As the transfer window finally draws to an end, we look at which clubs have won and lost as the new Premier League season is underway.
Southampton
For a detailed review of Southampton’s transfer activity, have a read here.
Tottenham
Best Signing: Gareth Bale (from Real Madrid, loan) – Bale is back! Once back at full fitness, Bale will be a great addition to Spurs’ first team and the attacking line-up of Bale, Son and Kane is something most teams will fear.
Worst Signing: Joe Hart (free agent) – Joe Hart should really have dropped down to the Championship. He is a very good goalkeeper for that sort of level, and he has resigned himself – very early on – to the position of third choice ‘keeper.
Will Miss: Jan Vertonghen (to Benfica, free) – releasing a top defender is never a good idea, and Vertonghen was a brilliant defender for Spurs.
Should’ve Got Rid of: Danny Rose – doesn’t want to be there, and his attitude – seen in the Amazon Prime documentary – showed he has huge confidence in his ability (and rightly so) but simply won’t get on with Mourinho.
Overall Review: A good few signings for Tottenham – question marks exist over the signing of Hojberg (is he good enough to replace Alli for example?), but Bale really does bring the review score up. 8/10.
In: Pierre Emile Hojberg (from So’ton, £15m), Joe Hart (from Burnley, free), Matt Doherty (from Wolves, £13.4m), Segio Reguilon (from Real Madrid, £25m), Joe Rodon (from Swansea, £11m), Gareth Bale (from Real Madrid, loan), Carlos Vinicius (from Benfica, loan).
Out: Troy Parrott (to Millwall, loan), Oliver Skipp (to Norwich, loan), Juan Foyth (to Villareal, loan), Ryan Sessegnon (to 1899 Hoffenheim, loan), Cameron Carter-Vickers (to Bournemouth, loan), Kyle Walker-Peters (to Southampton, £12m), Luke Amos (to QPR, undisclosed).
West Brom
Best Signing: Branislav Ivanovic (from Zenit, free) – can anyone forget the Champions League campaign when Chelsea won the trophy? One of their top players is back. Admittedly older, but he can still do a fantastic job across the Baggies’ defense.
Worst Signing: Cedric Kipre (from Wigan, undisclosed) – he doesn’t strike me as a top centre-back to partner Ivanovic, but of course the signing helps Wigan financially – a very important thing at the present time.
Will Miss: Oliver Burke (undisclosed, swap deal) – Burke is talented and had a few good loans, so could well have supported West Brom in their hopes of survival.
Should’ve Got Rid of: No one – most of the squad are key in keeping the Baggies up.
Overall Review: Not an awful window for West Brom, but they could have benefitted from a new striker to support the front line and ensure goals. 7/10
In: Matheus Periera (from Sporting, undisclosed), Grady Diangana (from West Ham, undisclosed), Cedric Kipre (from Wigan, undisclosed), David Button (from Brighton, undisclosed), Callum Robinson (from Sheffield Utd., undisclosed), Branislav Ivanovic (from Zenit, free), Karlan Grant (from Huddersfield, undisclosed), Conor Gallagher (from Chelsea, loan), Filip Krovinovic (from Benfica, loan)
Out: Rayhaan Tulloch (to Doncaster, loan), Kenneth Zohore (to Millwall, loan), Ali Al-Habsi (retired), Nathan Ferguson (to Crystal Palace, free), Kane Wilson (to Forest Green Rovers, free), Chris Brunt (to Bristol City, free), Gareth Barry (retired), Jonathan Leko (to Birmingham, £1m), Oliver Burke (to Sheff. Utd, undisclosed).
West Ham
Best Signing: Tomas Soucek (from Slavia Praha, £15m) – a good midfielder in for a good fee, who suits Moyes’ style of play.
Worst Signing: Craig Dawson (from Watford, loan) – not a very capable centre-back at the moment – if he was Watford would want him and they wouldn’t have been relegated.
Will Miss: Grady Diangana (to West Brom, undisclosed) – a transfer which fans and players disagreed with – he has had a good start to life in the Midlands, much to the envy of Hammers fans.
Should’ve Got Rid of: Declan Rice – only because it would have freed up significant funds for the board to reinvest, had they chosen to do so.
Overall Review: Another awful window for West Ham where fans, players and probably the manager would’ve hoped for more. 2/10.
In: Tomas Soucek (from Slavia Prague, £15m), Vladimir Coufal (from Slavia Prague, £5m), Craig Dawson (from Watford, loan), Said Benrahma (from Brentford, loan).
Out: Carlos Sanchez (released), Pablo Zabaleta (retired), Albian Ajeti (to Celtic, £5m), Jordan Hugill (to Norwich, undisclosed), Roberto (to Valladolid, free), Grady Diangana (to West Brom, undisclosed).
Wolves
Best Signing: Nelson Semedo (from Barcelona, undisclosed) – I don’t think anyone would argue with the quality of a first team full-back at Barcelona – a fantastic coup for Wolves who missed out on Europe.
Worst Signing: Ki-Jana Hoever (from Liverpool, undisclosed) – another example of a player who has joined the club and is very talented but is unlikely to play many games – especially with Semedo having turned up.
Will Miss: Diogo Jota (to Liverpool, undisclosed) – one of the most exciting attacking players for Wolves last year, he will be sorely missed, especially if he helps the Reds beat Wolves!
Should’ve Got Rid of: None – a strong squad is key for Wolves this season.
Overall Review: A good few signings for Wolves but unfortunately they have lost too many players in this window. 6/10.
In: Fabio Silva (from Porto, undisclosed), Marcal (from Lyon, undisclosed), Ki-Jana Hoever (from Liverpool, undisclosed), Nelson Semedo (from Barcelona, undisclosed), Vitinha (from Porto, loan), Rayan Ait-Nouri (from Angers, loan).
Out: Jordan Graham (to Gillingham, free), Connor Johnson (released), Helder Costa (to Leeds, £16m), Will Norris (to Burnley, undisclosed), Matt Doherty (to Spurs, £13.4m), Diogo Jota (to Liverpool, c. £40m), Ryan Bennett (to Swansea, free), Connor Ronan (to Grasshopper, loan), Morgan Gibbs-White (to Swansea, loan), Bruno Jordao (to Famalicao, loan), Leonardo Campana (to Famalicao, loan), Leo Bonatini (to Grasshopper, loan), Ruben Vinagre (to Olympiacos, loan), Dion Sanderson (to Sunderland, loan).
To read the rest of the reviews, click here for Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.
