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This was a transfer window that was unlike any other that we've seen in the recent past. There were only a handful of big-money moves as clubs had been suffering from the financial strain caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
As such, we saw a lot of loan deals being sanctioned. Loan deals are a great way for small teams to acquire a player whom they won't be afford to sign on a permanent basis. As for the player, he can go gain some football knowledge and much-needed experience and go back to his club at the end of the spell.
Usually, loan deals are sanctioned for young players but this time around several high-profile players were also loaned out due to various reasons. Let's take a look at the best five loan deals from this recently concluded transfer window.
#5 Alphonse Areola to Fulham
Fulham have tried to make the most of the cards they have been dealt. They have signed goalkeeper Alphonse Areola from Paris Saint-Germain on a loan deal. Areola has played for Real Madrid as well and brings in a fair share of experience and quality.
Areola is used to keeping high standards for his game and will definitely want his Fulham defence to do better as they have been leaking goals so far. Areola has now started four Premier League games for Fulham but is yet to keep a cleansheet.
Once his defence becomes steady, we expect Alphonse Areola to perform like the big player that he is.
#4 Ruben Loftus-Cheek to Fulham
Chelsea went on a spending spree this summer and were the most active Premier League side in the transfer market. Frank Lampard was on a mission to bolster his squad and he was not going to settle for anybody. They ended up signing the likes of Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, Hakim Ziyech, Ben Chilwell, Edouard Mendy, Malang Sarr and Thiago Silva.
Due to the inflow of talent in midfield and the frontline, some of the players who were struggling to break into the first team fell further down the pecking order. As such, Ruben Loftus-Cheek had to move to get some minutes and he ended up joining Fulham on loan.
Loftus-Cheek had missed a fair chunk of last season through an Achilles injury and until then, he had been making a strong case for a spot in the starting XI. At Fulham, he will get plenty of game time and now it's up to the 24-year-old to justify the hype.
#3 Ross Barkley to Aston Villa
One of those loan deals that once again makes sense for all parties involved. Ross Barkley, once tipped to be the next Wayne Rooney, seems to have hit yet another impediment in his career. He was yet another collateral casualty as Frank Lampard and co. went on a spending spree in the summer.
The arrival of Kai Havertz and Hakim Ziyech meant that there was no place for Ross Barkley in Chelsea's playing XI anymore. He had only started 13 games in the Premier League last season anyway.
There is no doubting Barkley's quality though. When he gets going, he is a top player and an Aston Villa side that has threatened to reveal their quality more consistently could definitely use him. He played a big hand in their 7-2 thumping of Liverpool and then scored a stoppage-time winner against Leicester City.
Aston Villa are currently second on the Premier League table with four wins from four games and Barkley looks set to be a top loan signing for Aston Villa.
#2 Dani Ceballos to Arsenal
Dani Ceballos had been one of Arsenal's better players last season and the Gunners were dejected that he was going to return to Real Madrid regardless. However, with no guarantee of a starting spot at the Santiago Bernabeu, the Spaniard returned to Arsenal on yet another loan deal.
Ceballos has struck up a good partnership with Granit Xhaka in the centre of the park and has brought about a sense of dynamism about Arsenals' midfield play that has been lacking since Mesut Ozil was exiled.
Arsenal have also signed Thomas Partey from Atletico Madrid. Partey and Xhaka will be playing more defensively this season while Ceballos will be asked to motor forward and use his skill to create chances for the Gunners.
#1 Gareth Bale to Tottenham Hotspur
Gareth Bale had been doing much golfing and very little footballing in his final months in Real Madrid. He had a move to the Chinese Super League breakdown in the last minute in the summer of 2019. However, his relationship with Real Madrid only worsened in the 2019-20 season and he had to leave.
And what better place for the Welshman to return to than the club where he blossomed into a world-beater. He left Spurs in 2013 for a whopping £85 million. Tottenham Hotspur already have two of the best attackers in Europe in Harry Kane and Son and both of them have been in sublime form this season.
Gareth Bale's inclusion will further bolster their attack and he is the kind of player that Jose Mourinho would love to have as the manager likes players who can pull off a bit of magic in and around the final third.
