Every Top European Club's Best Signing From The 2014/15 Season
Here are the top 20 European club's best signing of the 2014/15 season.
- The 20 European clubs are ranked subjectively via a combination of performance, current standing and whether they satisfied expectations.
- One transfer (if available) is selected from the club and is expanded upon [1].
- The transfer will be judged via a combination of current playing ability, potential playing ability, economic efficiency and projected resell value.
- Please note this is not a list of the 20 best transfers in Europe, but a list of the best transfers from the top 20 European clubs right now.
[1] Loans are included only if it has been extended into a permanent deal.
Long-List Cuts
20. PSV Eindhoven: Andres Guardado
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Mexican central midfielder Andres Guardado, 28, has been instrumental in PSV Eindhoven's success.
He keeps play ticking over, averaging 52.2 passes per game, and he is a compact player able to function in a variety of roles.
He has a reputation as a wide player, but he is outstanding in a central role, which has factored into him becoming one of the Eredivisie's best players.
PSV Eindhoven technical director Marcel Brands discussed how important Guardado was to the club from a leadership perspective.
"[Guardado] puts on consistently solid displays and is well-respected by his team-mates," Brands said, per PSV Eindhoven's website. "He is called papi, which says it all and indeed he is like a father for the team."
19. Benfica: Jonas
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Valencia → Benfica: Free transfer.
Brazilian centre-forward Jonas, 31, is enjoying his new lease on life.
When scouts converged at Benfica games, they were not monitoring Jonas, who was perceived to be over the hill.
It was Anderson Talisca this, Anderson Talisca that. The wonderkid faded towards the end of the season and does not have a definitive position.
Whereas, Jonas scored 30 goals in all competitions for Benfica.
What a comeback.
18. Roma: Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa
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French centre-back Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, 26, was not given a fair chance by Newcastle United.
Now he is a regular starter for Roma, the second-best team in Serie A, which gives you a glimpse into how strange Newcastle United's decision making is.
Mapou averages 1.9 tackles and 2.4 interceptions per game.
17. Manchester United: Ander Herrera
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Sure, the transfer fee for Spanish central midfielder Ander Herrera, 25, is exorbitant.
But without his all-action midfield displays, Manchester United might have missed out on making the UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds.
Herrera needs to build on this season and continue to progress.
16. Bayer Leverkusen: Hakan Calhanoglu
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Turkish central attacking midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu, 21, has endured an up-and-down campaign.
He is one of the best free-kick takers in the world, yet his finishing in front of goal has been dire. He scored eight goals from 105 shots, and his shooting accuracy was 30.5 per cent.
He was placed at No. 110 in Kicker's Bundesliga player rankings.
That said, he is a world-class talent who should kick on next season. He has the ability to develop into one of the best players of his generation.
15. Arsenal: Alexis Sanchez
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Chilean left attacking midfielder Alexis Sanchez, 26, is Arsenal's No. 1 option, and their attack is heavily based around him.
Compensating for Olivier Giroud not being in the class of Thierry Henry and Mesut Ozil still trying to recapture his world-class form, Alexis carried Arsenal.
Alexis scored 16 goals and provided eight assists in 35 Premier League games.
14. Monaco: Bernardo Silva
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Portuguese right/central attacking midfielder Bernardo Silva, 20, is another James Rodriguez-esque investment from Monaco.
He is creme de la creme from a technical perspective. He possesses an all-round style: scores, creates and has shown he can win back the ball.
Silva scored six goals and provided two assists in his last seven Ligue 1 games.
Barring unforeseeable circumstances, Silva is certain to bank Monaco a considerable profit down the line.
13. Lyon: Christophe Jallet
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French right-back Christophe Jallet, 31, has enjoyed a renaissance.
He is generally always in the right defensive position, he is a competitor and reliable at the back, attributes devoid in Gregory van der Wiel.
Serge Aurier had issues playing out the entire season, whereas Jallet is Mr Dependable.
12. Borussia Monchengladbach: Yann Sommer
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Swiss goalkeeper Yann Sommer, 26, was tasked with filling a gigantic void as Marc-Andre ter Stegen's successor.
Sommer has been elite in the Bundesliga, a league filled with the most high-calibre goalkeepers in the world.
11. Sevilla: Grzegorz Krychowiak
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Polish defensive midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak, 25, is a ball-winning machine.
He has accumulated 107 tackles and intercepted 97 passes in 32 La Liga games.
His finishing is poor (26.5 per cent shooting accuracy), but he came up big scoring in Sevilla's 3-2 win over Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk in the UEFA Europa League final.
Krychowiak's success encapsulates how meticulous Sevilla are in negotiating a transfer fee to their advantage.
10. Valencia: Nicolas Otamendi
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Porto persisted with Argentinian centre-back Nicolas Otamendi, 27, before cutting bait after four seasons.
It has taken one season for Otamendi to not only outperform his transfer fee at Valencia, but to become the world-class centre-back Porto had projected him to become.
Porto's loss is Valencia's gain as his transfer stock is inflating.
9. Wolfsburg: N/A
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None of Wolfsburg's major transfer signings were a combination of top quality and value-for-money.
Andre Schurrle, 24, German left attacking midfielder | Chelsea → Wolfsburg: €32 million/£25 million.
Schurrle has scored one goal and provided two assists in 659 minutes over 14 Bundesliga games.
He did not qualify for Kicker's Bundesliga player rankings, but his rating in theory placed him at No. 160.
Struggled to hold down a week in, week out starting position and was benched toward the end of the season.
In Kicker's Bundesliga player rankings, Jung is placed at No. 151.
8. Manchester City: N/A
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None of Manchester City's major transfer signings were a combination of top quality and value-for-money.
Mangala is to Manchester City what Dejan Lovren is to Liverpool.
A €40.1 million/£32 million-valued centre-back needs to be dominant, a leader of the defence and mistake free week in, week out.
For several matches, Mangala is a world-class centre-back. Then he inexplicably turns into a League Two-standard centre-back.
Missing tackles, being turned, giving away pointless fouls and not marking opposing players.
Talk about bizarre errors from Mangala, which suggests he has concentration problems.
Wilfried Bony, 26, Ivorian centre-forward | Swansea City → Manchester City: €32.2 million/£25 million.
Bony is not a super-sub, so he is a luxury squad player with no resell value, and his transfer stock is already deteriorating.
He scored two goals in 297 minutes over 10 Premier League games, starting 20 per cent of games he was involved in for Manchester City.
Fernando Reges, 27, Brazilian defensive midfielder | Porto → Manchester City: €15 million/£12 million.
Fernando has not been the dependable No. 6 he was at Porto.
He has spoken about playing through pain which may have had a detrimental impact on his fitness.
"There were a few games when I actually played with a few pains, but it is normal for a player to always want to be on the pitch and play as many games as we possibly can," Fernando said, per Stuart Brennan at the Manchester Evening News. "I hope next time I won’t get injured so easily and can play as much as I can."
7. Chelsea: Cesc Fabregas
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Spanish defensive midfielder Cesc Fabregas, 28, contributed heavily to Chelsea winning the Premier League.
He totalled 88 tackles and intercepted 23 passes.
On the ball, he was a deep-lying playmaker, functioning as a passing outlet and creating goals.
Fabregas is more important to Chelsea than Diego Costa, a world-class centre-forward, who went missing in the UEFA Champions League, and his recurring injuries are a red flag.
6. Paris Saint-Germain: N/A
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None of Paris Saint-Germain's major transfer signings were a combination of top quality and value-for-money.
Yes, Luiz was one of Ligue 1's best defenders, but his transfer fee is ludicrous.
He isn't better than Nicolas N'Koulou. Meanwhile, it is nip and tuck between Luiz and Loic Perrin in terms of performance.
France Football placed Luiz at No. 16 in their Ligue 1 player rankings.
Aurier possesses world-class potential, and he is so dynamic in the attacking half that he could be converted into a right-forward.
There are no questions about his ball-winning ability, but his defensive positioning needs to tighten up. His concentration levels are erratic and he has fitness problems.
5. Atletico Madrid: Antoine Griezmann
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French centre-forward Antoine Griezmann, 24, has been single-minded this season.
He has gotten into advantageous attacking positions and shot without hesitation. It led to him scoring 22 goals in 37 La Liga games.
Granted, Griezmann at times missed chances to make wide-open passes and complete high-percentage plays.
Griezmann reinforces Atletico Madrid's ability to scout and sign world-class No. 9s.
Christian Vieri → Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink → Fernando Torres → Sergio Aguero → Diego Forlan → Radamel Falcao → Diego Costa.
4. Bayern Munich: Juan Bernat
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Spanish left-back/left wing-back Juan Bernat, 21, plays an invaluable role in Bayern Munich's buildup play.
He is comfortable on the ball, retains possession well, provides width and is pacey.
Defensively, he is a reliable tackler, who rarely gives away pointless fouls and is generally not at risk of getting suspended.
Bernat's smooth transition to the Bundesliga even caught Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola off guard.
"I didn't know [Bernat] was this good," Guardiola said, per Die Welt (h/t the Bundesliga's website). "He always plays with lethal quality and is incredibly fast."
3. Real Madrid: Toni Kroos
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German central midfielder Toni Kroos, 25, runs the show for Real Madrid.
He completes 92.2 per cent of his 65.4 passes per game.
When he is not tasked with excessive defensive responsibilities to compensate for a top-heavy starting 11, he is world-class.
Real Madrid need to utilise Kroos smartly rather than running him into the ground and then wondering why his performances have dipped.
While James Rodriguez has conjured up Zinedine Zidane-esque moments, the lofty transfer fee explains the omission from this list.
2. Juventus: Stefano Sturaro
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Italian central midfielder Stefano Sturaro, 22, provides dynamism as a two-way player.
In defence, he is determined, energetic and gritty.
Those attributes were on show when he denied James Rodriguez from scoring by sticking out a boot, deflecting a goal-bound header onto the crossbar during Juventus' 2-1 UEFA Champions League first-leg win over Real Madrid.
On the ball, Sturaro often wins cheap free-kicks and flashed a moment of genius in Juventus' 3-1 win over Napoli.
Swivelling, getting through on goal, Sturaro expertly finished, further enhancing his growing transfer stock.
Juventus may have uncovered a diamond in the rough.
1. Barcelona: Marc-Andre ter Stegen
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German goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, 23, is value for money—remember that phrase before you demand why Luis Suarez was omitted as Barcelona's best signing.
Signing Ter Stegen, a once-in-a-generation goalkeeper, at a fair fee is an outstanding investment from Barcelona, a club often embroiled in wasteful and zany transfers (Dmytro Chygrynskiy, Douglas Pereira, Henrique Buss and Keirrison).
Next season, it is up to Ter Stegen to displace Claudio Bravo in La Liga.
Bravo has been excellent for Barcelona, but he lacks the upside of Ter Stegen, who possesses the talent to be the best goalkeeper in the world.
When not specified, statistics via WhoScored.com.
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