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The English Premier League 2018-19 season is just 2 weeks away and with all the madness at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, football fanatics like me can't wait for yet another edition of the most competitive league in the world.
There were plenty of positives for many English clubs as England managed to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup after a long 60-year wait.
The transfer market has already seen a number of surprising moves from some of the best stars of the game, much like most of the results at the World Cup. A number of shoes are yet to be filled with Real Madrid, who have sold arguably their best player ever in Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus without any announcement of a replacement, as a number of Premier League clubs are at threat of losing some of their best players.
An exhilarating and record-breaking performance from Manchester City saw them lift the Premier League 2017-18 trophy who will be the team to beat this time around.
Stoke City, Swansea City and West Brom faced heart-breaking relegation to the 2nd division of English football with Wolves returning back to the Premier League as Championship winners after a 6-year exile. They will be accompanied by Fulham and Cardiff City who managed to qualify to the Premier League along with Wolves.
As these newly promoted sides will look to extend their stay in the top flight of English football, let's take a look at the 5 key players from these teams to watch out for in the upcoming Premier League season:
#5 Ryan Sessegnon (Fulham FC)
The 18-year-old midfielder, Ryan Sessegnon is one of the teenage sensations to watch out for in the upcoming 2018-19 Premier League campaign. The teenager made his debut for the Cottagers at 16 years of age. In the 2017-18 Championship season, he scored 16 goals and provided 8 assists in 48 games as he played a key part in Fulham's promotion to the Premier League.
The versatile player is capable of starting on the left side of midfield or defence. Sessegnon won an unprecedented five awards last season notably when he was named Championship Player of the Season, Young Player of the Season, and named in the Team of the Season. In February, he was named tenth in the most promising Under-20 prospects in the whole of Europe.
His performances have earned him a valuation of a staggering £100 million in the transfer market. A number of top clubs in England like Manchester United, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspurs have gained interest in the player and it remains to be seen which club the future star joins to progress his career.
The speedy winger will cost £6.5 million if he is to feature in your Fantasy Premier League squad.
#4 Joao Moutinho (Wolves FC)
The newly promoted side Wolves confirmed the 31-year-old's signature for a bargain price believed to be around £5 million on a 2-year deal from Ligue 1 giants AS Monaco. The Portuguese star Joao Mountinho who won the Euro 2016, finally completed his move to the Premier League after being linked with a number of top English clubs including Spurs who almost made him the club's most expensive signing in 2012.
The vastly-experienced playmaker, the third most-capped player in Portugal's history with 113 appearances, arrived in Wolverhampton on Tuesday to finalise his move. It is a statement of intent from Wolves who won the Championship last season and will look to make a mark on England's top flight after a six year exile.
The midfielder brings bags of experience to the side adding title-winning mentality as he helped Monaco win the Ligue 1 ahead of a star-studded PSG side in the 2016/17 campaign and also claimed three Primera Division titles previously with Porto, along with the 2011 Europa League.
The new signing has expressed his delight in joining the Wolves "project" and believes his winning mentality can help them make a splash back in the Premier League.
The veteran will be a great value option with an acute cost of £5.5 million in the Fantasy Premier League.
#3 Rui Patricio (Wolves FC)
Another Portuguese star who was vital in Portugal's Euros 2016 victory, Rui Patricio has joined Wolves along with his international team-mate Joao Moutinho adding some good quality experience and match-winning intellect to the newly promoted side. The pair will hope to reach the heights and repeat their mind-blowing feat when they won the Euro 2016 for their nation against all odds.
The 30-year-old who has been Portugal's first-choice goalkeeper for almost six years arrived at Wolverhampton on a free-transfer and signed a four-year deal from Portuguese side Sporting Lisbon.
Patricio has won 70 caps for his country, as well as a winners medal at Euro 2016 where he kept a clean sheet in the final against host nation France and was named in the UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament. He leaves Sporting having made 460 appearances, making him second on the Primeira Liga club’s all-time list.
Although the shot-stopper signed on a free transfer, there has been a lot of speculation regarding his move to the Championship winners. His former club Sporting Lisbon are reportedly demanding a fee of €50 million for his services after the goalkeeper justly decided to terminate his contract with the club upon being attacked from the club's own supporters during training.
Wolves had been reported to be willing to pay £18m for the Portugal international before he opted to terminate his contract, allowing him to join the English club for free.
The experienced campaigner who is excited to be a part of the Wolves roster, will cost a mere £4.5 million on your Fantasy Premier League squad.
#2 Jean Michael Seri (Fulham FC)
The 27-year-old Jean Michael Seri was on the verge of joining Spanish giants Barcelona last summer following an outstanding season in Ligue 1 in 2016-17 with 7 goals and 9 assists, but the deal collapsed right before the deadline.
After an inferior 2017-18 season with 2 goals and 5 assists, Seri now finds himself at a side newly promoted from the Championship, having joined Fulham which could be considered somewhat of a transfer coup in signing the Ivory Coast midfielder.
The midfielder had hoped to make a move to Napoli, but instead, the London side Fulham have succeeded in capturing the player for a club-record fee believed to be in the region of £25 million.
A player, who had courted interest from both Arsenal and Chelsea previously. The Ivory Coast international has arrived on a four-year deal with the option of one more, subject to him receiving a work permit.
After making 103 appearances in France's top flight, scoring 12 goals and creating 23 more, he is looking forward to the challenge of playing in England. However, it is not guaranteed that Seri will be an immediate hit at Fulham.
Having only previously played his European football in Ligue 1 and in Portugal's Primeira Liga, with Pacos de Ferreira, it will be a big step up to perform in the Premier League.
Seri is a Premier League-quality player and, arguably, would not look out of place at a top-six club. He always wants to be on the ball and has impeccable distribution skills.
£5.5 million should suffice to add the midfielder to your Fantasy Premier League squad.
#1 Andre Schurrle (Fulham FC)
The German star Andre Schurrle who provided the assist for Mario Gotze's 2014 FIFA World Cup winning goal, has agreed to join Premier League newcomers Fulham on a two-year loan deal from German giants Borussia Dortmund.
The attacker has previously played in the Premier League with 2014-15 League champions Chelsea where he scored 11 goals and provided 3 assists over 2 seasons with the Blues.
The forward will be hoping to reignite his career with the Cottagers having hit an all-time low with just 3 goals and 6 assists in 33 appearances over 2 seasons with Borussia Dortmund. This poor form led to his absence in Germany's 2018 FIFA World Cup squad.
The 27-year-old remains the last German to have scored a hat-trick in the Premier League when he scored for Chelsea against...Fulham!
A player who loves attacking, keeping the ball in possession and making forward-runs, Schurrle will be a perfect fit for Fulham. The forward will have a point to prove as he was hot property for some of the top clubs when he was young and should be approaching his peak now.
With the experience of a Premier League and World Cup title, Schurrle will be adding much-needed trophy winning mentality to the squad.
We football lovers hope Schurrle can endure 2 bright seasons at Craven Cottage and answer his critics strongly, as a German star in full flow can be absolutely lethal and add to the excitement of the most competitive league in the world.
The attacking midfielder will cost £6 million to your bank if he is to feature in your Fantasy Premier League squad which would be an absolute bargain.
