Top 5 value for money EPL signings in 2013-14 so far

4. James McCarthy – Wigan to Everton – £12m

James McCarthy’s output took a considerable turn for the better with Roberto Martinez as his mentor at Wigan Athletic, so to see the Spanish manager convince Bill Kenwright to plump a £12 million figure on his former DW Stadium charge was no surprise.

Since then, the young Irishman has continued to progress at Goodison Park, holding his ground as one of Everton’s mainstay central midfielders despite a wealth of other, more experienced options being on hand.

Though the 23-year-old isn’t even in the Toffees’ top 10 when it comes to Performance Score (283), his displays have been nothing if not reliable.

McCarthy has won 38 of his 66 tackle attempts and completed 10 of his 16 tackle attempts. However, there is a more glamorous side to the playmaker and only Kevin Mirallas has crafted more scoring chances than McCarthy’s tally of 26.