'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
#6 Ricardo Pepi ( FC Dallas to Augsburg)
Every once in a while, there is a lot of talk about some American youngster in football. Ricardo Pepi is the latest in line. Pepi is a sharp penalty box poacher with a ruthless natural finishing instinct. He is also a remarkably hard worker off the ball.
The 19-year-old scored 16 and assisted four in just 59 appearances for FC Dallas, most of which were off the bench. Augsburg is a good place for him to get used to the way the game is played in Europe without a huge amount of scrutiny. The transfer cost €16 million. Pepi has also scored three in seven games for the US national team.
#5 Jonas Wind (FC Copenhagen to Wolfsburg)
Wolfsburg lost their long-time talisman Wout Weghorst to Burnley in this transfer window. So they brought in two strikers - Max Kruse and Jonas Wind. Kruse is a known quantity, having been around for a few years now. Wind is the more interesting transfer.
The 6"3' striker, like Weghorst, is superb in the air. He is also technically adept, which can be seen in his proficient dribbling and chance creation. The 21-year-old's best attribute, however, seems to be his positional intelligence which helps him to get into good shooting positions.
Off the ball, Wind leads the press. He already has 11 goals and 6 assists in 27 appearances this season for Copenhagen. Wind was part of the Denmark side that made the semifinals of the Euros last summer.
#4 Hassane Kamara (Nice to Watford)
When you are trying to keep up with the richest club in the world, you need proper reinforcements. That's exactly what Watford have done by signing Hassane Kamara this summer. The Ivorian left back, who made 11 appearances for Nice in Ligue 1 will provide some much-needed solidity to the Watford backline.
He completes around eight defensive actions a game, a much-needed boost for the Hornets, who are yet to keep a clean sheet this season. Kamara joins the sizeable African contingent at Vicarage Road for just €5 million. The fact that they could attract him from Nice, who are 2nd in Ligue 1, while themselves being in the relegation zone is a testament to the pull of the Premier League.
#3 Cedric Bakambu (Free agent to Marseille)
Under Jorge Sampaoli, Marseille are an aggressive, exciting team who are in the race for the top 4. However they simply lack one thing: goals. Although Marseille are 3rd in the league, seven teams have outscored them. Their top scorer is Dimitri Payet with eight goals, of which five have come from set pieces.
To address this, they have bought Cedric Bakambu, a free agent who last played for Beijing Guoan in China. The striker had made 79 goal contributions in 87 games for the Chinese club. His record for Villarreal in La Liga previously was also great. He had scored 31 in 75 games in the Spanish league. Bakambu made an instant impact at Marseille, scoring a minute after coming on against Lens on his debut on 23 January.
#2 Jeremie Boga (Sassuolo to Atalanta)
Over recent years, Atalanta have come to be known for their scintillating attacking play. That being said, this season their powers seem to have waned. Papu Gomez has left and Ilicic and Zapata are aging and injury prone. So to reinvigorate their attack, they have signed Jeremie Boga from Sassuolo on loan with an obligation to purchase.
Hailing from Chelsea's youth system, Boga is a player who can bring fans to the edge of their seats. Although he managed 11 league goals in the 2019-20 season, his end product needs more fine tuning.
What sets him apart from most players, though, is his dribbling. Last year, he completed a phenomenal 3.32 dribbles per game to go with 9.30 progressive carries. There's no doubt the that Ivorian 25-year-old needs to improve his goal and assist tallies but who better to bring it out of him than Gasperini and Atalanta?
#1 Jonathan Ikone (Lille to Fiorentina)
Much of the conversation around Fiorentina this window has been about the sale of Vlahovic and his replacements Cabral and Piatek. But earlier in the window, La Viola managed to add Jonathan Ikone of Lille to their ranks for just €14 million.
The former PSG academy graduate played an instrumental role in Lille beating the Parisiens to the Ligue 1 title last season. Playing as a right midfielder in a 4-4-2 system, he played in 37 games and got nine goal contributions. The 23-year-old can drift in-field as well as stretch the play by staying wide. He will replace the aging Jose Callejon in Florence.
