Unremarkable summer signings

Yes, Real Madrid captured the early summer headlines by wisely investing €103 million in the talents of the England star Jude Bellingham - and they may yet ignite the market by signing Kylian Mbappé from Paris Saint Germain. The only other incoming is teenage talent Arda Güler from Fenerbahçe for €20 million, a modest investment by modern standards.

It's a sign of the times when signings look to have been made by club accountants rather than ambitious managers. The rest of the whole league's summer activity doesn't add up the fee for Bellingham. Barcelona have only invested €5 million to freshen up their squad; Atletico Madrid the same.

As I write, Sevilla are the only challengers to Real with a €12 million deal for Loïc Badé.

The benchmark appears to be around €5 million for a player amongst Liga clubs, compared to the average of €30 million pounds in the English Premier League. In fact, Spanish clubs and players agents know they can get £30 million for an average player internationally who'd fetch around €5 million domestically.

Take Pau Torres, an impressive centre-back who has joined the Spanish congregation at Aston Villa. The English club will feel that €45 million for an international-class defender is a great deal. His selling club Villarreal will think they have hit the jackpot. There isn't another Liga club who would consider spending that kind of cash on a player.

Barcelona are still counting every cent and restricted financially - which is why Lionel Messi is being unveiled in Miami and not Catalunya. İlkay Gündoğan from Manchester City is the headline signing - but. like Iñigo Martínez, he's a free transfer. These are two sensible recruitments who will bring much needed leadership to a young, championship-winning squad. The only investment so far is €5 million was to bring Oriol Romeu back to the club he left as a youngster.

Romeu's recruitment underlines the approach. It's a sensible signing. He'll do a job, an 8 out of 10 player at best; but he can partly plug the cap created by the loss of Sergio Busquets.

It's a trend. Atlético Madrid have followed a similar blueprint. César Azpilicueta and Çağlar Söyüncü from Chelsea and Leicester are smart free signings and Javi Galán for €5 million from Celta is a no-brainer. If he'd gone to an English club, you could have stuck another zero on the end!

The cautious approach is to be applauded and, in the long-term, it will encourage clubs to invest in developing young talent.

Of course, all I've written above could be blown out of the water if the stars are aligned and Mbappé moves from the French to Spanish capital. It appears that PSG may have lost patience and their new coach Luis Enrique may want a clean slate. It's no secret that Real Madrid have been holding cash back in case the French superstar does become available.

It would be a sensational signing that is bigger than anything else happening with any other club. It is literally all or nothing.