English clubs getting ripped off in the transfer market, says Lehmann

Former Arsenal goalkeeper Jens Lehmann believes that European clubs are more than happy to exploit the big-spending habits of Premier League clubs.

Lehmann spent five years at Arsenal between 2003 and 2008 after arriving on a free transfer from Borussia Dortmund, before coming out of retirement to make one appearance for Arsene Wenger's men in 2011 during an injury crisis at the club.

And following Manchester City's club-record signing of Kevin De Bruyne from Wolfsburg, along with the big-money capture of Monaco's Anthony Martial by Manchester United, Lehmann says that English clubs are not being clever with their spending.

"English teams pay too high prices for players, to the benefit of other leagues," said Lehmann, who also claimed that, despite the hefty transfer fees, English clubs have still not improved on the European stage.

"A new player costs €20million or €40m? The other leagues take the money gratefully, knowing it's far too much.

"That's complete nonsense. You can't say that they [English clubs] are shopping cleverly.

"And club football is a big disappointment internationally, if you see that four teams started in the Champions League last season and not a single English team reached the quarter-finals. Sooner or later they will need a reshuffle."