Power Ranking EPL Clubs Based on Their Best Transfer Signing
This article will power rank each Premier League team based on their best summer transfer signing so far.
The signing has to be permanent, so no loan signings.
Value-for-money and the impact of the signing for the club were the two main standards used to rank the Premier League clubs.
Feel free to comment below.
20. Manchester City
1 of 20Jack Rodwell—Signed from Everton for £15 million
In a narrow 3-2 win over Southampton, Rodwell didn’t justify his overpriced transfer fee by giving the ball away, which led to the Saints scoring on the counter—at least he didn’t pull a hamstring.
19. Norwich City
2 of 20Robert Snodgrass—Signed from Leeds United for £1.5 million
He scored and created a combined 27 goals in the Championship, so he does have pedigree, but can he reproduce his form at the highest level?
18. Sunderland
3 of 20Louis Saha—Signed from Tottenham Hotspur on a Bosman
He was a sight for sore eyes when he was a young and dangerous forward for Fulham. Now, he relies on guile and movement since having been slowed down by injuries.
17. Stoke City
4 of 20Michael Kightly—Signed from Wolverhampton Wanderers for £2 million
Good signing by Tony Pulis because Kightly has quality, but his productivity has been stunted by injuries. He should have stayed with Wolves because they treated him quite well when he was injured.
16. West Ham United
5 of 20Mohamed Diamé—Signed from Wigan Athletic on a Bosman
Hard-nosed midfielder whose ball-winning prowess will empower Mark Noble and Kevin Nolan. Alou Diarra is a bit more experienced, but Diamé is more dynamic.
15. Fulham
6 of 20Mladen Petrić—Signed from Hamburg on a Bosman
Fulham took a similar risk on Pavel Pogrebnyak, who ended up scoring goals for fun. Petrić averaged 10 shots per league goal last season, but he was more lethal against Norwich City, as he scored twice and created a goal.
14. Wigan Athletic
7 of 20Arouna Koné—Signed from Levante for £2.7 million
Last season, Koné’s 15 league goals allowed Levante to somehow finish sixth.
He seems to play better for unfancied teams as evident with successful stints with Roda and Levante.
If Arsenal loanee Ryo Miyaichi is given an extended run, he could form a productive combination with Koné.
13. Reading
8 of 20Pavel Pogrebnyak—Signed from Fulham on a Bosman
It was so bizarre that Pogrebnyak was so prolific for Fulham when he looked awkward and slow for Stuttgart.
If the Russian can continue his goal scoring, Reading has secured a brilliant deal.
12. Newcastle United
9 of 20Vurnon Anita—Signed from Ajax for £6.7 million
He isn’t the most convincing right-back you’ll see. He’s even worse at left-back, which is why mediocre Daley Blind started several games there.
Anita should always be a defensive midfielder because not only is he robust in the tackle, but he makes quick decisions when offloading possession. When he played in the centre, he was easily one of the Eredivisie’s most effective midfielders.
11. West Bromwich Albion
10 of 20Ben Foster—Signed from Birmingham City for £4 million
It’s so important for mid-table teams to have a solid goalkeeper. West Brom has that base covered having signed Foster.
10. Southampton
11 of 20Gastón Ramírez—Signed from Bologna for £11.8 million
Yes, this deal is in limbo and could collapse like the Alexander Büttner deal.
Let's say the Saints get the deal done because it would be a big statement.
Ramírez's vision and his ability to bypass tackles from opposing players separate him from other midfielders.
He's a special player, who will be an outstanding entertainer for Southampton.
9. Liverpool
12 of 20Fabio Borini—Signed from Roma for £11 million
He has the potential to score 15-25 goals per season, yet Roma bizarrely sold him for minimal profit.
Last season, Borini was an inside-out threat and still managed to score goals starting from a wide position.
He has the mentality of Filippo Inzaghi, which will enable him to flourish at the highest level.
8. Manchester United
13 of 20Alexander Büttner—Signed from Vitesse for £3.9 million
Ferguson just signed the Eredivisie's best left-back for under £4 million. If Büttner was English, he would have cost United £12 million.
When Voetbal International’s readers voted for their Team of the Year, there were only two players who accumulated 80+ percent of the vote.
Jan Vertonghen, the Eredivisie's player of the year, garnered 89 percent at centre-back.
Büttner, Vitesse’s hyperactive left-back, accumulated 81 percent of the vote.
This has Patrice Evra written all over it. Do you remember how much United signed the Frenchman for? Just £5.5 million. Evra would go on to have several world-class seasons at left-back.
Sadly, the Frenchman has looked a shell of himself in recent times, which is why he needs to dramatically improve otherwise Büttner will replace him.
What about Robin van Persie?
When somebody’s paying £24 million for a 29-year-old with an expiring contract, who has previously suffered a fractured metatarsal, a knee ligament tear and ruptured ankle ligaments, you have to say the game’s gone mad.
Where's Shinji Kagawa?
From a commercial perspective, United made an astute decision to sign Kagawa.
It’s more complicated when it comes to football, especially after signing Van Persie. Kagawa is at his best as the centre attacking midfielder in a 4-2-3-1. Sir Alex Ferguson plays a 4-4-2, so if Kagawa doesn’t start as an attacking midfielder, his career will stagnate like Anderson.
In terms of economic efficiency, Büttner is United's best summer transfer so far.
7. Queens Park Rangers
14 of 20Junior Hoilett—Signed from Blackburn Rovers on a Bosman
He consistently befuddles full-backs with his dribbling ability. He's lethal as an inside-out threat, he has demonstrated his brilliance as a winger, he can can play as a deep-lying forward and could even have a future as a No. 10.
6. Aston Villa
15 of 20Karim El Ahmadi—Signed from Feyenoord for £2.5 million
He’s a complete midfielder: great tackler, good dribbler, excellent passer and possesses high football IQ.
He was integral to Jordy Clasie’s evolution into one of the Eredivisie’s best midfielders.
5. Everton
16 of 20Kevin Mirallas—Signed from Olympiakos for £5.3 million
Everton supporters should take a few deep breaths to process what just transpired. David Moyes just signed a player with world-class ability for £5.3 million.
When Mirallas was playing in Ligue 1, he’d waltz past opposing players, but he’d either shank his shot or misplace his pass.
He wasn’t maximising his ability, which was the same problem that plagued fellow Ligue 1 dribbling extraordinaire Stéphane Dalmat. That is probably the reason why Mirallas opted to take a detour to Olympiakos, which at the time seemed odd for such a precocious talent.
It turned out to be an excellent career decision because Mirallas netted 34 goals in 52 league games for Olympiakos.
4. Tottenham Hotspur
17 of 20Jan Vertonghen—Signed from Ajax for £9 million
Spurs have signed an elite centre-back, the reigning Eredivisie Player of the Year and a leader of men for just £9 million—excellent decision from Daniel Levy, who also made a great move for the productive Gylfi Sigurðsson at £8 million.
3. Chelsea
18 of 20Eden Hazard—Signed from Lille for £32 million
It was a statement of intent from Roman Abramovich to buy one of the world’s most coveted youngsters.
The Wigan Athletic players had to resort to underhand tactics because they couldn’t legally stop Hazard’s magical dribbling.
If Chelsea win the Premier League, the Belgian will be a main factor in the Blue’s success.
2. Arsenal
19 of 20Santi Cazorla—Signed from Málaga for £16 million
Sir Alex Ferguson gave the world some insight on the way Arsène Wenger negotiates:
"He (Wenger) could run a poker school in Govan. He got a great price [for Robin van Persie] but we [Manchester United] are also happy the matter is concluded."
Cazorla is not worth £16 million; he’s worth at least £35 million. Wenger has just signed a player who could lead the team in assists, shots created, tackles per game, tackles per foul and pass completion percentage.
It’s extremely rare to have an attacking player tackle as well as a defender. Cazorla is probably the second-best attack-minded tackler in Europe behind Roberto Firmino.
It was noteworthy that Cazorla started as a No. 10 because he’s made the false winger his own position. You see, if he wasn’t a complete footballer, his managers in the past wouldn’t have burdened him with additional roles like tracking the opposing full-back, winning back possession, providing width and orchestrating play as a quasi-No. 10.
Cazorla was head and shoulders above the rest against Sunderland. The problem with Cazorla not playing as a false 11 is that Lukas Podolski looks lost at sea as a No. 9 and Olivier Giroud starts on the bench.
1. Swansea City
20 of 20Michu—Signed from Rayo Vallecano for £2 million
If you listened to me when I talked up Michu’s potential for greatness in fantasy, you would have been rewarded with some unique fantasy points.
It’s surprising that the Spaniard isn’t a majority pick amongst fantasy managers because he’s a deep-lying forward listed as a midfielder.
He has high intangibles. He's a fighter and has an uncanny knack of getting himself into advantageous positions.
He scored 15 league goals last season with teammates who could only tackle, yet somehow Swansea signed Michu for £2 million.
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