or two new faces.

“Morata should be a good addition and will be the one they need to rely on for goals, although Michy Batshuayi was more clinical in terms of his goal ratio than even Harry Kane last season. I don’t think Conte will be wed to a 3-4-3 system again this year as he wants adaptability and to play with two strikers. And at the moment those two will be Morata and Batshuayi.”

Their opponents today have been less active although have at least finally landed a centre forward of note, signing Alexandre Lacazette from Lyon for around £50m, while also adding defender Sead Kolasinac from Schalke. The decision to continue with Arsene Wenger as manager for a 22nd season was not a universally popular one among their support and Nevin doubts whether they have the players to mount a sustained title challenge.

“There isn’t anywhere near enough depth there, in my opinion,” he added. “And then there’s the Alexis Sanchez question: does he stay or does he go? And if he goes that would be a big, big loss for Arsenal. They’ve had a good pre-season but I can’t see them getting into the top four.”

The main threat to Chelsea, then, is likely to come from Manchester. City have gone for wholesale changes on the back of last year’s third-place finish, Pep Guardiola compiling a brand-new defence including a goalkeeper for a total in excess of £200m and allowing the old guard of Joe Hart, Alexander Kolarov, Gael Clichy, Bacary Sagna and Pablo Zabaleta to move on. Bernardo Silva and Douglas Luiz will also offer greater guile and creativity from midfield.

“I would have City absolutely winning the league if they buy another centre back” said Nevin. “I can’t see anyone getting close to them if they buy a reliable figure for that position. Or if they can keep Vincent Kompany fit, which may be a big ask.

“Guardiola has spent more than £200m and he’s still not finished which just shows you the extent of the work that he felt was required. And he’s admitted they need another centre back so it will be interesting to see if he can get one in before the window closes.

“Last season I would say every one of the top teams was in a state of flux. I’d say City this summer are closer to getting their work finished. But I think who wins the league this year will be dependent on who does well - or who doesn’t do well - in the Champions League.”

Over at Old Trafford, Jose Mourinho has shown greater restraint so far. As well as Matic, his major summer capture has been the £75m shelled out to sign Romelu Lukaku from Everton to replace the departed Zlatan Ibrahimovic. With great price tags comes great responsibility, especially with the Belgian signing for a side who finished a disappointing sixth in last season’s table. Defender Victor Lindelof is Mourinho’s only other significant signing to date but Nevin thinks they might have enough already.

“Last season I thought United would win the title and they ended up a good way off the pace. Now they look more like a classic Mourinho side with lots of power through the middle with Paul Pogba, Matic, Lukaku and Eric Bailly.

“Bringing in Matic also lets Pogba get further forward which is a big thing for United. I’m convinced they will get at least top four this season.”

Among the departures from United is Wayne Rooney who has thrown his lot in once more with former club Everton, part of an army of arrivals recruited by manager Ronald Koeman. Few have come cheap either, perhaps a further sign that Premier League clubs now barely bat an eyelid before signing £30m cheques as Everton have done for Jordan Pickford, Davy Klaassen and Michael Keane.

They have finished seventh, 11th and 11th again in their last three seasons but, having been backed so comprehensively in the transfer market this summer, there will be an expectation on Koeman to deliver better this time around.

“They’ve spent a fair bit of money but they don’t really have to worry about that anymore,” said Nevin who spent four years as a player at Goodison. “They’ll probably get a lot of money for Ross Barkley, they got a lot of money for Lukaku and there’s also cash coming from the new owners.

“They’ve never been in a better position financially in their entire history and they were the Bank of England club back in the day. You could argue they’re not the finished article but Koeman is a good manager and they should do well. And I think £50m for Gylfi Sigurdsson is a fair price as I think he’s a terrific player. And if they get him they’ll easily get top six.”

Challenges of a different nature await last year’s runners-up Tottenham Hotspur who have flitted temporarily to Wembley following the demolition of White Hart Lane. Given the poverty of their Champions League performances there, that might be a concern.

“Spurs will want to be in there again this season but I don’t think there’s enough depth in their squad at the moment. They’ve got 13 or 14 players who are top quality but to win the league you need these guys fit and available all the time. And that’s a big ask when you’re playing Premier League and Champions League.

“It will be interesting to see what they do about the pitch this season as it’s much bigger at Wembley and it doesn’t seem to suit their pressing style. Will they maybe move it in a bit? And they didn’t have the best of times there before. But I think they’re a great team and a joy to watch.”

It has been some time since a Scot has been at the centre of a major English football transfer which makes Andy Robertson’s £10m to Liverpool a very welcome development indeed, the fullback moving into Anfield alongside Mo Salah and Dominic Solanke.

“I think Andy Robertson is one of the most important buys of the season,” offered Nevin. “Looking at Liverpool last season they were playing a central midfielder in James Milner in there. Milner has been played everywhere in recent years which shows the imbalance in their squad. Robertson will play every single week if he’s available and will be a great fit for the Liverpool style. He’ll develop as a player so it’s great for him and Liverpool. It’s a really astute buy by Juergen Klopp.

“Liverpool did better than I thought last season but financially I don’t think they can live with the top two or three in that division. And they’ll do well to hold on to Coutinho as well.”

Of the three promoted newcomers, few will give Brighton and Hove Albion or Huddersfield Town a chance of extending their stay in the Premier League to a second season, although Newcastle United may hang around for a bit longer.

“I think Rafa Benitez has been fantastic for them,” admitted Nevin. “To be honest I wasn’t his biggest fan when he was at Liverpool as when they got beat he blamed the players and when they won it was because of his tactics! Players notice that and get a bit miffed about things like that.

“Then he went to Chelsea and I got to see more of him and he was an utter gentleman. It was a difficult situation and he did really well. And I’ve become more and more impressed with him as time has gone by. He’s done well for Newcastle and he’s a good manager so I think they’ll be okay.”