Premier League leads spending as transfer window closes. Ivan Toney to Saudi Arabia

English Premier League clubs again flexed their financial muscles by spending about $2.6 billion in the summer transfer window that closed Friday for Europe’s five big domestic leagues.

And once again Chelsea was first in line with an outlay of $290 million as owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital continue to look for a winning combination at Stamford Bridge.

The Saudi Pro League's window remains open for a few more days — enough time for more deals like the one announced early Saturday that will see striker Ivan Toney join Al-Ahli. The Saudi club agreed to pay Brentford a transfer fee reported to be $52 million.

Also early Saturday, Arsenal announced it has agreed to take Chelsea forward Raheem Sterling on loan for the rest of the season.

Other big names in European soccer that were the subject of late talks included Jadon Sancho (Manchester United) and Victor Osimhen (Napoli). No deals had been announced for them early Saturday after the deadline.

United signed Uruguay defensive midfielder Manuel Ugarte from Paris Saint-Germain for an initial 50 million euros ($55.7 million). It takes the club’s summer spending on new players to around $240 million. United had earlier signed striker Joshua Zirkzee, center backs Leny Yoro and Matthijs de Ligt, and full back Noussair Mazraoui. The 23-year-old Ugarte looks set to be the long-term replacement for Casemiro.

Crystal Palace had a busy Friday spending that Michael Olise money. The club added striker Eddie Nketiah from Arsenal for a fee reported to be $39 million. Nketiah is in search of playing time and grew up in south London. Arsenal might be clearing some space for a late signing. Earlier, Palace signed center back Maxence Lacroix from Wolfsburg for a reported fee of 21 million euros ($23 million). The move reunites the 24-year-old French player with Palace manager Oliver Glasner, who coached the German club for two seasons.

Italy is back over the $1 billion mark again in overall spending — the second highest in Europe.

A pair of Scotland midfielders — Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour — are headed to Napoli. McTominay joined on a fee of $33 million from Man United, where the midfielder had been since he was five. United manager Erik ten Hag lamented the pressure that clubs are under to sell “homegrown” players — because of the good profit margin — amid the league's financial regulations. Gilmour arrives from Brighton for a fee of about $20 million.

Romelu Lukaku joined Napoli on Thursday, reuniting with manager Antonio Conte, who had coached Belgium’s all-time record scorer at Inter Milan.

There could still be some surprises in store beyond Europe. That's because the Saudi Pro League has until Monday to lure more players, after Toney's agreement.

Entering this week, the Saudis had spent just $240 million in this transfer window — a huge decrease from the roughly $1 billion spent in the same period a year ago.

One reason might be the lack of squad spots, though the league has put in place a plan to add more foreign players. Changes that took effect this season increased the limit on the number of foreign players per team from eight to 10. There's no age limit for eight foreigners but in a bid to get younger stars — not just the 30-something crowd — two spots are restricted to “non-Saudi players born in 2003 or after.”

On Tuesday, Saudi champion Al Hilal paid $28 million to Manchester City for full back João Cancelo.

Mohamed Salah was No. 1 on Al-Ittihad's wish list last year, when Liverpool reportedly rejected a bid worth $188 million. The 32-year-old Salah is in the final year of his contract on Merseyside.

Bayern Munich signaled early Friday that it was done spending. The Bavarian powerhouse spent about 100 million euros ($110 million) combined for Portugal midfielder João Palhinha and forward Michael Olise as it aims to recapture the German title it lost to Bayer Leverkusen last season.

Leverkusen kept most of its double-winning team together, while last season’s surprise second-place team Stuttgart was ransacked by rivals.

The highest-profile signing by a German club on Friday was Netherlands defender Lutsharel Geertruida moving to Leipzig from Dutch club Feyenoord. Geertruida was a key player for Feyenoord last season under coach Arne Slot, who’s now at Liverpool.

The most talked-about transfer on deadline day in Germany was one that didn’t happen. Leverkusen and Germany defender Jonathan Tah was a target for Bayern, and was linked with Barcelona. The defender confirmed on Friday he was staying put.

The summer's biggest move came with no transfer cost at all when Kylian Mbappé joined Real Madrid after his contract expired at Paris Saint-Germain. La Liga was on course to be the lowest spender among the big five — it entered the final week at just under $600 million. Atlético Madrid was the league's biggest spender — by a wide margin — in the summer window by dropping more than $200 million highlighted by forward Julian Alvarez coming from Manchester City.

Veteran forward Wilfried Zaha joined French club Lyon from Galatasaray for a modest fee of $3 million. The 31-year-old Zaha spent most of his career at Crystal Palace before playing last season in Turkey, where he helped Galatasaray win the domestic league title.

And American Auston Trusty is Glasgow-bound with Celtic, which said the central defender has been signed on a five-year deal from Sheffield United.

AP sports writer James Ellingworth in Germany contributed.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

FILE - Brentford's Ivan Toney applauds fans after the English Premier League soccer match between Tottenham Hotspur and Brentford at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, Jan. 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, File)

Manchester United's Mason Mount, left, and Brighton & Hove Albion's Billy Gilmour battle for the ball during the English Premier League soccer match at the American Express Stadium, Brighton, England, Saturday Aug. 24, 2024. (Gareth Fuller/PA via AP)

FILE - Scotland's Scott McTominay reacts during a Group A match between Scotland and Hungary at the Euro 2024 soccer tournament in Stuttgart, Germany, June 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader, File)

FILE - Uruguay's Manuel Ugarte celebrates after defeating Brazil in a penalty shootout during a Copa America quarterfinal soccer match in Las Vegas, July 6, 2024.(AP Photo/David Becker, File)

FILE - Inter Milan's head coach Antonio Conte congratulates his player Romelu Lukaku who scores the two goals during a Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and Lazio at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Feb. 14, 2021. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno, File)

Transfer deadline day: Premier League leads spending in Europe

Transfer deadline day: Premier League leads spending in Europe

FILE - Chelsea's Raheem Sterling makes an attempt to score during the English Premier League soccer match between Chelsea and Fulham at Stamford Bridge stadium in London, Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, File)

GAINESVILLE, Va. (AP) — LPGA Commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan took responsibility Saturday for the tour's failure to get fans to the Solheim Cup in time to see the opening tee shots a day earlier but did not offer a full explanation of the debacle that has led to speculation about her future.

Players teed off Friday morning in front of half-empty grandstands at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, muting what could have been a raucous first-tee atmosphere in the team competition between the United States against Europe. The stands were full on Saturday, but the damage had been done, with media coverage more focused on the logistical problems than the dominant first day of golf by Nelly Korda and the U.S.

“At the end of the day, I’m the leader of the organization and I have to own it,” Marcoux Samaan said.

RTJ is tucked into a private residential community serviced by a single road off U.S. Route 29 in this exurb about 40 miles west of Washington, D.C. The venue hosted four Presidents Cups in the 1990s and 2000s and a PGA Tour event in 2017 without any significant transportation problems.

Marcoux Samaan said there simply weren't enough buses at Jiffy Lube Live, the concert venue where fans paid $30 for parking, without explaining why the LPGA didn't have a fleet of vehicles ready to shuttle spectators who were motivated to get to the golf course before dawn but instead spent hours standing in lines with little or no access to restrooms.

Asked how many buses were available, Marcoux Samaan declined to answer directly.

“It’s a complicated question, and again, we were writing spreadsheets and trying to figure it all out,” she said. “We didn’t have enough buses in the morning, clearly.”

The LPGA Tour is responsible for on-site operations at the Solheim Cup when it is played in the United States. The last U.S. event was in 2021 in Ohio, with the COVID-19 pandemic limiting the number of international fans.

“This was an LPGA issue,” Marcoux Samaan said.

The commissioner said the tour staff spent much of Friday in “triage mode” trying to diagnose the problem and ensure departing fans would be shuttled off the golf course efficiently. More than 12 hours passed before the LPGA posted a statement on social media promising improvements for Saturday and emailed a letter to fans that included an offer of free tickets for use this weekend.

“We had some staff out there and we were trying to communicate to the people that were there,” Marcoux Samaan said. “I think we thought that was more important than getting something out more broadly on social.”

Marcoux Samaan, who has been the LPGA commissioner for three years, also faced questions earlier this year about the tour's marketing of top-ranked Korda, whose historic run of six wins in seven starts, including a major championship, attracted modest television audiences.

The commissioner pointed to increased participation in the sport as a sign of her tour's growing popularity.

“The percentage of women playing has escalated over the last several years. Young girls playing golf has continued to grow,” she said. “I think our team is working really hard to grow the game.”

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Fans watch from the 11th fairway during a Solheim Cup golf tournament foursomes match at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in Gainesville, VA. (AP Photo/Matt York)

Fans are seen during a Solheim Cup golf tournament foursomes match at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in Gainesville, Va. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)

LPGA commissioner takes the blame for Solheim Cup transportation issues

Empty seats on a grandstand are seen on the first hole during a Solheim Cup golf tournament foursomes match at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in Gainesville, VA. (AP Photo/Matt York)

LPGA commissioner takes the blame for Solheim Cup transportation issues