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The 2021-22 season had its fair share of excitement and entertainment. Some of the biggest stars in football were up to their usual tricks and delivered big time for their respective teams. Meanwhile, some others had rather underwhelming campaigns.
These were caused by a multitude of factors. While some players struggled to find their feet at new clubs, others simply weren't able to replicate their form of old. But as we all know, form is temporary and class is permanent.
Quality players bounce back because once they regain their confidence and are playing in a system that suits them, they will feel free of limitations. Without further ado, let's take a look at five players who could be back to their best next season.
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#5 Memphis Depay (Barcelona)
Memphis Depay had a mixed bag of a debut season at Barcelona. He got off to a very good start to life at the Camp Nou under Ronald Koeman. However, a number of injury issues, a managerial change and new signings caused him to lose his place as an automatic starter in the lineup.
There's no doubt that on his day, Depay is one of the best forwards in Europe. He has been in great form for the Dutch national side in the new UEFA Nations League season. The 28-year-old has already scored three goals and provided an assist in three appearances in the 2022-23 UEFA Nations League.
He picked up the man of the match award in the Netherlands' win against Belgium and the draw against Poland. Depay is slowly hitting his stride again and with a full pre-season under Xavi, he should be back to his best next term.
#4 Jadon Sancho (Manchester United)
Jadon Sancho is Manchester United's third-most expensive signing of all time. The young English winger cost them £76.5 million last summer. He failed to hit the ground running at Old Trafford, and the Red Devils collectively having an underwhelming campaign certainly did not help.
However, Sancho became much more of an influential figure in the second half of the season. His direct running and ability to beat defenders helped add an edge to United's attack but his final product was found to be lacking on occasion.
The 22-year-old scored just five goals and provided three assists in 38 appearances across all competitions for Manchester United last term. Erik ten Hag has a great record working with wingers of Sancho's profile and as such, there's reason to believe the young winger is in safe hands next season.
#3 Timo Werner (Chelsea)
Chelsea broke their transfer record to sign Romelu Lukaku (£101.7 million) from Inter Milan last summer because their striker Timo Werner was misfiring. Lukaku's arrival only aggravated Chelsea's issues in front of goal as the Belgian struggled to settle down at Stamford Bridge.
Thomas Tuchel ended up calling on Werner extensively towards the end of the season and he started delivering more consistently. The 26-year-old is brilliant when it comes to build-up play and his movement is very good.
However, Werner's finishing has been awful so far at Chelsea. But he has shown signs of improvement of late and could really come through for the Blues next term. Werner scored 11 goals and provided six assists in 37 appearances across all competitions for Chelsea last season.
Werner bagged a brace and turned in an impressive performance for Germany on Tuesday (February 14) as they beat Italy in a UEFA Nations League game. If it's a sign of things to come, Chelsea fans should be elated.
#2 Jack Grealish (Manchester City)
Manchester City made Jack Grealish their and the Premier League's most expensive signing of all time last summer. They shelled out £105.75 million to sign the playmaker from Aston Villa. However, Grealish did not have the kind of impact he was expected to have at City in his debut season.
At Villa, the team was built around him and that's a privilege that was unavailable to him at City because the team is filled to the brim with world-class players. But Grealish, by virtue of his sheer technical proficiency and intelligence, became a far better player in the closing stages of the season.
Grealish will definitely get better in the upcoming season as there's simply too much quality there for him to be kept silent for yet another campaign. He scored six goals and provided four assists in 39 appearances across all competitions for Manchester City in the 2021-22 season.
#1 Lionel Messi (Paris Saint-Germain)
Lionel Messi left his boyhood club Barcelona last summer as a free agent and joined Paris Saint-Germain. Messi was in excellent form in the 2020-21 season and also won the 2021 Copa America with Argentina last summer.
He won a record seventh Ballon d'Or last year and that's why his dip in form surprised football fans everywhere. Messi had a very underwhelming debut season at PSG by his own lofty standards.
He looked nothing like the prolific goalscorer he has been almost his entire career, scoring just 11 goals in 34 appearances across all competitions for PSG. But his playmaking was quite incredible and he picked up 15 assists across all competitions.
Messi looked unstoppable in quite a few games towards the end of the season. He also recently scored five goals in an international friendly against Estonia and seems to have found his scoring boots again. As such, we have every reason to think he's going to have a stellar campaign next time around.
