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In the aftermath of the World Cup, football fans go back now to the clubs where their loyalties lie. With the beginning of the new season drawing ever closer, Europe's clubs are working day and night to get their deals over the line in time.
And speaking of transfers, the league that immediately comes to mind is undoubtedly the Premier League.
Being arguably the most-watched league among football fans the world over has its monetary perks for the sides, and this naturally makes them the busiest league almost every transfer window.
Therefore, this transfer window like many before it has seen the Premier League elite go out in full force in a bid to secure the signatures of their targets, and some have already managed to get the deals over the line.
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These are some of the best signings completed in the Premier League so far, in no particular order.
#1 Lucas Torreira to Arsenal - £26.4 Million
Lucas Torreira's attacking stats of four goals and one assist will hardly have made Arsenal scouts sit up and take notice as they monitored him throughout the previous season. However, that is not the reason Unai Emery was so keen to get his signing over the line as soon as possible.
The Uruguayan's tenacity and ball playing ability in the midfield pivot role is what stands out most. An undying urgency to his pressing and the ability to seemingly run for days would have glimmered in Arsenal's search for an element of balance in midfield.
The Uruguayan has also shown that he is well equipped to showcase his quality in a tactical and discipline demanding system, evident in his World Cup campaign with Oscar Tabarez's Uruguay.
This signing also allows Granit Xhaka to get back to his much-favoured role of deep-lying playmaker rather than hard tackling enforcer.
KEY STAT: Torreira made 101 tackles for Sampdoria last season, putting him among the top three players in Serie A.
#2 Felipe Anderson to West Ham- £35 Million
Felipe Anderson's total of four goals and seven assists can be deemed a modest total for a man of the Brazilian's qualities, but with this signing, West Ham gets more than just numbers.
The Brazilian boasts an excellent turn of pace and is capable of producing the goods playing on either flank or through the middle as an attacking midfielder sort of role. Breaking West Ham's transfer record, Manuel Pellegrini has lauded the new addition, stating that Anderson 'will give Hammers a new dimension'.
Boasting a similar taste for flair as the much-loved Marko Arnautovic, West Ham fans sure can be excited as to what the next season will hold.
And though some may fear that the Brazilian may not fully live up to the hype, the price for which Anderson was bought is a steal for the talents that he possesses.
KEY STAT: In the 2016/17 season, Felipe Anderson completed 117 dribbles for Lazio, more than any other player in Serie A.
#3 Andriy Yarmolenko to West Ham - £17.5 Million
Another product of Pellegrini's ongoing revamp at the London Stadium, Andriy Yarmolenko has come to West Ham off the back of a disappointing season with Borussia Dortmund, only able to muster a total of three goals and two assists through the course of a season which started extremely well for the Ukranian but dipped fast as the time went on.
However, the Ukranian's image still persists to impress based on the many brilliant seasons he's had with Dynamo Kyiv.
An almost certain tendency to cut in on his favourite left foot is often balanced out by an allusiveness to what happens next. In doing so, the Ukranian may well be the ideal foil for marauding full-back Ryan Fredericks- if the right-back is ultimately able to cement a place in the team.
More importantly, this signing, along with that of Brazilian speedster Anderson, offers Pellegrini another creative outlet for his side, and we may well see the trio become one of the most formidable attacks in the Premier League next season if they are able to keep their performances consistent.
KEY STAT: Yarmolenko has scored in double figures in each of the last 7 seasons he's spent for Dynamo Kyiv.
#4 Xherdan Shaqiri to Liverpool- £13 Million
After enduring a turbulent campaign which ultimately ended in relegation for Stoke City, Xherdan Shaqiri has got the move which was almost inevitable for a player of his calibre. Liverpool's £9.4 Million acquisition of the Swiss Attacker is a shrewd piece of business, with the Swiss international racking up eight goals and seven assists.
Shaqiri will most definitely be seen as a backup option to the free-scoring Liverpool front three that racked up a spread of 91 goals last season.
However, the season is long and any injury to any of the first-choice front 3 opens the door for the 'Alpine Messi', as he's called, to work his magic.
Only five players created more chances than Shaqiri's total of 65 chances created in the Premier League last season, with Mo Salah the only Liverpool player to come close with 62.
KEY STAT: Xherdan Shaqiri scored 15 goals and assisted 15 times for the Potters in 2017/18
#5 Jorginho to Chelsea- £57.4 Million
With the signing of former Napoli metronome Jorginho, Chelsea has a player who has been consistently finishing in the upper echelons of passing accuracy and passes completed for the past couple of seasons in all of Europe.
Though the real value of Chelsea's new signing depends heavily on the uncertain futures of Hazard, Willian and Kante. Under the tutelage of the same manager that guided him to success in Naples, the Italian international will be trusted to impose a similar dominance on the ball which made him a top target for Pep Guardiola at Man City.
Two goals and four assists in Serie A are by no means an accurate representation of the midfielder's talents.
With an expertise in playing between the lines and setting teammates off from deep, this new addition will surely offer the likes of Hazard and Willian more opportunity to do what they do best, and with the ball-winning capabilities of N'Golo Kante as a potential midfield partner for the Italian, we could very well see a near perfect midfield for the Blues next season, with Kante's undying tenacity the perfect partner for Jorginho's guile when given time to look forward and pick a pass.
KEY STAT: Jorginho made 3197 passes for Napoli in the 2017/18 season, the most by any player in Europe's top five leagues.
#6 Rui Patricio to Wolves- Free Transfer
The former Sporting Lisbon shot-stopper has been the Portugal No.1 for a long time now and is considered one of the best goalkeepers in Europe.
Taking advantage of a player 'revolt' at Sporting Lisbon following a training ground altercation between the players and fans, Rui Patricio, along with other of the clubs top players terminated their contracts with the club as an act of rebellion.
In the signing of Patricio, that too for free, this is a brilliant piece of Business by the Wolves, and with an already strong Portuguese contingent at the Molineux, expect the Portuguese international to settle in quickly and be very much a fan favourite.
KEY STAT: Patricio made seven saves against France in the final as Portugal won Euro 2016.
#7 Jean Michael Seri to Fulham- £25 Million
A coup well and truly is underway at newly-promoted Fulham. Arguably the crown jewel of their signings in the summer so far has been Jean Michael Seri, a metronomic midfielder that is capable of dictating the tempo of a game.
With a keen eye for a defence-splitting pass and more than capable of chipping in defensively, Fulham gets a midfield controller with the purchase of Seri, a signing that will be an excellent fit for Slavisa Jokanovi's expansive style of play at Fulham.
KEY STAT: Seri averaged 91.8 passes per 90 minutes in Ligue 1 last season, behind only Marco Verratti and Thiago Motta of PSG.
#8 Fabinho to Liverpool- £39 Million
Originally a fullback at Real Madrid's famed Castilla youth academy, Fabinho was converted to a holding midfielder in his time at Monaco, a move which has proven to be a brilliant switch for the towering Brazillian, possessing the ability as well as the physicality to pull off the job with aplomb, resulting in him playing a key role in guiding Monaco to the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2017.
Another brilliant switch has been the one Liverpool made to bring the Brazilian to Anfield. He has the physicality to cope with the rigours of the Premier League and prove to be a real calming influence in a Liverpool squad which is set up to be so fast and frenetic. His passing range and ability to pick a pass can give Jurgen Klopp's side a platform from which to play.
KEY STAT: Fabinho was the only Ligue 1 player to rank among the top six for tackling and passing last season.
#9 Riyad Mahrez to Man City- £60 Million
Mahrez's Man City deal was mooted in January and the Algerian Winger finally got the deal he was after this summer. A supremely talented player that has been a key player for Leicester in their fight for survival and subsequent Premier League victory, Mahrez already has a Premier League player of the year and a Premier League winners medal to his name.
A record signing for Man City, there will be plenty of competition to meet him once he gets settled and it will be interesting to see where he fits in Pep Guardiola's plans. The good news for Mahrez is that with the current Pep Guardiola influence taking the citizens from strength to strength, it looks like Mahrez may well be on his way to adding a second Premier League winners medal to his tally.
KEY STAT: Mahrez places among the top four players in the Premier League for dribbles completed and big chances created over the tenth of the past three seasons.
#10 Fred to Manchester United- £52 Million
Jose Mourinho's latest acquisition at Old Trafford could well prove to be the most crucial for the Red Devils. The latest piece of the everlasting puzzle for Mourinho, Fred is expected to bring both dynamism and control to Manchester United's Midfield.
As important as his own performances come August is the effect that he will have on the players around him, namely Paul Pogba.
The World Cup stands as evidence that the Frenchman can do brilliant things if given the freedom to attack and create and if Fred is able to provide that, this signing may well be a bargain in Mourinho's eyes despite a transfer fee around the 52 Million mark.
KEY STAT: Fred made more tackles and completed more passes than any other Shakhtar Donetsk player in the Champions League last season
#11 Alisson Becker to Liverpool- £67 Million
Following the departure of Pepe Reina, the Goalkeeper's position has always been a weakness for the reds. Be it Loris Karius or Simon Mignolet before him, Liverpool's goalkeepers have never looked to be totally in control of the situations and have often made mistakes that have ultimately cost the team silverware.
Looking at Karius's recent mistakes in goal against Real Madrid in the Champions League final, it was clear that Liverpool needed to address the problem that they had been shoving under the rug for so long.
If they were to have any chance of truly competing for silverware in the business end of the season, they needed to have a World Class goalkeeper that saved them points when they deserved not to get them, and not vice versa.
Therefore, the signing of Alisson from AS Roma for a fee of £65 Million, making the Brazilian no.1 the most expensive goalkeeper ever, is a much-needed one for Liverpool. Coming off an excellent season for Roma in the Serie A and Champions League, Liverpool will be hoping their new goalkeeper can hit the ground running at Anfield.
Key Stat: Alisson Becker had the Second best save success rate in Europe’s top 5 leagues in 2017/18, only behind Atletico Madrid's Jan Oblak.
#12 Naby Keita to Liverpool- £53 Million
Though the arrival of Keita has been relatively recent, the deal had been finalised well over a year ago, so Liverpool fans have been afforded plenty of time to imagine what he would be bringing to their team. After two great seasons with RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga, the Guinean midfielder will be hoping to continue his exploits for Jurgen Klopp in the Premier League.
A mobile midfielder with the quality to match the intensity, Naby Keita will give Jurgen Klopp something different come August, and with the fact that Liverpool reached the Champions League final without him last season, makes for some very exciting reading for Liverpool fans.
KEY STAT: Keita recovered possession 452 times over the past two seasons for RB Leipzig, more than any other player in the Bundesliga.
