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Premier League Transfers: How Have The Newcomers Done So Far?

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3 weeks ago

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Premier League

Who are the newcomers?

The Premier League transfers are flying in, as the season gets underway this weekend and the newly promoted sides prepare to mount their challenge to avoid the drop. Leeds, West Brom and Fulham are this years respective newcomers and each team has been busy in the transfer window. Whilst spending big hasn’t always proved effective in recent years, some big household names have been snapped up.

Last years newcomers Norwich couldn’t save themselves from relegation, only managing to record 5 wins the whole campaign. Aston Villa narrowly escaped the drop on the final day. Meanwhile Sheffield United came out on top without a scratch, finishing 9th overall. The Blades were pushing for a place amongst Europeans finest for the majority of the season.

Find out below how the newly promoted sides have done in the transfer window so far. Can they help their team survive the big step up from playing in the Championship?

 

Leeds United: Last seasons finish- 1st (93 pts)

Last year’s Championship winners have made several big Premier League signings so far in a bid to get the club back to where they belong. After 14 consecutive seasons in the top flight they were relegated in the 2003/04 season, in the wake of the club’s financial crisis. Without selling a single player this window, Leeds have not been shy so far in splashing the cash on some new players.

 

Who have they signed?

Their big summer signing, Rodrigo, arrived for a club-record fee of £27m from Valencia on a four year contract. He has played 220 times for Valencia, scoring 59 goals and producing 41 assists. The Spaniard has 23 appearances for the national team, scoring 8 times, and featured in their 2018 world cup squad.

There is no doubt that the striker will make an immediate impact, having improved as a player since his previous spell in the Premier League when he played for Bolton Wanderers. By adding him to their ranks, they can expect to see some good movement and ability on the ball. He can create goals for himself and teammates and Leeds fans will be excited to see him get on the pitch.

As well as Rodrigo, Leeds have signed Helder Costa permanently for £15m from Wolves to help bolster their attack. Grabbing 4 goals and 4 assists last season, it doesn’t sound much like money well spent. But as we saw last season, on his day Costa can be a real threat to the opposition.

 

Who else?

They secured another loan move for Man City’s Jack Harrison, who impressed Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa last season. As well as this, the club have signed defender Robin Koch from Freiburg for around £11.7m. The 24 year old, 6ft 4in centre back, has 3 caps for Germany and has appeared 87 times for Freiburg. Koch will certainly add strength to Leeds defense and said that working with Bielsa “was one of the points for me to come here to Leeds”.

 

How have they fared?

So the main question is, can Marcelo Bielsa get these new signings playing well together? So far they’ve done good business on paper, but whether he can get star man Rodrigo firing or not will be the big indicating factor for the season ahead. Fans can’t complain they haven’t opened their cheque books to compete with Europe’s best once again. Bielsa will have to use his valuable experience to get the best out of his new men.

 

West Brom: Last season finish- 2nd (83 pts)

After missing out on an immediate return to the Premier League last season, Slaven Bilic’s side narrowly pipped Brentford to an automatic promotion place on the final day. The west midlands side have recruited a few key players this transfer window to help bolster their chances of avoiding an instant return to the Championship.

 

Who have they signed?

Their Premier League transfers talking point this year, was the signing of 22 year old Grady Diangana from West Ham for £18m. After spending last year on loan with the Baggies, the youngster impressed scoring 8 goals and producing 8 assists. This sale also caused a lot of controversy between West Ham owners and their players/fans. Manager David Moyes and the rest of the team were unwilling to say goodbye to tricky winger, but he was sold anyway.

This just proves how great a signing he could be for Bilic’s side, and for such a reasonable fee. If he can make an impact in the Premier League straight away, West Ham might just be regretting their latest business decision if it means that he can help the Baggies to stay up.

 

Who else?

Both Jonathan Leko and Chris Brunt have opted on moves away from The Hawthorns, the former to Birmingham and the latter to Bristol City. Slaven and the board have now had to dig deeper into their pockets to sign Matheus Pereira from Sporting Lisbon on a permanent transfer, after also spending last season on loan with them.

The 24 year old Brazilian impressed after scoring 8 goals and grabbing 16 assists to help them clinch promotion. Signing for £9m, he seems to be a real bargain and a great addition to the squad after being named West Brom’s player of the year by teammates and fans.

West Brom’s sporting director Luke Dowling said that “everybody is aware of the impact he made in his first season and, from speaking to him, I know he is now very excited by the challenge of playing for Albion in the Premier League.”

As well as keeper David Button from Brighton, they add Callum Robinson to their ranks in a swap deal with Sheffield United, with Oliver Burke going the other way.

 

How have they fared?

It seems that Bilic and his managerial staff were keen to keep a similar squad to last year, managing to keep hold of key players from last season. However, we may see more signings later in the window, as their current squad may struggle with adapting to the Premier League. Especially without too many new additions to freshen up the squad.

 

Fulham: Last season finish- 3rd (81 pts)

Playoff winners Fulham FC, beat favourites Brentford to gain the last spot into the Premier League at the end of the Championship season. This was also to win the ‘worlds most lucrative football match’ but haven’t showcased too much of their earnings so far this window. They are a team that boasts the likes of Aleksandar Mitrovic, who scored 26 goals last season, and was a pivotal part to their promotion. Playoff match winner Joe Bryan, who scored two in the final, is also another key player at Craven Cottage. With a few recruits already, they will be looking to add more squad depth for this upcoming campaign.

They will be cautious however, not to repeat what happened last time they were in the Premier League. They spent more than £100m on players and it backfired. After only loaning a couple of players out including, Alfie Mawson and Steven Sessegnon to Bristol City, manager Scott Parker has managed to keep hold of his main key players. He has invested wisely into his team so far to ensure they don’t face the drop back down to the Championship.

 

Who have they signed?

Their big summer signing so far, is the arrival of French goalkeeper Alphonse Areola on a season-long loan from PSG. The ex-Real Madrid player has featured three times for his national team and was a member of their 2018 World Cup winning squad. He will be a huge boost for the newcomers and provide valuable experience and leadership in their dressing room.

There have been Premier League transfers for Harrison Reed and Mario Lemina as they join from Southampton. Both players will look to add more strength to the Baggies midfield. Reed arrives for £8m after spending last year on loan with them and playing a pivotal part in their promotion to the Premier League. Lemina meanwhile, joins on loan for the rest of the season.

Their Director of football operations, Tony Khan, said “I’m very excited to announce his arrival on loan. I chose to pursue Mario this summer because in our recruitment conferences he’s been highly rated by our scouting team”

“I believe he will thrive for our club under Scott’s coaching and leadership.” said Khan. 

Who else?

Ex-Leicester midfielder Anthony Knockaert had joined on a permanent transfer after he was loaned out to them from Brighton. With the fee possibly rising up to £15m, the French winger seems like another good addition to Parker’s squad.

Their last signing so far in the transfer window is the much sought after Antonee Robinson from Wigan. The United States defender was apparently wanted by both Sheffield United and Everton, but chose to join the Premier League newcomers for around £2m. The left back was on the verge of joining Italian giants AC Milan last January but the deal fell through over the medical.

 

How have they fared?

It will be a tough job for Scott Parker to keep this team up this season and scoring goals will be key to their survival. If he manages to get his summer signings playing well, then they can give Fulham a real chance of avoiding the drop. After a sensible transfer window, hopefully they can steer clear of a repeat of what happened when they were last competing in the top division.

 

We hope you enjoyed this article ‘Premier League Transfers: How Have The Newcomers Done So Far’. How do you think the new signings will do this season? Let us know!

 

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Joe is an aspiring sports journalist with an excellent knowledge and passion for football and basketball, with a wide-range of understanding in major sports. He studies Multi-Media Journalism at Bournemouth University and is currently completing a ‘year in industry’ placement, beginning his first 3 months here with us at Sporting Ferret! You can contact him on twitter: @joewillis_12

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