Revealed: Manchester clubs break ONE BILLION POUND transfer barrier...but one of the top six is in profit

City's vast transfer spending continues this summer as they added the Bernardo Silva, Kyle Walker, Ederson and Danilo to an already expensively assembled squad, while Jose Mourinho's United spent big to snap up striker Romelu Lukaku (£75m), Nemanja Matic (£35m) and Victor Lindelof (£30m).

Now the gulf in spending between Manchester's big two clubs and the rest of their Premier League rivals can be revealed, in figures that confirm the duo have spent hundreds of millions more than their domestic rivals in the pursuit of success.

City's outlay has contributed to one Premier League title and two League Cup wins, while United have claimed FA Cup League Cup and Europa League success over the same period, yet both clubs may have expected more after such vast outlays.

Meanwhile, Arsenal have spent £72m MORE in the transfer market than reigning Premier League champions Chelsea over the last five seasons, in balance sheets that may embarrass Gunners boss Arsene Wenger.

These figures emerge despite Arsenal ending last month’s transfer window in profit to the tune of more than £14m following the sale of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to Liverpool and the off-load of a host of fringe players who failed to develop under Wenger’s guidance.

In an era that has seen Premier League clubs flooded with money was a lavishly lucrative television deal that will run until the end of next season, Spurs have got the best value for money from their transfer trading despite failing to win a trophy in that period.

Wenger’s three FA Cup wins is the return he has generated on that investment for Arsenal, with Chelsea lifting two Premier League titles, the Europa League and the League Cup in the same period.

Chelsea’s trophy haul is considerably more impressive, with the Gunners financial figures set to take a further hammering next summer when big money signings Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil are likely to leave on free transfers when their contracts expire.

Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich may have bank-rolled Chelsea’s initial burst into the top tier of the European game when he bought the club in 2003, but his cash injections have dried up in recent years as Arsenal have started to spend big once again.

Despite Arsenal’s healthy bank balance and apparent eagerness to spend big to sign star names, Wenger and has failed to reclaim the club’s place as the kings of London football and they have even fallen behind Spurs in that battle of local pride.

Arsenal are due announce their latest set of financial figures in the coming weeks, with supporters unlikely to be impressed when they gather for the annual AGM, as these figures suggest Wenger's side are underperforming given their net spend over the last five years.

These numbers published by www.transfermarkt.co.uk highlight the huge gulf in spending between the two Manchester clubs, who can have no excuses if they fail to sustain a challenge for the Premier League title this season:

NET TRANSFER SPEND OVER LAST FIVE SEASONS FOR PREMIER LEAGUE’S TOP SIX

Manchester City - £570.5m

Manchester United - £512.16m

Arsenal - £209.91m

Chelsea - £137.95m

Liverpool - £135.4m

Tottenham - £3.16m PROFIT