English Premier League: Grading Each Club's Moves in the Transfer Window

With less than a month remaining in this summer's transfer season and less than a week before the 2012-2013 English Premier League season begins, it is time for the first installment of my evaluations of each club's moves in the window.

Most clubs have dumped more than they have pulled in, but there are teams that have definitely made waves to improve considerably, heading into the campaign.

Some clubs, on the other hand, have been minimalists during the window. But with just a few weeks left before it closes, there is still time to add some more newcomers.

Team by team, here are the grades, so far, in this summer's transfer exchange.

Arsenal

Players in: Santi Cazorla, Lukas Podolski, Olivier Giroud

Players out: Carlos Vela, Manuel Almunia, Pedro, Gavin Hoyte, Jeffrey Monakana, Benik Afobe (Loan), Denilson (Loan)

Arsenal has made no mystery about what it wants to add to the club. Although Robin van Persie's future is still wavering, the Gunners made moves to improve their offensive capabilities with the additions of Podolski, Giroud and most recently Cazorla.

The three up-field signings should provide quite the bump in production, but many fans have voiced concerns over the lack of defensive acquisitions.

Arsene Wenger has made it an annual ritual to pick up a French defender in some shape or form, so expect some more ripples at the Emirates before the window closes.

Grade: B+. Great signings so far in Cazorla, Podolski and Giroud. Plenty of experience and goal-creating prowess, but there is still something to be had by the lack of defensive introductions.

Aston Villa

Players in: Ron Vlaar, Matthew Lowton, Karim El Ahmadi, Brett Holman, Brad Guzan (re-sign)

Players out: James Collins, Connor Taylor, Carlos Cuellar

Aston Villa, for all intents and purposes, scraped by in the Premier League last season. Villa stayed out of the relegation zone by just two points, but the club's 37 goals, good for second worst in the league, are a huge concern going into this season.

Vlaar is probably Villa's best signing so far, as the Dutch defender performed well in the Euro 2012.

With recent injury blows to Gabriel Agbonlahor and Marc Albrighton, who both will miss the start of the new campaign, the club should be looking at every up-field target until the transfer window closes.

Lowton, El Ahmadi and Holman are not monster signings, but they also provide little confidence to increase Villa's goal-scoring options.

Grade: D+. Bluntly, Villa has not done enough to improve its predicament from last year. Just seven wins and 37 goals to its name, the club has to be looking offensively to stay out of danger.

Chelsea

Players in: Oscar, Thorgan Hazard, Eden Hazard, Marko Marin

Players out: Salomon Kalou, Didier Drogba, Ben Gordon (Loan), Romelu Lukaku (Loan), Kevin de Bruyne (Loan), Rohan Ince (Loan), Patrick van Aanholt (Loan), Tomas Kalas (Loan), Sam Walker (Loan)

Chelsea will be a drastically different club this season than it was in recent years.

The exodus from Stamford Bridge, that included Kalou and Drogba on permanent moves out of the club, was met with four positive signings on the other side. Oscar, Marin and the Hazard brothers are every bit as tactical, creative and diverse as the players whom they are replacing.

It looks like the onus will fall on Fernando Torres (gulp) and Daniel Sturridge to do the goal-scoring business while Lukaku gets to tune up his Premier League form elsewhere for the time being.

Grade: A-. Drogba is a blow, despite his age. The Blues will miss his presence in the final third. But the signings should provide an immediate impact for a club looking to find its feet again and challenge for a top place in the table.

Everton

Players in: Steven Pienaar, Steven John Naismith

Players out: Jack Rodwell, Joseph Yobo, Tim Cahill, Joao Silva

Everton has been pretty quiet so far.

The biggest news came recently when Manchester City pried Rodwell away from Goodison Park.

Pienaar rejoins the club permanently after his stint at White Hart Lane was quickly terminated.

The loss of Cahill puts a damper on the Toffees' potential in their attacking third, but David Moyes has always managed to survive, somehow, with lesser talents.

Grade: C-. It could be lower, but the club hasn't lost too much in terms of on-field production. The core that includes Leighton Baines and Marouane Fellaini is still very much intact, but Everton needs a few more additions to be steady as its normal, competitive self.

Fulham

Players in: Hugo Rodallega, Mladen Petric, Sascha Riether (Loan)

Players out: Dickson Etuhu, Marcel Gecov, Andrew Johnson, Danny Murphy

There is plenty to like, so far, about the newcomers to Craven Cottage. Rodallega should transition smoothly into the brand of football that Fulham employs, and Petric is just another solid, consistent option up front in Martin Jol's second year at the helm.

Losing the veteran presence of Murphy hurts, but only conditionally. If the Cottagers can successfully replace his strength in the midfield, then all is not lost with the surrounding additions. Riether, who is on loan, is a solid option towards the back for a club that fell right in the middle of the pack in terms of goals allowed.

The kicker here could be Clint Dempsey. If the American does end up leaving the club, then it would have lost its premier catalyst in scoring goals.

Grade: B-. The biggest win for Fulham would be holding onto Dempsey, a non-move that could be the most important "get" for the club this summer. If the Cottagers lose the versatile midfielder, their grade will drop.

Liverpool

Players in: Joe Allen, Fabio Borini

Players out: Craig Bellamy, Alberto Aquilani, Toni Brito Silva, Maxi Rodriguez, Stephen Darby, Joe Rafferty, Dirk Kuyt, David Amoo, Henoc Mukendi (Loan)

Liverpool surely cannot be done acquiring players, given the numbers that have left Anfield so far. At the same time, the loss in quality has not been too drastic to the point where the club's season looks bleak.

The Reds have acquired some nice, youthful "gets" in Allen and Borini, but they will have to be  much more offensive in order to jump back into the thick of the title race.

Grade: B-. The biggest losses are Rodriguez and Kuyt, as most of the other departed players never held too much weight on the club's fortunes. Otherwise, Liverpool deserves an incomplete, for the most part, as it continues to evaluate transfer talent, like Clint Dempsey.

Manchester City

Players in: Jack Rodwell

Players out: Vladimir Weiss, Andrea Mancini, Greg Cunningham, Omar Elabdellaoui (Loan), Wayne Bridge (Loan)

For a club that is consistently at the center of all of the transfer rumor musings and constantly looks to bring in top talent, Manchester City has been very quiet.

Just recently, the Blues picked up Rodwell from Everton, a likely replacement for Yaya Toure when he leaves the club.

On the flip side, City has not lost any of its mainstream quality that helped the club win the Premier League title last season.

Grade: C-. This is pretty much an incomplete grade, given the lack of true movement in and out of the club. If this is the extent of City's signings at the end of August, expect a worse evaluation.

Manchester United

Players in: Sean Goss, Nick Powell, Shinji Kagawa

Players out: Park Ji-Sung, Oliver Norwood, Tomasz Kuszczak, Paul Pogba (Loan), Ben Amos (Loan), Reece Brown (Loan), John Cofie (Loan), Fabio (Loan)

United has gone on a loan frenzy, as it should, given the type of talent it is able to field consistently.

Kagawa is easily Sir Alex Ferguson's top signing, as the Japanese player exhibits great dribbling qualities and finishing efforts from the midfield. The former Borussia Dortmund player will immediately strengthen the club's options in the middle.

Grade: B+. It is hard to deny how United approach the transfer window. Powell and Goss are a couple of great, young prospects that will mature nicely under the tutelage of a well-run club. United isn't done yet, though.

Newcastle United

Players in: Curtis Good, Gael Bigirimana, Romain Amalfitano

Players out: Alan Smith, Peter Lovenkrands, Fraser Forster, Danny Guthrie, Leon Best, Daniel Taylor

Newcastle did well to earn a spot in the Europa League for the upcoming season, and the Magpies have been looking to go younger in the transfer window.

With most of the squad held in tact, including the punishing likes of Demba Ba and Papiss Cisse, Alan Pardew has added 19-year-old center back Good and 18-year-old midfielder Bigirimana. Nothing outrageous for the team that finished five points out of third place, but Newcastle looks to be equally competitive this year.

Grade: B-. Newcastle has kept pretty under the radar with these moves, and it hasn't really let go of any huge pieces for the new campaign.

Norwich City

Players in: Michael Turner, Robert Snodgrass, Steven Whittaker, Jacob Butterfield

Players out: Andrew Crofts, Zak Whitbread, Aaron Willbraham, Adam Drury, Daniel Ayala (Loan)

If it weren't for Norwich City's poor defense, the Canaries may have done much better last season.

Not to be too sneaky, Norwich has added two veteran defenders in Turner and Whittaker, while acquiring a proven goal-scorer in Snodgrass to add to a decent pool of forwards.

Grade: B-. The Canaries have made some smart moves so far, at least it appears that way. They have let go of several players that had little impact on the overall core of the squad, while adding to it nicely.

Queens Park Rangers

Players in: David Hoilett, Park Ji-Sung, Samba Diakite, Andrew Johnson, Robert Green, Ryan Nelsen, Fabio (Loan)

Players out: Heidar Helguson, Rowen Vine, Fitz Hall, Patrick Kenny

QPR is not fooling around.

After barely surviving the relegation zone by one point, the club has put in a lot of cash to improve its standing going into this season.

Hoilett, Park, Johnson, Green and Fabio all should warrant first 11 selections and will look to boost quality immediately.

Grade: A. Given how QPR finished the season last year, these are moves that move the club up at least a handful of spots. How the team plays defensively, including the plays of any newcomers, will weigh heavily.

Reading

Players in: Adrian Mariappa, Nicky Shorey, Pierce Sweeney, Pavel Pogrebnyak, Danny Guthrie

Players out: Michail Antonio, Joseph Mills, Karl Shephard (Loan), Angus MacDonald (Loan), Michael Hector (Loan), Gozie Ugwu (Loan)

Reading is back in the Premier League after a largely unheralded stint several years back.

Shorey returns to the Royals this year. Strangely enough, the last time Shorey donned the yellow and blue, Reading was indeed in the EPL.

Guthrie and Pogrebnyak provide some great experience across the pitch, while the latter featured quite nicely in a short stint with Fulham towards the end of the last season.

Grade: C+. Nothing earth-shattering here, but Reading have added some nice, quality veterans to the squad that captured the championship crown.

Southampton

Players in: Nathaniel Clyne, Steven Davis, Paulo Gazzaniga

Players out: Daniel Harding, Tommy Forecast (Loan)

After sending players like Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott and most recently Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to the Premier League, Southampton finally get its chance to show its worth in England's top flight.

The Saints led the championship in scoring last season with 88 goals to their name, thanks in part to 25 from Richard Lambert.

Southampton added a young, promising defender in Clyne, but Davis could be the most important signing for the club with his goal-producing ability.

Grade: C. It will be tough to evaluate how well the Saints do in the transfer window, but with much of their squad returning for a crack in the EPL, there is definitely room for optimism given the relative success of Swansea, Norwich and QPR before them.

Stoke City

Players in: Michael Kightly, Jamie Ness, Goran Popov (Loan)

Players out: Danny Collins, Jonathan Woodgate, Andrew Davies, Matthew Lund (Loan), Florent Cuvelier (Loan)

The worst scoring club in the Premier League last season managed to keep out of relegation, and Stoke City look to bolster some of its offensive prowess this year.

The Potters have yet to make moves to improve their up-field sequences, but they have made acquisitions in the midfield and defense, building off of a strong presence in 2011.

Kightly could be one of the more underrated signings in the window. His ability to distribute, something he did with great success at Wolves, may not get the proper attention at Stoke if nobody is there to finish the chances.

Grade: C+. Kightly is a nice signing, but Stoke need much more help in the final third in order to warrant more optimism moving forward.

Sunderland

Players in: Carlos Cuellar

Players out: Michael Turner, Marcos Angeleri, Michael Liddle, Jordan Cook, Asamoah Gyan, George McCartney, Trevor Carson

The footprints leaving the Stadium of Light far outnumber those coming in, as Sunderland has signed just one player so far in Carlos Cuellar.

For a team that actually lined up very well defensively against the rest of the league, the Black Cats will have to go after some offensive-minded names in the coming weeks. Even Martin O'Neill says so.

Gyan's move out of the club will be something to overcome, but perhaps O'neill's savvy, with the help of some up-field additions, can turn a rather disappointing 2011 season into a more fruitful 2012 campaign.

Grade: D-. If there ever was a call for an incomplete grade, this is it. Surely Sunderland isn't done acquiring new players after so many have left the club. O'Neill has just enough time to work some magic to reel in some difference makers.

Swansea City

Players in: Miguel Perez Cuesta, Chico, Jonathan de Guzman (Loan)

Players out: Joe Allen

Swansea performed surprisingly well last season, employing a quick-tempo offense that frustrated most clubs in the Premier League.

So in the Swans' second year in England's top flight, while they may have already lost a great piece in Allen, they introduced a few serviceable players to bolster where they were weakest.

Both Cuesta and de Guzman are midfielders who are no strangers to scoring goals and should add some firepower from all parts of the field.

Grade: C+. Swansea has been pretty much on an even keel so far, compared to last year. Nothing too drastic yet, but if the club is to improve its standing, it will need to seek out some more help.

Tottenham

Players in: Jan Vertonghen, Gylfi Sigurdsson

Players out: Steven Pienaar, Ben Alnwick, Lee Angol, Niko Kranjcar, Vedran Corluka, Ryan Nelsen, Ryan Fredericks (Loan), Massimo Luongo (Loan), Bongani Khumalo (Loan)

Holding onto critical pieces in Rafael van der Vaart and Luka Modric, the latter which seems unlikely still, will play well into the favor of Tottenham's chances at a top spot in the table.

Not a single player that has left White Hart Lane is of great significance for the overall product that Spurs will put on the pitch in Andres Villas-Boas' first crack in North London.

Tottenham landed perhaps the best defender in the transfer window in Vertonghen in addition to a young, promising midfielder in Sigurdsson.

Grade: B. Spurs definitely strengthened their squad with their two signings so far, but they will need some extra help up front to make the biggest difference. The Yann M'Vila bid, if it is finalized, will help alleviate some pressure if Modric leaves, but they will still miss that creative spark as well as a commanding presence in the box.

West Brom

Players in: Markus Rosenberg, Claudio Yacob, Romelu Lukaku (Loan), Yassine el Ghanassy (Loan)

Players out: Paul Downing, Abdoulaye Faye, Nicky Shorey, Lateef Elford-Alliyu, Joe Mattock, Keith Andrews, Simon Cox

West Brom was one of three teams to finish mid-table with 47 points, a somewhat surprising finish for a relatively lackluster squad of arguable overachievers.

The Baggies added a number of midfield and attack options in order to improve its goal-scoring prospects and overcome a mediocre defensive presence.

Rosenberg comes to the Hawthorns from Werder Bremen and will give experience to the attack. But the real one to watch will be Lukaku, who joins the fray on loan from Chelsea.

Grade: B-. The additions of Rosenberg and Lukaku alone already improve what West Brom is able to field up front, and the club didn't lose too much in its departed players.

West Ham United

Players in: Alou Diarra, James Collins, Raphael Spiegel, Modibo Maiga, George McCartney, Jussi Jaaskelainen, Mohamed Diame

Players out: Marek Stech, Fred Sears, Pablo Barrera, Oliver Lee, Robert Green, Ravel Morrison (Loan)

After a one-year absence from the Premier League and after taking third in the championship, West Ham is back this season.

The Hammers have strengthened their squad in sheer numbers, adding a slew of veterans up and down the pitch in hopes of enduring the season. Diarra and Collins come into Upton Park as a dynamic set of defenders with a depth of experience at the highest levels.

How quickly can this team develop chemistry, though?

Grade: B. West Ham have added names, but there are few promising players that have high ceilings. Instead, these are moves that look to stabilize the club to be competitive sooner rather than later.

Wigan Athletic

Players in: Ivan Ramis, Fraser Fyvie, Mauro Boselli, Lee Nicholls (Loan), Ryo Miyaichi (Loan)

Players out: Hugo Rodallega, Chris Kirkland, Mohamed Diame, Ryan Watson (Loan)

Wigan buffed up its defense by inking Ramis to a contract, a move that should improve how the club performs on the back end of the field.

But if Wigan can hold onto Victor Moses, this could be the bigger win of the transfer window, depending on the conditions of his move or non-move.

Boselli gives the club great experience and presence in the box. Three young acquisitions, two of which are on loan, don't present too much promise for a team that should again be looking to survive in the Premier League.

Grade: C. Ramis is a great pickup, but the loss of Rodallega and Diame are hits to a club that struggled mightily last year.