As all football fans are aware, right now the financial muscle able to be flexed by the clubs of the English Premier League is largely unmatched outside of the two Spanish giants, Real Madrid and Barcelona. If it ever needed affirming, last summer’s transfer window – the one that saw Paul Pogba move from Juventus to Man United for a world-record £89m – was absolute proof.
Outside of maybe two or three players in the world, nobody is out of reach for the Premier League’s financial monsters.
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This summer’s transfer window is almost guaranteed to see more drawn-out sagas and huge transfer fees. So which players would we all love to see join the ranks of the Premier League this year?
#1 Raphael Varane
Often, football fans don’t tend to see defenders as marquee type signings for their club. Real Madrid’s Raphael Varane would certainly be an exception to that rule.
Still only 23 years old, the French international has impressed observers and fellow professionals alike since breaking into Real’s first team in 2013, his technique, strength and speed earning him comparisons to the legendary Spanish defender Fernando Hierro.
A good showing in last year’s European Championships could have put even more spotlight on him but unfortunately, he was ruled out of the tournament with a thigh strain.
While it seems almost inconceivable that Real Madrid would want to part with Varane, his current contract runs until 2020, and his fellow central defenders Sergio Ramos and Pepe are both ageing. However, the player himself has admitted that he supported Man United as a child and also has a strong relationship with Jose Mourinho, his former boss at Los Blancos.
With both Chris Smalling and Phil Jones out with injuries and United in need of top-class defenders, perhaps a swap deal involving longtime Real target David de Gea could finally bring Varane to Manchester?
#2 Arturo Vidal
Chile’s Vidal had an extremely impressive World Cup in 2014 and was linked with the Premier League then, but when he did move in 2015, he chose to head to Bayern Munich instead.
A fair choice, but his all-action, box-to-box style seems to tailor-made for the rigours of England. It was the same style used to great effect in the Premier League by Steven Gerrard for years, and box-to-box midfielders are currently in vogue even more, thanks to the success of the likes of Moussa Dembele, Yaya Toure and Paul Pogba.
Who could be in the running for Vidal’s signature? Liverpool have never truly replaced Gerrard since he moved on in 2015; Jordan Henderson has tried but just doesn’t seem to be on the same level, and Jurgen Klopp’s attempts to use Georginio Wijnaldum in the role haven’t quite paid off either.
While it’d be nice to see Vidal chip in with some more goals – his return at Bayern hasn’t been great – he’d definitely be a great choice to finally replace Gerrard at Liverpool.
#3 Antoine Griezmann
The top scorer at last summer’s European Championships, Griezmann has been heavily linked with Man United for what seems like forever now, although he did sign a new contract with Atletico Madrid just last July.
You can see why United were after him – his goal record in Spain has been extremely consistent in recent seasons – especially when you consider he isn’t at Real or Barca - and he’s also scored important goals in the Champions League, he can finish with either foot, he’s very quick and he always seems to be in the right place at the right time.
While United have been the club most heavily linked with him, the question is do they actually need Griezmann? They already have a rich forward line that includes veterans Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Wayne Rooney, as well as youngsters Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford.
Arsenal on the other hand are crying out for a player of his talents, especially with Danny Welbeck on the shelf and Alexis Sanchez potentially departing. With their traditional French links, thanks to Arsene Wenger, could a move for Griezmann be out of the realm of possibility?
#4 Alexandre Lacazette
There’s no better word to describe the goal record of Lyon’s Alexandre Lacazette in recent years than phenomenal. 31 goals in 2014-15, 23 in 2015-16 and he’s currently on 29 for this current season. It’s reminiscent of Harry Kane.
While he inexplicably missed out on France’s Euro 2016 squad, it hasn’t held him back this season and while he scored the winner for Lyon in their Champions League group stage match with Dinamo Zagreb, the fact that Lyon didn’t make the knockout stage may signal the end for him there.
Today’s top players want Champions League football, and Lacazette has already been rumoured to have stated his wish to leave Lyon in the summer.
Money talks and so naturally the Premier League could be top of the list of potential destinations, so where could he end up? Both Arsenal and Chelsea have been linked with him but the Blues – likely winners of the league – are the favourites as they can guarantee him Champions League football.
With the future of Diego Costa seemingly always in flux, Lacazette could step in to replace him as a practically guaranteed goalscorer, assuming he could make the step up in quality.
#5 James Rodriguez
The stand-out player in the 2014 World Cup, James was signed by Real Madrid after the tournament in a move that never really felt right at the time – more like Real simply flexing their muscles and buying the player for the sake of it rather than outright needing him.
Despite some success in his first season at the Bernabeu, he’s been struggling for playing time of late, particularly since Zinedine Zidane took over as manager. An alarming stat is that as of the end of 2016, James was the 20th most used player....in a squad of 24.
That just isn’t right considering how much talent he showed in the World Cup.
Coming to the Premier League could be a logical step then, as the Colombian international would make for a massive coup for any of England’s bigger clubs. While Chelsea have already been rumoured as a destination, Spurs ought to look at making a move for him.
They’re almost guaranteed a Champions League spot at this stage and if they want to solidify themselves as one of the biggest clubs in the country, James is the type of player they need to look at signing.
Any other players you can think of that would fit into the Premier League well? Let us know.
Until next time.....
