The Biggest Moves Into the English Premier League

By Ryan Hammer on August 12, 2016

Week 1 of the English Premier League kicks off Saturday, August 13.

There are new faces and new clubs that deserve some welcoming to their new surroundings in the best professional soccer league on the planet. Some lads are coming from other leagues and some are just moving teams within the league. Three teams will experience premier league life again after promotion from the second tier of English football, the English championship: Burnley, Hull City and Middlesborough.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic & Paul Pogba (Manchester United)

A world-famous striker nearing the end of his peak years who has already impacted his new club with a few goals in the International Champions Cup and in the Community Shield. Manchester United is the most legendary football club of all time and the Red Devils finally have a world-class striker that is undoubtedly one of the world’s best.

Manchester United was not done with Zlatan. French midfielder Paul Pogba is one of the world’s best and most promising center midfielders in the world. Standing 6-foot-3, at only 23 years old, Pogba was signed for a record breaking 100 million euros. He was originally sold on free transfer as a youth player to Juventes in Italy and now makes his return to Manchester. Pogba bolsters the midfield next to Rooney and newly acquired Henrikh Mkhitaryan with Ibrahimovic standing ahead of them, making Man U the clear favorite to take 1st place this season.

N’golo Kante (Chelsea)

Arguably one of the best players in the 2015 premier league season, midfield workhorse N’golo Kante is one of the biggest moves of the summer transfer window. After winning the title with Leicester City last season, Kante became world-famous for his defensive work rate and consistency.

Chelsea’s midfield will be next to impossible to handle on both sides of the ball with Hazard, Oscar, Willian, Fabregas, Cuadrado and Matic.

Granit Xhaka (Arsenal)

A 35 million pound move from German side Borussia Monchengladbach overseen by Arsene Wenger will pair Swiss star Granit Xhaka with Mesut Ozil in the middle of midfield for the Gunners.

Xhaka’s commitment to defense and vision on and off the ball makes him one of the better midfielders in the league. Though this a good move, Arsenal is still in desperate need of a world-class striker if they want to compete for titles once again.

Sadio Mane & Georginio Wijnaldum (Liverpool)

 A quick attacker, Sadio Mane is no stranger to the premier league. Mane has played for Southampton for the last few years and proved to be a dangerous man in the final third. Liverpool has been searching for the right playmakers in the final third ever since Luis Suarez’s exit to Barcelona.

Wijnaldum exits Newcastle United after their poor season ending in relegation to the English Championship. The team’s best/most creative player is a dynamic threat at attacking midfield and will also improve Liverpool’s attacking game. Without his Netherlands team in the recent Euro tournament, we have not seen Wijnaldum play since last season so it will be interesting to see his premier league return.

Victor Wanyama (Spurs)

The Spurs solidify their defensive midfield by adding Victor Wanyama next to Eric Dier. The 25-year-old Kenyan national team skipper is another player exiting the Southampton squad this summer. He is a stocky box-to-box midfielder that will not be seen much on the stat sheet but deserves great recognition for his brick wall defensive plays and intelligent offensive display.

John Stones (Manchester City)

A young center back breaks the record for highest transfer fee for a defender with a 50 million pound deal from Everton to Manchester City. At only 22 years old, Stones is already one of the premier center backs in the league and maybe even the world. Thin and tall, he is a force to be reckoned with in the air and a smart defender in the first third of the field.

Managers

Pep Guardiola joins Manchester City from Bayern Munich and looks to improve on City’s 4th place finish last season. Guardiola was at Barcelona before leading the German Munich force to three titles.

Antonio Conte prepares himself to take over Chelsea after their worst finish in 20 years. With enough talent to never lose a game, Chelsea supporters hope it was their old manager Jose Mourinho losing the games and not the squad.

Speak of the devil; Red Devil that is! Jose Mourinho exits Chelsea to manage English rival Manchester United. Arrogant enough, Mourinho has a team of players that is nearly unstoppable so he might be raising the trophy with Wayne Rooney on the podium on May 21.

Burnley

Burnley is a club not very new to the premier league because they got relegated to the English championship from the premier league after the 2014-15 season. Back up after only one year in the second tier of British football and winning the league outright, gaining promotion, Andre Gray and Sam Vokes are the top players in the club looking to finish above the relegation zone. A side that was beat down on a lot when in the league two years ago, manager Sean Dyche wishes to keep Burnley a premier league club.

Hull City

The Tigers also have been up and down between the premier league and championship in the last few years. Out of the three teams being promoted, this is the club that has the most firepower going forward. Leading goalscorer Abel Hernandez is fast, strong and knows how to finish in front of net after tagging 20 goals last year. Tom Huddlestone and Robert Snodgrass are household names across the Atlantic being players who have bounced around the premier league and also have made international headlines.

Middlesborough

With no real danger man up leading the goal tally heavily, Middlesborough won promotion with a widespread of goal scorers. The most notable player in the club is Gaston Ramirez. A Uruguayan attacking midfielder that used to be one of the best in the premier league with Southampton is back in the league and searching for a better season than last year’s seven goals. New transfers Brad Guzan (USA) and Victor Valdes (Spain) will help solidify some backup in the goal.

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