Portugal’s Pedro Neto (right) is so far the standout signing for Chelsea from another chaotic transfer window at Stamford Bridge. Photo: EPA
Premier League clubs were slow to splash their cash in the early months of the transfer window, but business has picked up ahead of the start to the new season tonight, when Manchester United host Fulham at Old Trafford.
AFP Sports looks at five of the major signings aiming to justify their price tags ...
Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal)
The Gunners beat off stiff competition from Serie A giants Juventus to land the Italian defender after his impressive 2023/24 season for Bologna.
Calafiori was also a shining light in Italy’s otherwise pitiful defence of the European Championship in June.
However, it is unclear where the 22-year-old will fit into Mikel Arteta’s team.
Arsenal boasted the best defence in the Premier League last season, keeping 18 clean sheets in 38 games.
Comfortable on the ball and striding out from the back, Calafiori has been tipped as a possible left-back.
But he has shone for club and country as a centre-back, so could pose a threat to Gabriel Magalhaes’ place alongside William Saliba at the heart of the defence.
His arrival, for a reported £42 million, certainly boosts Arteta’s wealth of defensive options as Arsenal aim to end a 21-year wait to win the title.
Dominic Solanke (Tottenham)
Spurs are hoping Solanke can fire them back into the Champions League and maybe even end a 16-year trophy drought.
Fresh from his best scoring season, netting 19 times in the Premier League for Bournemouth, the 26-year-old would become Tottenham’s record signing if the add-ons are met in a deal that could rise to £65 million.
Solanke had brief spells at Chelsea and Liverpool earlier in his career, but has come of age during five years at Bournemouth.
“He’ll be a great fit for us,” said Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou, whose team finished fifth in his first season in charge.
“He gives us some things we’ve been missing the last 12 months.”
Spurs did not sign a replacement when Harry Kane departed a year ago. Now the pressure is on Solanke to fill those shoes.
The Premier League is BACK, and we’re bringing the noise. It’s time for #TheKickOff 🔊 pic.twitter.com/bbqm7xTRgn
— Premier League (@premierleague) August 12, 2024
Matthijs de Ligt (Manchester United)
Dutch international De Ligt has been reunited with Erik ten Hag, who helped the centre-back rise to fame at Ajax as a teenager.
After big-money moves to Juventus and then Bayern Munich, De Ligt’s career has stalled as he fell out of favour for both club and country over the past year.
“Erik ten Hag shaped the early stages of my career, so he knows how to get the best out of me,” said the 25-year-old.
His arrival is just part of a defensive overhaul as United have also recruited French teenager Leny Yoro and De Ligt’s Bayern teammate Noussair Mazraoui.
But Yoro is set to miss the first three months of the season, giving De Ligt the chance to nail down his place in the team with a bright start at Old Trafford.
Pedro Neto (Chelsea)
Neto is so far the standout signing from another chaotic window at Stamford Bridge.
The Portugal winger has joined from Wolves for a fee of £54 million.
Yet he faces stiff competition just to get into the side, with Raheem Sterling, Mykhailo Mudryk and Noni Madueke among the other wingers available to Enzo Maresca.
Cole Palmer – by a distance Chelsea’s best player of last season – is expected to drift inside from a starting role on the right.
Neto has shone in flashes since joining Wolves in 2019, but has also been blighted by injury problems that put other suitors off.
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— Premier League (@premierleague) August 15, 2024
Niclas Füllkrug (West Ham)
The signing of German international Füllkrug has been the highlight of a busy summer for West Ham.
A battering ram of a centre-forward, the 31-year-old is a huge fan favourite in his homeland, with many calling for him to start ahead of Arsenal’s Kai Havertz at the Euros.
After spending his peak years rising through the ranks of German football at Hannover and Werder Bremen, Füllkrug scored 16 goals in his sole season at Borussia Dortmund to help them reach last season’s Champions League final. | AFP