World Cup is finished and summer still ongoing, which means that football fans have still plenty to cheer for. Off season means that summer transfers are ongoing and although the summer transfers window is not closed yet, there are already some very big moves. Rushing ahead of the article I would say that 3 clubs have stood up above the rest so far and these clubs are Liverpool, Juventus and Barcelona. All these clubs have already a minimum of 3 strong players in the bag for the next season. Juventus Italian giants won the Serie A last season with 4 points in front of Napoli. It was a 2 horse race basically and supported by Dybala (11 goals) and Higuain (24 goals) they managed to reach also to quarterfinals in UEFA Champions League. They won the first game in Madrid 1-3, but lost at home a controversial game 0-3 and were out. They got their revenge though, nicked Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid with around 105m pounds. Quite sure that they made the transfer fee back already with selling the shirts.
It was a good transfer for both sides I would say. Ronaldo is already 33 and despite going still strong, he is not the same Ronaldo anymore and Serie A suits better for him in my opinion. Juventus got their marquee signing and Madrid managed to get a lot of money for the ageing player. Ronaldo had won everything with Real already and new challenges are waiting with new teammates. Juventus have lost 2 influential players so far, legendary goalkeeper Buffon and right back Lichtsteiner. Both left the club as free agents. The goalkeeper position is already solved. Perin and Szczęsny are both strong goalkeepers and also right back position is already filled with Joao Cancelo. Mattia Perin came from Genoa for 10m pounds and Cancelo came from Valencia for 36m pounds.
So two starting players left the club and both successful replaced already. Ronaldo I believe have few seasons in Italy with double-figure scoring and another great addition has been Douglas Costa from Bayern Munich. 36m pounds pure speed, agility and tricks ruining the fullbacks in Serie A set Juventus up for another great season in Serie A. Showed his ability in the league already previous season when he was a loan player there. For additional international betting about the possible transfers next summer you can check out the recommended casino.com bonus and have a punt at the same.
Juventus also added Emre Can from Liverpool as a free agent! Still priced around 30m pounds and in my opinion a great addition to their squad. There are 4 new world-class level starters wearing black and white stripes for the next season and they will compete also for the UEFA Champions League with this squad. Young striker Favilli and Kean are both expected to be in the rotation, Kean was loaned out next season and impressed in the league already. The conclusion of summer transfers so far: Lost 2 ageing legends and got Ronaldo, Costa, Cancelo, Can, Perin. Will lose Higuain probably due to high salaries of new players. Liverpool It’s a tough league to play in, England Premier League, as you need to prove yourself against top teams basically every week.
Liverpool finished the league on 4th position only and 25 points behind league winners. That’s a lot of points and obviously meant a lot of action during the summer transfers window. They managed to reach to UEFA Champions League final where they lost against Real Madrid 3-1. Liverpool has managed to add some very important pieces into their squad, but their main target obviously has been to keep the key players like Salah, Firmino and Mane. So far they have succeeded, although the summer transfers window is still opened and there’s plenty of teams luring after Salah and Mane still.
They have lost only midfielder Emre Can so far but have added very influential players into the team already. Karius, khmmm…is still in the team with Mignolet. 2 goalkeepers with strong names, but not in a good form and last a lot of games single-handedly last season. Brasilian national team goalkeeper Alisson was added from AS Roma for 56m pounds. Definitely one of the strongest goalkeeper currently on the market and one of the old duo will leave the club I’m sure. Although the defence was a problem in some games, there are no new defenders added so far and as Estonian, I’m happy with that:).
If Matip, van Dijk and Lovren stay healthy, the new goalkeeper and midfielders will make them much better in defence already. There are 3 new additions into the midfield and 2 of them I guess are a bit underrated by the fans at the moment. Xherdan Shaqiri was a mastermind steal due to last year in contract with Stoke City with only 13m pounds. He showed some great games during the World Cup and is a great addition to the wing. Shaqiri with Alisson made Liverpool already much stronger, but this is only the peak of the iceberg.
Klopp added some absolutely devastating quality into his midfield and 2 sure starters. Naby Keita from Salzburg with 54m and Fabinho from Monaco with 40m. Last seasons midfield were mainly Jordan Henderson, James Milner, Emre Can and Georginio Wijnaldum. Don’t get me wrong, this midfield guided the team to UEFA Champions League final, but this was rather a pleasant mistake than something expected. My bad, Oxlade also, but new players will take it over and add a lot of a different kind of quality to the midfield. Both Keita and Fabinho will add much more defensive quality and attacking threat to the team from day one. Click here predicts Liverpool to win the champions league with the likes of Keita and Fabinho in the team.
I saw a video where Leon Osman said that Keita is all about tackling and destruction. Wrong! Osman also said about Salah that he is poor mans Cuadrado, so let that sink in! 7 goals from mentioned players in midfield for Liverpool and new additions have outscored basically alone the whole previous midfield in their leagues. Fabinho and Keita also created more goal threats, dribbled past the opponents and sent more through balls by their own then all midfield in Liverpool last season. Yes, different leagues and tasks in the teams, but the quality is there and this is important.
Liverpool will fight for the Premier League and Champions League this season for sure if they manage to keep their most deadliest front three with this midfield. Also, much more depth in the squad compared with last season means there’s more room for rotation and resting players when the schedule is tight. Klopp is a smart coach and has picked the right players for his game plan to support the defence and take some pressure off from the attacking line. Yes, Fabinho and Keita are mainly known for their defensive abilities, so this is why I think that adding new defenders isn’t any more a necessity.
Barcelona won the La Liga with 14 points and was knocked out by AS Roma in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals by away goal rule. So far, they have lost Lucas Digne, Gerard Deulofeou, Andres Iniesta and Paulinho. First, two were rotation players and haven’t been on the level required for Barcelona. Iniesta and Paulinho went to Japan and China leagues for retirement. At first look, Barcelona haven’t invested well in the squad, but they have done a very good job actually. Defence haven’t been an issue for them, but they added Clement Lenglet early. French defender who played last 2 seasons in Sevilla and is still only 23 years old. Good business with 32m pounds and will keep Umtiti and Pique on their heels for the season. Also, Marlon came back from Nice as loaned out player, had a full season in the French league and good to have on the bench and in the rotation for the long season. 2 young and interesting additions to the midfield/attack. 21 years old Malcom impressed in the French league second season in a row despite of his young age.
Barcelona paid 37m pounds for him and in the next 2-3 seasons, he can easily be one of the hottest names in the world football. Very fast, with a lot of tricks and flicks in his sleeves and will suit well into this team with Messi, Suarez and Dembele. Plays similar way with Neymar who were missed a lot in last season and considering that Messi and Suarez are both 31 already, good business for the future and I’m sure he will step up right away. Another Brazilian connection is Arthur from Gremio, bought for 28m pounds. Arthur has some big shoes to fill as he supposed to be the next midfield maestro for Barcelona. I don’t have any doubts that he can be a success in Barcelona. Give him a season or two and he will be impressing in La Liga every week. No marquee signings yet and actually no need for it. League were taken last season with ease and quarter-final exit were a close game.
Coutinho was added in the winter and he can start preparation with the team this time. No questions about his quality also and the team is well balanced with some added youth and future stars during the summer transfers window. What they are still missing, in my opinion, is someone to replace Busquets as the bulldog in the midfield, but this can be done during this summer transfers window or during the next year. Other clubs Athletico Madrid have done some slick business so far during the summer transfers window. They added phenomenal Thomas Lemar from Monaco with 63m pounds and Gelson Martins as a free agent from Sporting Lissabon.
Valued around 35m pounds and it’s a steal. Rodri is probably not so well known name but has been quite influential for Villarreal in Spain league and Santiago Arias was a direct replacement for Sime Vrsaljko, who went to Inter. Manchester City added Riyad Mahrez for 60m pounds from Leicester to their already deep and strong squad. Not much reinforcement expected unless someone leaving during the summer transfers window. Chelsea haven’t lost anyone influential from last season, but new coach bought a midfielder Jorginho from Napoli with 50m pounds.
A fair price for the anchor and will team up with Kante, Bakayoko probably will be loaned out during the summer transfer window. Real Madrid lost their talisman Cristiano Ronaldo and have bought Vinicius Junior and Alvaro Odriozola so far as the probable main team players. Vinicius cost 40m pounds and Odriozola cost 27m pounds. Both are young and exciting players, Vinicius as a probable starter and new face of the team. Compared a lot with Neymar and despite his young age have shown what a great player he can be in the future. I expect a fast success for him and a double-figure scoring season in the La Liga in his debut year.
This guy will rock the league and will double his market value during the first year! There will be some more signings for the Spanish giants I’m sure. A new goalkeeper and attacking talent are expected to join the team during the summer transfer window. Courtois, de Gea, Hazard, Telles, Cavani and Bernardo Silva are the most mentioned names at the moment.
