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In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, teams have been cautious about making signings but these players have certainly justified their price tags and then some.
Premier League sides earn a lot of money through broadcasting rights and other revenue streams that come from playing in the most popular football league in the world. These days, even the smallest Premier League sides can afford to spend big in the transfer window in order to improve their squads.
This past summer hasn't been much different despite the financial stress caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Now that we're into the final leg of fixtures for the 2020-21 season, it seems like a good time to see how the new signings have fared over the course of the campaign.
Without further ado, let's take a look at the 5 Premier League signings who have had the most impact this season.
#5 Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg - Tottenham Hotspur
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg had proven himself at Southampton and his was a signing that guaranteed positive returns. Jose Mourinho loves his defensive midfielders and it would have been hard for him to find a better fit for the system than Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.
Tottenham Hotspur signed the 25-year-old for around £15 million and they recouped a major chunk of that by selling Kyle Walker-Peters to the Saints for a reported fee of £12 million.
Hojbjerg has been an absolute tank in midfield, always willing to go into battle and unafraid of coming off worse in a tackle. He has a tackle success rate of 52% in the league and has made 79 successful tackles, the second most in the Prem.
#4 Ollie Watkins - Aston Villa
After surviving relegation by the skin of their teeth last season, Aston Villa have had an excellent campaign this time around. Their players were at the top of their game in the early part of the season and in new signing Ollie Watkins, they had a mobile striker who was also strong enough to negotiate the physicality of the English top-flight.
Watkins was signed for a whopping £28 million and there were apprehensions around Aston Villa spending big on a player who had no experience in top-flight football. Ollie Watkins' best performance for Dean Smith's side earlier in the season, where he scored a hat-trick against Liverpool as Aston Villa trounced them 7-2.
The 25-year-old has scored 10 goals and provided three assists in the Premier League this term and has been well worth the money invested in him so far.
#3 Emiliano Martinez - Aston Villa
Emiliano Martinez was sensational for Arsenal when he filled in for Bernd Leno last season. Martinez's excellent showings between the sticks earned him a lot of plaudits and it culminated in him winning the FA Cup with the Gunners. However, once the German returned to the fray, Martinez had to leave.
It would have been criminal of Arsenal to have kept him to play second-fiddle to Leno. Martinez joined Aston Villa for a reported fee of £20 million and has played a big hand in the club enjoying a decent season this time around.
Martinez is a brilliant shot-stopper who is also a commanding presence inside the box. He helps out his defenders consistently by coming out to claim crosses and is pretty good with the ball at his feet.
#2 Diogo Jota - Liverpool
Diogo Jota haslt up quite a reputation as one of the most promising youngsters in the Premier League during his two-year spell at Wolverhampton Wanderers. However, while most Premier League sides overlooked him, Liverpool struck a bargain deal to sign him.
In a season where their usually unstoppable frontline has misfired, Diogo Jota has provided the much-needed spark time and again. Despite missing almost three months of action through injury, Jota has still scored 12 goals for Liverpool so far this season from 22 appearances. He has only started 13 of those matches.
The Portuguese has been in sublime form for his national side as well and at just 24-years-old, he is yet to hit his peak and will surely become a big player for Liverpool in the coming years.
#1 Ruben Dias - Manchester City
Despite Pep Guardiola spending hundreds of millions on defenders, Manchester City's defensive record in the Premier League has been nothing to write home about. That's until this season. The Cityzens have let in just 21 goals from 31 matches this season, which is nine fewer than any other team in the league.
Dias has become a stalwart in defence for Pep Guardiola's side and he has had no trouble settling down in the Premier League. Dias is an excellent passer of the ball and is excellent with his tackling and aerial ability as well. Pep Guardiola has already said he's undroppable. Pep said in February (via ESPN):
"He's not just a player who plays good, he's a player who makes the other guys play good too. It's 90 minutes talking, 90 minutes communicating, 90 minutes saying what they have to do in every single action. When that happens, it's difficult for me and undroppable."
Manchester City could end the season with a lot of trophies in their kitty and bringing Ruben Dias in to shore up their defense would have been crucial to it.
