It has been more than six months since the summer transfer window of 2021 ended. If you’ve forgotten how great it is, just remember that both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo switch clubs, while those who like Arsenal spent more than £150m on new players despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on football finance around the world.
So now the dust has settled on the greatest motivationsit’s time to gauge how well they’ve done at their new clubs.
REAL MADRID: David AlabaFree one
Unsurprisingly world class T-shirt international has brought stability, experience and quality to Real Madrid defense. The versatile defender needs little time to settle in and his presence at the heart of defence should also be credited for the marked improvement of 24-year-old Eder Militao at his side. Alaba has continued where he left off Bayern Munich: confident and strong in one-on-one situations when playing as a centre-back, and at the same time displaying creativity and crossing abilities when playing wide. Alaba is a frequent starter in Madrid’s attacks thanks to his precise distribution (93% pass accuracy in La Liga) from behind.
ARSENAL: White Ben£50 million: A
The 24-year-old midfielder has continued to improve after his nightmare debut in the previous 0-2 loss Brentford End of August. Six months later, White appeared as confident and relaxed as he was when he was at Arsenal, combining good pace with resolute, decisive defense and excellent distribution/holding. The collaboration of the former Brighton player with Gabriel This is the type that Arsenal can build on for years to come and they are as compatible as any Premier League centre-back partnership.
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PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN: Achraf Hakimi70 million euros: A-
Hakimi started where he left Inter Milan. The Morocco The international took little time to adapt to French football and flew up and down the right wing in typical fashion from the start. As usual with such an attacking defender, there were moments of uncanny trouble: he was given a grueling time by Kamaldeen Sulemana in the 2-0 loss to Rennes, and he had could have defended better on both goals in the match. Defeat 2-1 first City of Manchester in the Champions League. However, Hakimi has been one of PSG’s more reliable players this season and has proven he is worthy of the substantial transfer fee.
AS ROMA: Tammy Abraham€40 million: B +
Already a favorite among Roma fans, England international made an impression during his first months under Jose Mourinho. Not only has he scored 11 goals in 25 Serie A games, but his central game – winning free-kicks and keeping the ball under pressure – has also been outstanding. Ex-Chelsea striker has been among the club’s best players this campaign in a team that has not always been recognized for its free-spirited attacking football.
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Julien Laurens and Stewart Robson discuss Cristiano Ronaldo’s impact on Manchester United.
MANCHESTER UNITED: Cristiano Ronaldo15 million euros: REMOVAL
Aside from the never-ending debate over the Portuguese superstar’s impact on his United teammates, the dressing room harmony, the club’s style of play and the manager, Ronaldo has had a The return to Old Trafford was pretty good. After his recent barren stint in an underperforming roster, it’s easy to forget that he came to the team’s rescue on a couple of occasions in the fall. Those expecting to see the old Ronaldo will obviously be disappointed, as the 37-year-old rarely plays a defender these days, but he remains United’s most reliable attacker and has 15 goals behind. 29 matches.
PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN: Gianluigi DonnarummaFree: B-
The number 1 goalkeeper in the world last year was somewhat surprised to find himself being rotated with Keylor Navasafter switching from AC Milan to PSG for free last summer. While he may not be quite as dominant as one would expect, he has kept eight clean sheets in 16 games. The Italy The internationals also did not make any obvious errors and, although Navas is also an excellent keeper, it might have made sense to give Donnarumma a long and uninterrupted run in the team to settle it.
MANCHESTER UNITED: Jadon Sancho85 million euros: B-
Sancho has had a disappointing start to his United career, but he is clearly going up and his two best performances for the club have come this month against Southampton and Leeds. While he seemed tactically out of place and struggled to find the same frequency as his teammates during his first few months, the England winger is now more active with movement around he. While in the past he tended to hesitate in decisive moments, he now looks to have regained some of the advantage from his Dortmund days and will look to improve on two goals and two lanes. assists in 21 league games.
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Craig Burley analyzes Jack Grealish’s performance in Manchester City’s win over Fulham in the FA Cup.
MANCHESTER CITY: Jack Grealish100 million pounds: B-
While one might expect more than substantial contributions with such a large transfer fee, Grealish is fine after the British record-keeper’s move to Manchester City (he also has two goals and two lanes). assists, from 17 league matches). He always finds it difficult to reproduce the exceptional numbers he has managed Aston Villa in a team that often has to negotiate a defender wall every week. His average dribbles per game has almost halved (from 5.8 to 3.2) and the congested nature of the game he has to deal with now slows him down and has It might make him less stressed.
RB LEIPZIG: Andre Silva23 million euros, RB Leipzig: B-
The bar is set quite high for Portugal international after he scored 28 stunning Bundesliga goals for Eintracht Frankfurt previous season. Although it took him some time to adapt to Leipzig’s attacking styles, the 26-year-old forward has recently caught up and has begun to show a return to form with six goals in his last 11 matches. his best.
MANCHESTER UNITED: Raphael Varane48 million euros: C +
Still a long way from the world-class centre-back everyone remembers from his Real Madrid days, Varane’s career at Old Trafford hasn’t been helped by injury or the fact that the defence has appeared disengaged. fragmented and need clear organizational principles before coming. by interim manager Ralf Rangnick. With both Victor Lindelof and Harry Maguire After undergoing challenging spells, Varane was further hampered by the lack of an undisputed partner.
ATLETICO MADRID: Antoine GriezmannLoan: C +
Aside from a few inspiring Champions League performances – especially the brace against the net Liverpool and his stunning volley (after coming on from the bench) helped turn the game around against AC Milan – there was more than a little light from Griezmann when he returned to Atletico. Out with a muscle injury since early January, France forward with eight goals and three assists in 22 games in all competitions and should join the club permanently are from Barcelona for 40 million euros in the summer.
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Ale Moreno praised Kylian Mbappe after his performance in Paris Saint-Germain’s 1-0 win over Real Madrid in the Champions League.
PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN: Lionel MessiFree: COLLECTION
The former Barcelona striker’s first six months in Paris have not been particularly stellar following an emotional free transfer in the summer. Two Ligue 1 goals in 15 games is a surprisingly low ratio and, while he has performed better in the Champions League and for Argentina, there is little evidence that French football is a good match for the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner. Yet even at 34, Messi remains one of European football’s most creative players: his 3.1 vital passes and 2.2 chances created per game are close to the same level. he created for Barcelona last season and he had 9 assists.
REAL MADRID: Eduardo Camavinga30 million euros: C
It’s always been a future signing, but the 19-year-old midfielder’s goal on his debut didn’t help quell expectations. Camavinga’s best performance came early on – although he was mostly a substitute – but he hasn’t made a significant impact on games since the start of the year. It doesn’t help that he’s been thrown on the pitch in a variety of positions, or that he has the immortal duo of Luka Modric, Casemiro and Toni Kroos before him in pecking order.
BAYERN MUNICH: Dayot Upamecano42.5 million euros: C-
As someone with a better record in the Champions League than in the Bundesliga, Upamecano has shown his quality in patches for Bayern but his first season has been marred by a couple of lousy defeats. He had a shaky debut first Borussia Monchengladbach and did not cover himself in glory in matches against Eintracht Frankfurt or Borussia Dortmund or. His worst performance, however, came in a surprise 4-2 away loss to Bochum two weeks ago, in which he was sent off at half-time. The centre-back has become a regular for France, but will need to improve his club form in the second half of the season.
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After Manchester City’s 1-0 win over Chelsea, Janusz Michallik explains what’s missing from the Blues’ main striker.
CHELSEA: Romelu Lukaku115 million euros: D +
The €115m striker is a testament to the mysterious nature of the transfer market: Lukaku knew how to get past Chelsea from an earlier period between 2011 and 14, and he joined the European champions. Europe scored 64 goals in 95 games for Inter Milan over two seasons, the final season winning the Serie A title. But a return to London was unsuccessful, at least not yet. Lukaku seems to lack confidence in the Premier League – although he was the decisive man in the Club World Cup in January – and has only 5 goals in 17 games, while he only managed seven touches vs Crystal Palace last weekend. In addition, the fact that he averaged only half of his dribbles last season suggests that Inter’s finishing style, which often has plenty of space, suits him better.
