World Football's Top 14 Major Summer Transfers

Here are the top 14 summer transfers to major European clubs.

This article will also analyse proposed transfers like Robin van Persie to Manchester City, Hulk to Chelsea and Luka Modrić to Real Madrid.

The transfers of Marvin Martin, Bas Dost and others will be covered in a forthcoming article.

14. Marko Marin, Attacking Midfielder, Age: 23

From Werder Bremen to Chelsea

Marko Marin established one undeniable fact: He should never play as an attacking midfielder.

Injuries and playing out of position contributed to Marin's swift fall from grace.

Not only does he lack the ability to orchestrate play, but he cannot predict the runs of his teammates with opposing players in front of him.

It's not Marin's fault, because he's always played a simplistic game: dribble past the full-back, drag the centre-back out of position and play a through ball to the forward.

It's bizarre that someone of Thomas Schaaf's experience had tunnel vision on Marin being an attacking midfielder.

In defence of Schaaf, he did build the team around Marin by starting two prolific ball-winners in Clemens Fritz and Philipp Bargfrede.

With a healthy Eden Hazard and Juan Mata, will Marin be a starter for Roberto Di Matteo? No, the German's squad status will be impact sub or benchwarmer.

The Blues let go of Gökhan Töre last season, only to sign Marin for £7 million. Töre is not only a more explosive dribbler, but he's bigger, stronger, quicker, younger and cheaper than Marin.

The sad reality is Blues management think this signing is value for money. Spending £7 million on Bundesliga's 107th-best player is moronic and reinforces the notion that Roman Abramovich is surrounded by a bunch of yes-men.

Value for money is Newcastle United taking a calculated risk on the £9 million-rated Papiss Cissé, who scored 33 goals in his last 51 games with mediocre teammates at Freiburg.

13. Francesco Acerbi, Centre-Back, Age: 23

From Chievo to AC Milan

Francesco Acerbi is a much better defender than Bostjan Cesar and Marco Andreolli, but the 23-year-old spent most of the season on the outside looking in.

When Acerbi did play, he was strong at the back and displayed an uncanny knack at intercepting passes.

Acerbi is a proactive defender, whilst Philippe Mexès is a reactive defender. Acerbi or Mexès? Acerbi everyday of the week. 

12. Fredy Guarín, Central Midfielder, Age: 25

From Porto to Inter Milan

Porto strike again. How did they receive €11 million for Fredy Guarín?

Guarín is a jack-of-all-trades, master of none. He can tackle, but he isn't an elite ball-winner. He can score outrageous goals, but he doesn't score enough. He can pass, but he can't orchestrate play. He can dribble past opposing players, but he isn't a consistent dribbler.

Riccardo Montolivo is easily a better player than Guarín, and AC Milan signed him for free. Inter Milan are making the same reach with Guarín as they did with Francisco Farinós.

11. Dante, Centre-Back, Age: 28

From Borussia Mönchengladbach to Bayern Munich

Dante was superb for Borussia Mönchengladbach, and his presence in the squad will force Jérôme Boateng to up his game.

However, if Dante doesn't play week in, week out, and is thrown into the deep end, don't be surprised if the Brazilian commits a few mistakes.

When he first played for Mönchengladbach, his defending was hit-and-miss like David Luiz.

10. Riccardo Montolivo, Central Midfielder, Age: 27

From Fiorentina to AC Milan

Riccardo Montolivo is an elegant passer, he's an efficient ball-winner, and his positioning is elite.

Last season, Antonio Nocerino was one of the signings of the season at just €500,000.

With Montolivo signing on a Bosman, the Rossoneri have operated in a shrewd fashion once again—Inter Milan should take note.

9. Claudio Pizarro, Centre-Forward, Age: 33

From Werder Bremen to Bayern Munich

Markus Rosenberg's 8.2 shots per goal was inefficient, which forced Claudio Pizarro to compensate with his economical 4.7 shots per goal.

Marko Marin was missing in action as the No. 10, and so was Mehmet Ekici. Pizarro effectively played two roles: the goal scorer and creator. Unsurprisingly, he led Werder Bremen in goals and assists.

Bayern Munich doesn't have depth in the forward ranks, so signing Pizarro makes sense, as someone like Nils Petersen is still a work in progress.

8. Olivier Giroud, Centre-Forward, Age: 25

From Montpellier to Arsenal

Wenger is either replacing Robin van Persie with Olivier Giroud, or the French manager will start van Persie as the attacking midfielder behind a target man like Giroud.

The forward played in a 4-2-3-1 at Montpellier, which is the same system at Arsenal. As a Frenchman, he'll fit into Arsenal's predominantly French-speaking squad.

Giroud told The Sun:

"

I am so happy to be signing for Arsenal—it is something that represents so much for me. I've always dreamed of playing in the Premier League and Arsenal are a great club with many French players.

"

7. Xherdan Shaqiri, Right Winger, Age: 20

From Basel to Bayern Munich

Thomas Müller needs to play centrally, whilst Arjen Robben's fitness will continue to be a concern.

Xherdan Shaqiri is similar to Robben in terms of mesmeric dribbling and selfishness. In the UEFA Champions League, there were countless occasions where Shaqiri held on to the ball too long, which is why he was one of the most fouled players in the tournament.

His individualism is a slight concern, as he averaged 3.5 shots per game compared to 1.7 shots created.

Shaqiri will be a more productive impact sub than Ivica Olić. Spare a thought for tired defenders keeping Robben at bay for 70 minutes, only to see a dangerous Shaqiri subbed on.

6. Rodrigo Palacio, Deep-Lying Forward, Age: 30

From Genoa to Inter Milan

Diego Forlán and Mauro Zárate were shooting blind as they combined for four goals from 88 shots. Rodrigo Palacio scored 19 goals from 71 shots.

Last season, he started with five goals and three assists in his first five games. He also scored seven goals in a five-game stretch.

In three games against Juventus and AC Milan, Palacio didn't score, so it remains to be seen if he's a big fish in a small pond like Giampaolo Pazzini.

Potentially, it could be a "fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me" situation for Inter if Palacio is as unproductive as Pazzini.

5. Lukas Podolski, Centre-Forward, Age: 27

From Köln to Arsenal

Milivoje Novakovič lost his shooting touch, so Lukas Podolski, who was a deep-lying forward, spent most of the season leading the line as the centre-forward. Mato Jajalo moved up into the No. 10 role, but he couldn't replicate Podolski's magic.

Basically, Podolski was the goal scorer and creator, just like Claudio Pizarro at Werder Bremen.

Podolski isn't a centre-forward by any stretch of the imagination, but he scored 14 goals and provided four assists in that position.

He led Köln in goals, assists and shots created. Without him, Köln would have been the Derby County of the Bundesliga.

The best situation for Podolski is for Robin van Persie to leave, because it allows the German to play as a deep-lying forward behind Olivier Giroud.

Podolski isn't anything special when he plays as a wide attacking midfielder.

4. Marco Reus, Deep-Lying Forward, Age: 23

From Borussia Mönchengladbach to Borussia Dortmund

Marco Reus is a lethal dribbler, yet he knows when to pass, unlike Gökhan Töre, who often dribbles into a dark alley.

Just like how he made Borussia Mönchengladbach supporters forget about Marko Marin, Reus will make Borussia Dortmund supporters forget about Shinji Kagawa.

3. Sebastian Giovinco, Deep-Lying Forward, Age 25

From Parma to Juventus

How confused must Sebastian Giovinco be? He overstayed at Juventus, even though he wasn't wanted. 

Parma rescued his career, and he was lights out last season, especially in a 3-1 win over Inter Milan, where he left Lucio twisting and turning. Giovinco directly and indirectly contributed to all three of Parma's goals.

Here's the twist: Juve re-signed Giovinco, and the 25-year-old had no qualms going back. It's like going back to your ex—it's probably not going to end well.

Again, signing Giovinco points towards a permanent 3-5-2 next season, with him playing as a deep-lying forward behind a target man that Juve are still searching for.

Antonio Conte is a football savant, so if he doesn't start Giovinco next season from the get-go, it proves that he didn't sign Giovinco.''

So you're probably thinking, "Why did the Juve brain trust re-sign him?"

Five years ago, the club let go of Fabrizio Miccoli, who, if given a chance, would have been a world-class footballer at the club.

Every season since, Juve management were left thinking, "What did we do?" as Miccoli constantly produced moments of magic.

2. Shinji Kagawa, Attacking Midfielder, Age: 23

From Borussia Dortmund to Manchester United

Two glaring issues:

1. Shinji Kagawa will not be a world-class central midfielder because he's an attacking midfielder at heart
2. Wayne Rooney anointed himself as the de facto playmaker on the team, so will he let Kagawa run the show?

Signing Kagawa is lucrative from a marketing point of view, but it's not the best career decisio—especially when the 4-4-2 is ingrained in Sir Alex Ferguson.

Anderson has failed to live up to his lofty transfer fee since being converted from an attacking midfielder to a central midfielder. Will it be the same with Kagawa?

1. Eden Hazard, Left Forward, Age: 21

From Lille to Chelsea

Eden Hazard was at times unstoppable for Lille as he glided past opposing players like they weren't there.

He did his time as a wide forward for Rudi Garcia, and now Hazard wants to be a No. 10, a position he's played sporadically for Garcia.

Hazard accumulated a goals-scored-and-created average of 0.90 per game when he played as the central attacking midfielder last season.

Proposed Transfers

Robin van Persie, Centre-Forward, Age: 28, from Arsenal to Manchester City

Arsenal financially and psychologically supported him through the hard times, yet it could amount to nothing should he leave for City.

Hulk, Right Forward, Age: 25, from Porto to Chelsea

There's no one like him because he's a freakish combination of finesse and brute strength. Unfortunately, he doesn't have that killer mentality because he chokes from 12 yards out and consistently goes missing in the UEFA Champions League.

For the Blues supporters lamenting Daniel Sturridge's selfishness, Hulk averaged seven shots per game to 0.8 shots created in the Champions League.

Luka Modrić, Centre Midfielder, Age: 26, from Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid

Why Modrić? It makes no sense when Nuri Şahin can do the exact same job. However, José Mourinho does have a fixation on squad depth.

He signed Fábio Coentrão for €30 million even though he had Marcelo. The Portuguese manager kept Lass Diarra and Esteban Granero, when both are surplus to requirements. Rather than sell Gonzalo Higuaín or Karim Benzema, Mourinho rotates them.

Don't be surprised if Mourinho signed Modrić because the Special One takes a blunt view on spending needlessly—it isn't his money.

Yann M'Vila, Defensive Midfielder, Age: 21, from Rennes to Arsenal

He's a deep-lying playmaker and one of the cleanest tacklers in the world. DuŠan Tadić debilitated M'Vila's ability to perform at his peak prior to Euro 2012. Even with a dodgy ankle, M'Vila did not disgrace himself.

It's a perfect situation for Arsène Wenger to negotiate the 21-year-old's transfer fee down to £10-12 million.

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Please read Top 10 Euro Summer Transfer Targets

Statistics courtesy of WhoScored.com