Ranking La Liga New Boys on Likely Impacts This Season
The transfer window doesn't shut until September 1 in Spain, but plenty of La Liga sides have made great strides in strengthening their squads already.
While the likes of Dani Ceballos, Theo Hernandez and Vitolo have all made moves between clubs in Spain's top flight, there has also been the usual influx of new faces to the league as each club looks to snare the qualities it needs at a price that fits its budget.
But what can be expected of the new arrivals? How will they adapt to playing in Spain, and how much will they stand out against the quality that is already prevalent in La Liga? Here we look at the new additions to squads in the Spanish top flight, counting any who have been signed or registered to La Liga clubs this summer who weren't in La Liga last term.
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The players are ordered by likely impact in 2017/18, not outright ability or future potential.
20. Cenk Gonen, Malaga
Turkish goalkeeper Cenk Gonen arrives at Malaga to provide depth in the position after the departures of Carlos Kameni and Guillermo Ochoa, but given he's spent the past five seasons on the bench in the Super Lig it's difficult to think he'll be doing anything different in La Liga.
Andres Prieto and Roberto, both Spanish, have also been signed this summer to provide plenty of options—but the smart money is on Roberto, at least to start with, being the No. 1.
19. Guido Pizarro, Sevilla
Sevilla hoard midfielders like Chelsea hoard half-decent promising youngsters to loan out for four years.
Guido Pizarro, a 27-year-old combative holding option, arrives from Tigres in Mexico. But given the enormous competition he faces for game time—Steven N'Zonzi, Ever Banega, Ganso and Michael Krohn-Dehli—he'll have to hit the ground running to make a positive impact.
A squad option, we're anticipating.
18. Stanislav Lobotka, Celta Vigo
The 22-year-old Stanislav Lobotka is a new midfield option for Celta Vigo, a confident ball-playing presence in the middle of the park who aids buildup play and attacks from deep.
After impressing at the European Under-21 Championship this summer, B/R's Sam Tighe rated him as one of the players to have most improved his stock on international duty and highlighted Lobotka's main strengths: "He's spent his time in Denmark orchestrating his team's play with slick passes and surging forward from deep with the ball and slaloming around markers. His end product is hardly perfect, but he creates ripples on the pitch when he moves."
Looks like Sam was on the money with his value rising too: Celta forked out around €5 million to sign him from Nordsjaelland.
17. Nemanja Maksimovic, Valencia
An interesting signing for Valencia. Nemanja Maksimovic was a key midfielder in Serbia's successful side in the European Under-19 Championship in 2013 and is already a senior international at 22.
He has already played in Slovenia and Kazakhstan, with Champions League experience and title-winning campaigns to his name.
He's a central playmaker, a free-transfer signing and could be a good foil for the likes of Carlos Soler if Valencia bring in a solid defensive holder to operate behind them.
16. Emanuel Cecchini, Malaga
Malaga's usual high turnover has continued this summer, with Emanuel Cecchini a new face in midfield. At 20 and out of Argentina for the first time, he might not be expected to feature prominently in his debut campaign.
However, we've bumped him up a couple of places based on circumstance; having sold Ignacio Camacho and released Ricardo Horta, Malaga also lost Pablo Fornals to Villarreal suddenly, a big blow after the talented midfielder bought out his contract to enforce the move.
As a result, Cecchini might be called upon earlier and more often than had been planned—unless Malaga quickly reinvest.
15. Gerard Deulofeu, Barcelona
Barcelona moved to execute a buy-back option on Gerard Deulofeu this summer, but the move feels entirely pointless.
Sure, he'll play a few games—against Getafe and the like or in the Copa del Rey—but is he going to challenge Neymar and Leo Messi for a spot more than Paco Alcacer or Arda Turan have done? Unlikely.
He may get the odd run of appearances during which he impresses, but Deulofeu has always lacked the consistency and work rate to make it at a top club. Then again, maybe a move home and a final opportunity could finally kick him into gear more regularly.
14. Filip Manojlovic, Getafe
We're taking a bit of a leap of faith here: Filip Manojlovic is a goalkeeper, aged just 21, but there's a reasonable chance he becomes Getafe's new first-choice stopper.
Vicente Guaita is his competition, experienced and Spanish but vulnerable and inconsistent. Guaita spent most of last term in the Segunda on the bench, while Manojlovic made the move to one of Serbia's biggest teams, Red Star Belgrade, and immediately became their No. 1.
He made his senior international debut in January and is highly rated, so we're expecting good things—tempered with the possible ups and downs all young players experience.
13. Adnan Januzaj, Real Sociedad
Once tipped as the next big thing at Manchester United, Adnan Januzaj's career has spiralled irrelevantly downward of late.
He's still only 22, so there's plenty of time to reverse the trend, but his loan spell at Borussia Dortmund was a waste of time, and he didn't shine at Sunderland last term—and he wasn't even a guaranteed starter as they were relegated from the Premier League.
A creative midfielder, he has moments when he can unlock a defence with a run or pass but also has a dreadful tendency to fade out of games and be easily pushed off the ball.
12. Ruben Semedo, Villarreal
Villarreal's restructuring is usually done with low-cost additions who go on to generate big fees later, so the signing of former Sporting CP centre-back Ruben Semedo for €12 million is a departure from the norm.
They will need Semedo to be much more consistent and better with his decision-making than he was at the U-21 Euros in the summer, but he has the pace and strength to dominate aerially and offer recovery possibilities against counter-attacks.
He'll partner the excellent Victor Ruiz, which should aid the transition because the Spaniard is good at organising his back line, confident in possession and diligent about his positional work.
11. Cristian Tello, Real Betis
Cristian Tello impressed at Fiorentina last season and should be a good addition for Real Betis if he finds consistency.
He's a threat from the flanks, makes good runs on the counter and can dribble at pace—though his finishing has always left a lot to be desired.
Tello has the task of replicating the drive from deep that Dani Ceballos offered but also the individuality of Charly Musonda from two seasons back. He's an interesting addition, but he's not a surefire success.
10. Paulo Oliveira, Eibar
A steady, reliable defender, Paulo Oliveira should prove a good signing for Eibar.
He's a central rock who is typically impressive at the edge-of-the-box defensive work: clearances, headers, stopping runs through the centre and reaching knock-downs before attackers.
Oliveira didn't fit at Sporting under Jorge Jesus, but Eibar's deeper defensive line should suit his strengths perfectly.
9. Luis Muriel, Sevilla
A real enigma of a forward, onlookers have been waiting for Luis Muriel to explode for years—but he's 26 and has only netted double figures for league goals in a season twice: 11 in 2012/13 and then 11 again last year.
Mobile, technically impressive and capable of exciting moments, he's almost an archetypal impact sub. Can he transfer that ability to become a regular starter and scorer at Sevilla?
It's possible, but we're not anticipating it. He'll face competition for his position, and his capacity to go eight or nine games without a goal simply won't help.
8. Enes Unal, Villarreal
While Muriel hasn't yet been proved to be a prolific striker, Enes Unal hit 18 goals last year in the Eredivisie, and Manchester City have cashed in, taking around €12 million from Villarreal for the Turkish striker.
Aged 20, the tall forward is already a senior international, and there are signs he could be a player to lead the line for years to come.
La Liga is a step up, but he's got a great midfield supply line behind him and scheming options on the flanks. Chances will be created, and we're betting he makes an impact.
7. Jesus Vallejo, Real Madrid
Jesus Vallejo was on loan at Eintracht Frankfurt last term and returns to Real Madrid for the upcoming season, ready to finally make his debut for the team, two years after signing.
He'll be the fourth-choice centre-back, but one of those in front of him is Nacho—who covers at full-back—and the other two, Raphael Varane and Sergio Ramos, miss plenty of games through injury and suspension, respectively.
Vallejo will play his fair share of games and will impress.
6. Nolito, Sevilla
Despite a good start to 2016/17, Nolito didn't succeed at Manchester City—but should be a near-guarantee of a successful signing for Sevilla.
A wide forward who can create as well as score, he'll expect a regular place ahead of the World Cup with fierce competition for spots in the Spain squad.
The best bet is Nolito makes himself a key part of Sevilla's team and ends with a good haul of goals.
5. Ever Banega, Sevilla
More important to Sevilla, however, is the signing of Argentinian midfielder Ever Banega.
He's a metronomic schemer at his best, able to pull the strings from deep and dictate the tempo of the team, but his defensive work is also impressive, and he'll offer balance in the middle.
Banega only spent a year away, but he was a big-enough miss for Sevilla to spend nearly €10 million on a player they lost for free last summer.
4. Fabian Schar, Deportivo La Coruna
After a disappointing season with Hoffenheim, Deportivo La Coruna snared a bargain in landing Fabian Schar for €4 million.
Tall, imposing and good aerially, Schar was one of the brightest defensive prospects in Europe when at FC Basel, and there's no reason to think he won't regain form and playing time in La Liga.
He'll be a leader for Depor and will no doubt earn them a big profit in a year or two.
3. Neto, Valencia
Valencia's goalkeeping change sees Neto in to replace Diego Alves as No. 1, and the former Juventus reserve should be an easy first pick.
He'll face plenty of action if last season is anything to go by, with Los Che still a bit of a mess and needing to find a suitable system, players to hold organisation and some semblance of consistency throughout the team.
Neto will have the chance to impress as a result, and he should be a good last line of defence.
2. Sebastien Corchia, Sevilla
An excellent addition by Sevilla, perhaps a goodbye present from Monchi before the sporting director left for AS Roma.
Sebastien Corchia can burst down the flanks, can run with the ball or pull wide to create space out of possession, has a decent cross and final pass on him and is strong defensively too.
Right-back is a wide-open position, and he'll make the spot his own in a team that will attempt to dominate play and attack with frequency.
1. Nelson Semedo, Barcelona
Top of the charts is Barcelona's Nelson Semedo, a big-money signing who fills a problem position, offers the penetration and power down the flank that they lacked so often last season and is a strong player technically.
Even in pre-season, they already look somewhat more balanced with a true full-back on that side. There's no doubt he'll be a first pick for manager Ernesto Valverde, who is unlikely to experiment tactically the way predecessor Luis Enrique did last term.
Semedo should dovetail well with Lionel Messi further forward—if he plays on the right instead of centrally—finally putting to rest the ghosts Dani Alves' departure left behind a year ago.
