Which of Europe's top clubs have done the best business in the transfer window so far? Let's put that question to the test by ...
Which of
Europe's top clubs have done the best business in the transfer window so far?
Let's put that question to the test by rating and slating every deal struck and
forming a top 10.
10. MANCHESTER UNITED
Notable
ins: Fred (£53 million), Diogo Dalot (£20 million), Lee Grant (£1.5 million)
Notable
outs: Daley Blind (£15 million), Sam Johnstone (£6 million)
Manchester
United still have plenty to do in this market, but what they've managed so far
is positive.
Fred is a
very good player, and while he doesn't play in a position of burning need, he,
Nemanja Matic and Paul Pogba represent an exceptional trio in the
centre. Diogo Dalot is a Jose Mourinho-style full-back and has the
attributes to be a success in the Premier League.
Daley Blind
and Sam Johnstone—two players nowhere near the first team—have netted around
£21 million on the market. There's still much yet to take shape, but the work
done already isn't bad.
9. ARSENAL
Notable
ins: Lucas Torreira (£27 million), Bernd Leno (£23
million), Sokratis Papastathopoulos (£15 million), Stephan
Lichtsteiner (free), Matteo Guendouzi (£7 million)
Notable
outs: Santi Cazorla (free), Per
Mertesacker (retired), Jack Wilshere (free)
The bar to
enter this list is actually pretty low. Arsenal's business has been OK—not
outstanding—but they've improved their side and that's something quite a lot of
Europe's top teams haven't done.
Lucas
Torreira is the sort of terrier-like midfielder they have needed for a while.
Bernd Leno is an attempt at resolving the regrettable goalkeeping situation
left by Arsene Wenger.
Sokratis Papastathopoulos will stop Laurent
Koscielny's torn Achilles from sinking the defensive line. If Stephan
Lichtsteiner can coach Hector Bellerin a little, he'll get a lot better.
As it stands,
the haul probably isn't enough to push Arsenal back into the top four, but it
is a step in the right direction.
8. BAYERN MUNICH
Notable
ins: Leon Goretzka (free), Alphonso Davies (£9 million)
Notable
outs: Douglas Costa (£36 million)
It's been a
pretty quiet summer for Bayern Munich—a far cry from 2017, when they loaded up
on players in an attempt to refresh their squad.
Nabbing Leon
Goretzka for free is excellent work, evidence of chief executive Karl-Heinz
Rummenigge's desire to house the very best German players at the Allianz Arena. Alphonso
Davies has flashed incredible talent in Vancouver and is well worth a punt at
an initial £9 million.
Getting £36
million for a player you don't really want (Douglas Costa) is never a bad
thing.
7. PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN
Notable
ins: Gianluigi Buffon (free)
Notable
outs: Javier Pastore (£22 million), Yuri Berchiche (£21 million), Odsonne
Edouard (£10 million), Jonathan Ikone (£4.5 million), Grzegorz Krychowiak
(loan), Hatem Ben Arfa (free)
Paris
Saint-Germain's transfer window hasn't been the most exciting, but it has been
quite smart.
Gianluigi
Buffon is the sort of character the team needs, and he's better than any of
their pre-existing options between the sticks too. He's no long-term solution,
so perhaps club product Alphonse Areola can learn a thing or two under his
tutelage.
The only
other actions have been outgoing, largely because PSG are up against it in
terms of financial fair play. Grabbing north of £50 million for a string of
players they don't want is good going in that regard.
6. BARCELONA
Notable
ins: Malcom (£37 million), Arthur (£28 million), Clement Lenglet (£32 million)
Notable
outs: Andres Iniesta (free), Paulinho (loan), Gerard Deulofeu (£12 million)
No matter
what Barcelona do this summer, they won't be able to replace the presence of
Andres Iniesta. He's already started his new chapter in Japan, but his former
club are still piecing things together ahead of a first campaign without him
since 2002.
Arthur's a
solid start in this regard, a multi-functional midfielder who they hope can
become the new heartbeat of the side. Malcom adds a dose of excitement, goal
threat and free-kick majesty to the attack, lessening the burden on everyone
else.
Clement
Lenglet is expensive for a back-up at £32 million, but if Barcelona go on to
get a similar sum in return for Yerry Mina, they will have done well.
5. BAYER LEVERKUSEN
Notable
ins: Lukas Hradecky (free), Mitchell Weiser (£11 million), Paulinho (£17
million)
Notable
outs: Bernd Leno (£22.5 million), Stefan Kiessling (retired)
Very quietly,
Bayer Leverkusen have worked their way to the best transfer window among Germany's
top clubs so far. Their smart and subtle moves should not go unnoticed.
They have
managed one hell of a swap between the sticks, selling Bernd Leno for £22.5
million to Arsenal and bringing in the superior Lukas Hradecky to replace
him—for free.
Leverkusen
have also signed Mitchell Weiser—a flying right-sider with just the right
amount of devil in him—and Paulinho, a hugely talented forward who shone in
Brazil's brilliant under-17 side last year.
4. JUVENTUS
Notable
ins: Cristiano Ronaldo (£105 million), Joao Cancelo (£36 million), Mattia Perin
(£11 million), Emre Can (free)
Notable
outs: Rolando Mandragora (£18 million), Gianluigi Buffon (free), Kwadwo Asamoah
(free), Stephan Lichtsteiner (free)
Juventus have
pulled off the blockbuster transfer of the summer, snatching
Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid for around £105 million.
It's a lot of
money for a 33-year-old, but there are few players on this planet like Ronaldo,
and his longevity seems almost certain.
He is one of
four potential first-team additions, with Joao Cancelo scooped for big money,
then Mattia Perin and Emre Can recruited either fairly cheaply or on a free.
Three
significant players have departed for free too, the most notable of whom is the
legendary Gianluigi Buffon. He's taking in a twilight season with Paris
Saint-Germain.
It's a
measure of how good three other clubs' windows have been that Juve only rank
fourth. Perhaps the acquisition of Leonardo Bonucci (and the exit of Gonzalo
Higuain), something seemingly in the offing according to the Guardian, could push them up further if completed
3. ATLETICO MADRID
Notable
ins: Thomas Lemar (£63 million), Gelson Martins (free), Rodri (£18 million),
Jonny (£6 million), Antonio Adan (£1 million), Santiago Arias (£10 million)
Notable
outs: Gabi (released), Fernando Torres (released), Sime
Vrsaljko (loan)
Atletico
Madrid are using this transfer window as an opportunity to freshen up, scale
the age of their squad back a bit and reload in attack.
Gelson
Martins and Thomas Lemar form quite the wing pair, offering a nice combination
of intelligent movement and blazing speed. Rodri is the new signal-controller
in midfield, replacing Gabi, and while Jonny has been loaned to Wolverhampton
Wanderers, he's a cheap, sensible pickup.
The move
they've made at right-back is questionable, though, and signing Santiago Arias
and moving on Sime Vrsaljko is a solid downgrade. It keeps them from top spot
in these rankings.
2. LIVERPOOL
Notable
ins: Naby Keita (£54 million), Fabinho (£40 million), Alisson Becker (£56
million), Xherdan Shaqiri (£13 million)
Notable
outs: Danny Ward (£12.5 million), Emre Can (free)
Liverpool's
net spend is pretty high, but if you're going to splash the cash, make sure you
do so on the right players. Manager Jurgen Klopp appears to have done that.
For £40
million, Fabinho is a bargain, while Naby Keita's eventual £54 million fee
could end up looking on the cheap side. Alisson was expensive—a record for
a goalkeeper, in fact—but he's very good and suits the system in place. Xherdan
Shaqiri is about as good a back-up as you could wish for.
The Reds have
even managed to extract £12.5 million from Leicester City for Danny Ward—a
25-year-old goalkeeper with a lot of potential but just two Premier League
appearances to his name.
Losing Emre
Can to Juventus on a free is regrettable, but this is still a top-tier window
for the Reds.
1. INTER MILAN
Notable
ins: Stefan de Vrij (free), Kwadwo Asamoah (free), Radja Nainggolan (£33
million), Lautaro Martinez (£14 million), Sime Vrsaljko (loan)
Notable
outs: Geoffrey Kondogbia (£23 million), Davide Santon (£8.5 million), Federico
Valietti (£7 million), Davide Bettella (£6 million), Eder (£5 million), Marco
Carraro (£4.5 million), Jens Odgaard (£4.5 million), Nicolo Zaniolo (£4
million), Yuto Nagatomo (£2 million)
Inter Milan
have made five brilliant signings. Two of those (Stefan de Vrij and Kwadwo
Asamoah) came in for free, two (Radja Nainggolan and Lautaro Martinez) cost
just shy of £50 million between them, and one (Sime Vrsaljko) has joined
on loan.
They have
supplemented this outlay with a series of sales, shedding squad players and
unwanted options. The fact they got £8.5 million for Davide Santon is pretty
remarkable.
There is some
risk attached to this summer's work, namely in the case of Nainggolan. Inter
have given a 30-year-old box-to-box midfielder who relies on explosiveness and
athleticism a four-year deal that won't be cheap. Is that prudent, long-term
business?
