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The transfer window has been fairly quiet and subdued this summer, with many clubs doing deals early or even without a manager, which is a bit strange. However, there have been a few interesting signings.
Here, we take a look at the top five Premier League newcomers to watch out for this season:
5. Paulinho – Tottenham Hotspur
Paulinho caught the eye of Tottenham boss Andre Vilas-Boas after a string of incredible performances for Brazil at this summer’s Confederations Cup.
The 25-year-old was the rock in the centre of midfield, as he broke up the pieces which enabled the great attacking players to get on and attack the opposition.
The Brazilian will do exactly the same for Spurs as he will hold and anchor the midfield to enable the likes of Gareth Bale (if he stays), Aaron Lennon, Mousa Dembele, Gylfi Sigurdsson, Nacer Chadli and Lewis Holtby to go forward and score goals.
4. Ricky Van Wolfswinkel – Norwich City
Ricky Van Wolfswinkel
Ricky Van Wolfswinkel will be a great addition to the Norwich City squad.
The former Sporting Lisbon man will strengthen their attack as Luciano Becchio failed to perform last season, and with Grant Holt’s departure to Wigan Athletic, the Dutchman has become their number one striking option ahead Gary Hooper and Johan Elmander.
The 24-year-old striker’s strapline is ‘Feed the Wolf and he will Score’ and I believe he will live up to that slogan.
3. Roberto Soldado – Tottenham Hotspur
Roberto Soldado
Tottenham last season lacked an out-and-out goalscorer which evidently cost them their place in the top four.
This season they have strengthened their squad in the transfer market and the recruitment of Roberto Soldado from Valencia is an exciting one as he performed well for Spain in the recently concluded Confederations Cup and also has a proven goalscoring record in the La Liga.
2. Wilfried Bony – Swansea City
Wilfried Bony
Wilfried Bony’s arrival has come as a surprise considering Michu’s 23 goals last season. Bony will add power to their strike force as he is an out and out goal scorer.
The Ivorian scored 31 goals last season for the Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem, and it should be interesting to see how Michael Laudrup plays both Michu and Bony in the same team and if they can conjure a formidable partnership.
1. Jesus Navas – Manchester City
Jesus Navas
Navas is a highly-rated pacey winger who likes to get down the line and cross the ball into the box. This is promising when considering the likes of Edin Dzeko and Alvaro Negredo on the receiving end of those pin-point deliveries.
The Spaniard will be a great asset to Manuel Pellegrini’s squad and is a kind of a player that Manchester City don’t have in their ranks. He could be pivotal in City’s hopes of regaining the Premier League title from arch-rivals Manchester United.
Notable Mentions - Pablo Osvaldo (Southampton), Andre Schurrle (Chelsea), Alvaro Negredo (Manchester City), Stevan Jovetic (Manchester City) and Gerard Deulofeu (Everton).
This article was written by Matthew Thoma. You can view his writing regularly on his blog, http://matthewthoma.wordpress.com and also follow him on twitter @MatthewThoma_.
