The greatest swap deals in the history of the Premier League

Ali Pollock

Ashley Cole in action for Chelsea in 2013Profimedia

Despite going out of fashion over the last decade or so, swap deals have come right back into play as Premier League clubs try to work their way around strict PSR guidelines.

So far this summer we have seen a direct swap deal between Aston Villa and Juventus, with Douglas Luiz heading to Italy to allow Samuel Iling Junior and Enzo Barrenechea (as well as some much-needed cash) to come the other way.

Some clubs have also sold a player to one team before buying a different player from that same side in a separate deal - another way of getting around tricky regulations.

This begs the question, what are the greatest swap deals in Premier League history? Flashscore has decided to take a look.

A small caveat; the deal only has to involve one Premier League club rather than two of the division's teams swapping between each other.

Plenty of these deals also involved some cash going in one direction or the other to sweeten proceedings.

Ashley Cole and William Gallas (Arsenal and Chelsea)

To this day one of the best swap deals between Premier League clubs and perhaps one of the best deadline day deals ever as well, Chelsea parted with William Gallas and around £5 million to ensure Ashley Cole moved to Stamford Bridge back in 2006.

Cole had been an excellent servant to Arsenal and made 228 appearances before his switch to Chelsea, playing his part in the iconic invincible season.

Likewise, Gallas did well for the Blues in his five years at the club, winning the Premier League twice before eventually demanding to be let go - even reportedly threatening to score own goals if he was forced to stay.

Cole found himself in a similar situation, desperate to leave the Gunners and eventually, both clubs came to an agreement.

Gallas did very well with Arsenal without winning any major silverware but it was Cole and Chelsea who clearly came out on top.

The Englishman went on to win another league title, four FA Cups, a League Cup, the Europa League and the Champions League - becoming widely regarded as one of the best left-backs of all time.

David Luiz and Nemanja Matic (Benfica and Chelsea)

Another deal involving Chelsea - this time with a foreign club - saw them swap then 20-year-old Nemanja Matic plus some cash (reported to be around £20m) for exciting Brazilian defender David Luiz in 2011.

At the time, Matic was a young midfielder who hadn't really made his mark in England while Luiz was impressing with Benfica over in Portugal.

Luiz would spend three years at Chelsea before joining PSG, only to then return to London two years later and go on to bring his total appearances for the Blues up to 248 - winning numerous trophies in the process.

One player might have been enough for the London side but, no, they also re-signed Matic three years on from the swap deal and he would become one of the better midfielders in the league, winning the title twice.

Luiz (L) and Matic in Chelsea actionProfimedia

Andy Cole and Keith Gilespie (Newcastle and Manchester United)

Perhaps the greatest swap deal for one club in Premier League history, Andy Cole went from Newcastle to Manchester United in 1995 for a reported £7m plus winger Keith Gillespie going the other way.

Cole had been excellent for Newcastle after netting 55 league goals while Gillespie had only featured 14 times for United.

What made the deal even stranger was that the Magpies were battling for the title around that time, directly challenging their Mancunian opposition for the league.

Cole went on to become one of the all-time great strikers after forming a formidable partnership with Dwight Yorke.

He ended his career on 187 Premier League goals - the fourth-highest of any player ever - and was part of United's famous treble-winning side.

Gillespie didn't fare as well but still had a solid career across the first and second tiers of English football and played 86 times for Northern Ireland.

Fernando Torres and Luis Garcia (Atletico Madrid and Liverpool)

In 2007, Liverpool paid a reported £23m plus Luis Garcia to secure the services of then-Atletico forward Fernando Torres.

The striker arrived to much excitement after an impressive few seasons in LaLiga while Garcia had started to feature less for the Reds, although did play his part in reaching two Champions League finals.

Torres immediately excelled in England with 24 goals in his debut league campaign and would go on to make 142 appearances for Liverpool, scoring 81 times.

An ill-fated move to Chelsea followed and he never hit the same heights as before, as his career gradually slowed down.

Garcia made less of an impact back in Spain and would retire in 2016 after spells in Mexico, India and Australia.

Jermain Defoe and Bobby Zamora (West Ham and Tottenham Hotspur)

The final deal we'll look at saw Spurs part with around £7m and Bobby Zamora in order to secure the services of West Ham striker Jermain Defoe.

Defoe was well-sought-after at the time as one of England's most promising young strikers and would go on to fulfill that potential by scoring 143 goals across two spells with Spurs.

He also bagged plenty at Portsmouth in between his two stints in London and was part of another great swap deal - returning to the Premier League with Sunderland after a stint in the MLS, with Jozy Altidore going the other way.

Defoe would eventually end his career on 162 Premier League goals, putting him firmly in the top 10 all-time scorers in the division.

Zamora's move worked out nicely as well, with the striker guiding West Ham to promotion from the Championship in 2005.

He would score regularly in the Premier League for the Hammers and then Fulham before joining QPR - where he was relegated and then helped them back to the top flight once again through the play-offs.