Ranking every Premier League club’s transfer window

[ad_1]


Deadline day has been and gone, and clubs have finalised their squads for the rest of the season with 34 deals completed across the January transfer window.

Two managers lost their jobs while chairmen scrambled to improve their squads in a desperate attempt to secure Premier League football next season.

But who had the most successful window? 101 ranks each team based on their transfer activity.

1. Aston Villa

Aston Villa could probably not have imagined a better first transfer window under Steven Gerrard. The Midlands outfit were able to add players of a calibre above many of those already at the club, wooing Gerrard’s former team-mate Philippe Coutinho to Villa Park and also shelling out £25 million for Lucas Digne, while they shipped out Anwar El Ghazi, who managed just 383 minutes in the first half of the campaign.

In Robin Olsen and Calum Chambers, they have also secured suitable backup options for low fees, with Chambers to replace the outgoing Axel Tuanzebe, who joined Napoli.

Currently in 11th place, the second half of their season should be far better than the first, and the Villans’ additions will certainly help take the burden off the likes of Emi Buendia and Danny Ings, themselves only months into their Villa careers.

2. Newcastle

With so much to do, it would have had to be a perfect transfer window for Newcastle to take top spot in our list. However, while it was not perfect, it is still a significant improvement on windows gone by.

The Magpies were left frustrated over deals for Lille’s Sven Botman and Sevilla’s Diego Carlos as they looked to reinforce the centre of defence, but Dan Burn is an experienced and consistent, if not exceptional, addition in that position.

The standout coup was undoubtedly Bruno Guimaraes from Lyon, with the midfielder a potentially transformative signing and the cornerstone of any ‘project’ on Tyneside in the coming years. Meanwhile, Kieran Trippier and Chris Wood are smart and experienced, if expensive, additions.

The same can be said for Matt Targett, who provides another option at left-back and another potential selection headache for Eddie Howe in the second half of the season.

Newcastle have set themselves up well for at least a fighting chance at avoiding relegation this campaign: whether they will or not remains to be seen. Key areas (namely a second central defender and another striker) were not addressed despite suggestions that they could be, and that could prove a major error come the end of the campaign.

The business that they did manage, however, was very good.

3. Everton

Everton would have been well down the list were it not for the events of deadline day.

The Toffees endured a tumultuous month, in which they parted ways with Lucas Digne after a fallout with Rafa Benitez, only to sack Benitez a week later. Not, however, before the Spaniard had signed a new pair of fullbacks in Vitaly Mykolenko and Nathan Patterson for a combined £35m.

Adding Anwar El Ghazi on loan seemed underwhelming, but a loan move for Donny van de Beek and a permanent swoop for Dele Alli on deadline day have made the window a good one for Everton, especially with a new manager at the helm in Frank Lampard.

The former Chelsea midfield legend now has two ideal midfielders to mould into his next Mason Mount, with both options technically gifted and out of favour at their previous clubs.

In what is looking like a damp squib of a season for the Toffees, their transfer business could prove to be the spark that was needed.

4. Liverpool

Liverpool’s biggest business is arguably yet to come, in their attempt to renew the contract of talismanic forward Mo Salah when he returns from the Africa Cup of Nations.

In typical Liverpool fashion, however, they have not panicked this January, and would seemingly have been happy to go through the month without additions. Then, opportunity struck as Tottenham bid for Luis Diaz, a long time target for the Reds.

Jurgen Klopp and co. sprung into action, and secured a deal for Diaz now, rather than in the summer as expected. The Reds did see a last-gasp swoop for Fulham sensation Fabio Carvalho fall through, but optimism remains regarding the possibility of a summer deal being struck.

A typically controlled, effective month’s work on the part of the transfer team at Anfield.

5. Manchester City

That Manchester City are so high on our list based on one addition and a further profit shows just how uneventful this transfer window has been for most clubs. Nevertheless, the Citizens fought off severe competition from cross-town rivals Manchester United and other European giants to bring highly-rated forward Julian Alvarez to the Etihad stadium, albeit only once his season at River Plate has concluded.

Meanwhile, they managed to turn a hefty profit on Ferran Torres. Having paid £30 million for his services in 2020, they sold the Spaniard on for £50 million when Barcelona came calling 18 months later. The squad remains thin in places and a left-back would have been a useful addition, but it was a good window nonetheless for the Premier League champions.

6. Brighton

Always providing the inventive transfer additions, Brighton have only added one player to their squad for the rest of the season, in the form of Benicio Baker-Boaitey, but have also managed to add Deniz Undav for next season. Undav, currently playing for Union SG, has provided 18 goals and 10 assists in 25 appearances in the Belgian top-flight this season, and could prove the goalscorer the Seagulls lack.

Graham Potter also added exciting midfielder Kacper Kozlowski to his ranks, albeit again for next season, all while keeping hold of Yves Bissouma. As Brighton look to work their way up the table in the coming seasons, these additions are cause for excitement.

7. Brentford

Brentford have impressed many a neutral in the Premier League this season so far, and strengthened with the popular addition of Christian Eriksen on deadline day.

The Bees, crippled at times with injury and Covid cases, still sit an impressive eight points above the drop zone in their first season in the competition, and while this gap may decrease given the business around them, it has never been in the club’s DNA to panic buy their way out of situations.

Eriksen, however, was an opportunity too good to miss, and offers some much-needed creativity for Thomas Frank to call upon, while the club kept hold of Ivan Toney. All in all, not a bad window.

8. Watford

Watford have added five players to their squad, including Ligue 1 pair Samuel Kalu and Hassane Kamara, as they look to beat the drop.

With Roy Hodgson back in football and taking over the managerial mantle from Claudio Ranieri, the Hornets sit in the relegation zone and are under severe threat of going down. But, unlike some of their fellow relegation candidates, the club have strengthened on paper, while they have cut ties with Danny Rose who looked well off the pace during his short stint with the Hornets.

It remains to be seen if it is enough to avoid demotion to the Championship, but Watford’s additions have certainly given them a fighting chance.

9. Wolverhampton Wanderers

Wolves had a mixed transfer window. In terms of planning for the future, they made several low-cost additions, only for those additions to head back out on loan again. Meaningful business was limited to one in, and one out, however.

Hwang Hee-Chan’s loan move was made permanent, or at least the club notified their fanbase of their intention to make it permanent, which is a reward for his fine performances under Bruno Lage. In addition, they kept hold of Ruben Neves for another window, despite interest from other Premier League clubs.

However, Adama Traore joined Barcelona on loan, with Wolves failing to get the windfall that they were hoping for at the start of the transfer window.

Should he return to Molineux, Traore will do so with just 12 months left on his contract, and no intention of renewing it. It could be a tricky sale for the midlands outfit.

10. Burnley

Burnley pulled off a masterstroke in getting Chris Wood off the books for £25 million given his age and poor form this campaign, but waited until deadline day to reinvest that money.

In came Wout Weghorst, who at 6 foot 6 inches tall seems perfect for the Burnley system, but a creative midfielder and winger were the priorities heading into the New Year and, owing to apparent rejections from Aaron Ramsey and Mislav Orsic, those additions never arrived.

On paper, Weghorst replacing Wood is an upgrade, but much will depend on how fast he settles. And, with Newcastle strengthening, there will be plenty of nervous glances up to Tyneside in the coming months as Burnley look to stave off relegation.

11. Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham had a better window than most, mainly because they managed to bring in players, albeit only on deadline day.

Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur were the final products of a transfer window that promised much, but ultimately failed to address some major issues in the Tottenham squad at wing-back and backup striker.

Worse yet, they were left to watch on as Barcelona and Liverpool swooped for Adama Traore and Luis Diaz respectively, despite their concrete interest in the pair of players, leaving Spurs scrambling. The whole window smacked of poor planning, with one journalist describing it as “panic mode” in the final days. Yet, they still came away with two improvements to their side.

On the departures front, both of Tottenham’s big-money midfield signings in recent seasons departed on loan, while Bryan Gil also left the club until the end of the season. Meanwhile, Dele Alli moved to Everton permanently.

It was a good start in terms of getting wages off the books, though whether or not the Lilywhites have done enough to convince Antonio Conte of their ambition is another thing.

12. Crystal Palace

The permanent signing of Jean-Philippe Mateta was the only piece of business to write home about from south London, with the Eagles missing out on Donny van de Beek thanks to Frank Lampard’s influence at Everton following his arrival.

Luke Plange was secured at the last, too, but the young striker has since swiftly returned to Derby County on loan.

Palace, nevertheless, are still in a good spot, with Ebereche Eze returning from injury and Michael Olise starting to find his feet. Beginning to implement Patrick Vieira’s system and with Chelsea having opted against recalling Conor Gallagher, it could be an exciting second half to the season.

13. Southampton

No outfield players joining and a failure to agree a permanent deal for Chelsea loanee Armando Broja makes the window, on paper, a poor one for Southampton.

The Saints did manage to extend Willy Caballero’s short-term stint with the club through the summer, but a sole addition in the form of a 40-year-old goalkeeper is hardly the kind of return which fans of Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men would have been hoping for.

Add to this the fact that Sam McQueen was sadly forced to succumb to his long-standing battle with injury to announce his retirement from the game, and a disappointing month was aptly rounded out.

Could Southampton’s failure to act see them dragged into the relegation scrap over the 2nd half of the season?

14. Leicester City

Despite plenty of injuries, Leicester City look well-stocked in their side, with the exception of central defence. Jannick Vestergaard, brought in from Southampton in the summer, has not had a great start to his Leicester career, but the return of Wesley Fofana should help stabilise the Foxes to some degree at least.

Ranking every Premier League club’s transfer window

LEICESTER, ENGLAND – AUGUST 04: Wesley Fofana of Leicester City during a Pre Season Friendly match between Leicester City and Villarreal CF at The King Power Stadium on August 04, 2021 in Leicester, England. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

With plenty of options elsewhere in Brendan Rodgers’ squad, and several players returning from injury, it didn’t have to be a window of change for Leicester, and yet a defender may well have been a key addition for any Europa League qualification hopes given the quality of competition around them.

15. Chelsea

It was a difficult transfer window for Chelsea and Thomas Tuchel. Injuries forced them into a market that they probably had no intention of entering ahead of the season, but they couldn’t even agree a deal to bring one of their own players back to the club.

Late murmurs of a move for Ousmane Dembele proved unfounded, and Tuchel now has to deal with the four competitions that Chelsea find themselves in with a shortage of in-form attackers and left-back options of Marcos Alonso and Malang Sarr.

But, with the club’s Premier League title charge all but over, maybe keeping the powder dry for the summer when prices will be lower and there will be more time to assess is the most sensible, if uninspiring option. For a club like Chelsea, though, it is almost admitting defeat.

16. Arsenal

After three weeks of chasing Dusan Vlahovic whilst in clear need of a forward, Arsenal ended the transfer window with fewer strikers than they began with (albeit on a technicality) as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang joined Barcelona on a permanent deal.

He was the last in a long line of departures, with Sead Kolasinac, Pablo Mari, Calum Chambers, Folarin Balogun and Ainsley Maitland-Niles all departing on loan or for free, leaving Arsenal with a threadbare squad in the process. Yes, it trimmed the wage bill, but the club only just have enough senior options to fill out the substitutes bench.

And, while the time of need for midfield additions was early in the window, even by deadline day they would have been welcome. There is a clear starting XI at Arsenal, but should one or more of these players get injured, it could prove too much for those in the wings to deal with, and top four may once again be a hope rather than reality.

17. West Ham

Like Arsenal, West Ham were desperately in need of additions this January to sustain their push for the top four. In fact, they needed new signings even more than the Gunners, as they are also fighting in the Europa League and FA Cup, neither of which the Gunners remain in.

However, no help for David Moyes and his men was forthcoming. Tentative action was taken towards the end of the window, with a bid rejected for Benfica’s Darwin Nunez and rumours suggesting an offer for Raphinha had too been placed, though it was never likely to be taken seriously.

Come February 1st, however, Michail Antonio will still be the only striker at the club which, given his injury record and age, is a worrying thought for West Ham and their fans.

18. Manchester United

Ah, the transfer paradox that is Manchester United. Ahead of the transfer window, it was clear that they needed to strengthen in central midfield as the Red Devils look to put their wretched first half of the season behind them.

However, out went Donny van de Beek, and no one joined the club, meaning that Nemanja Matic is the alternative at the base of Ralph Rangnick’s high-energy midfield.

Worse still, there is animosity within the ranks after Jesse Lingard was denied a deadline-day move away from the club, despite having managed just 88 Premier League minutes so far this campaign – though Mason Greenwood’s availability could result in more opportunities for the attacker.

Paul Pogba returning from injury has the potential to be like a new signing (excuse the cliche), but his future is still no closer to being resolved, and United have missed the last chance to cash in on the Frenchman.

All in all, underwhelming at best at Old Trafford.

19. Leeds United

Even with youth options on the bench and knee-deep in an injury crisis, Marcelo Bielsa and co. still failed to strengthen this January, leaving their chances of survival in the balance. When all are fully fit, Leeds are one of the Premier League’s better sides, but that has not proved the case this season as injury after injury have plagued the Whites’ thin squad.

Ranking every Premier League club’s transfer window

SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 27: Patrick Bamford of Leeds United celebrates after scoring his sides first goal during the Premier League match between Sheffield United and Leeds United at Bramall Lane on September 27, 2020 in Sheffield, England. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

With no guarantee that such woes won’t continue, it is a massive gamble from the Yorkshire side not to reinforce when one or two additions could have made a real difference to the side. Whether or not it will come back to bite them remains to be seen.

The best thing about this transfer window that can be said is that they kept hold of Raphinha and Kalvin Phillips despite interest from elsewhere.

20. Norwich

Not a single addition for the East Anglian outfit despite clubs around them strengthening, sitting just outside of the relegation zone, questions have to be asked at Carrow Road.

For the second consecutive occasion, Norwich are in danger of heading straight back down to the Championship, and while summer signings are beginning to find their feet, a couple of additions could have tilted the balance in their favour.

Worse still, Todd Cantwell, once linked with the likes of Manchester United, has joined Bournemouth on loan, and with his exit Dean Smith is left bereft of another creative outlet.

This leaves Norwich in serious danger of dropping into the second tier of English football once more, as those around them strengthen.

Read more:

Expert analysis on why Sofyan Amrabat may be a great fit for Antonio Conte’s Tottenham side

Deadline roundup: Newcastle & Crystal Palace seal late deals, Liverpool miss out & why Barcelona’s Aubameyang signing is delayed



[ad_2]

Laisser un commentaire

Votre adresse e-mail ne sera pas publiée. Les champs obligatoires sont indiqués avec *

*