FPL New Arrivals Analysed – Deadline Day Special

Whether because of the enormous volume of business that was done, or the increased torrent of rumous/news/clickbait nonsense, this felt like a very long transfer window. It’s finally ‘slammed shut’ though, as Sky Sport likes to say, and we can get down to focusing on – y’know – football. 

Fantasy Premier League has seen a tidal wave of new arrivals, with very few major departures. You already know about the big names who got here earlier in the summer (Haaland, Núñez, etc.) and the ones who changed clubs (Sterling, Jesus, and so on). 

Now though, it’s time to get stuck into the newest Fantasy Premier League transfers. The ones, in short, that have been made several weeks into your FPL season. Below, we’ve looked at seven of the most important Fantasy Premier League players to arrive in or around transfer deadline day.

 

Aubameyang – Chelsea – 9.0

Let’s get the ball rolling with the biggest name. After a half-season stint at the Camp Nou, Auba is back in London. 

The question, of course, is which Auba we’re going to get. I watched plenty of him on TV in the first half of last season, and plenty of him in-person in the second half. 

Arsenal Auba looked completely disinterested, and well on his way to being washed-up. His production cratered after the well-reported new contract, down to 10 goals in 29 games in 20/21, and a mere four goals in 14 games in 21/22, before he headed south. 

In Barcelona, he suddenly became Auba again! He managed 11 goals in 17 games there, breaking the record for most goals scored by a La Liga January arrival. He passed the eye test too, looking sharper, snaffling up chances, and generally doing Auba things. 

I’m completely torn as to which Aubameyang will show up at Stamford Bridge. There’s no doubt the long-term rift with Arteta made his Arsenal experience a lot less fun. Tuchel knows Auba and likes him, so that solves that problem. 

I will say, however, that the system at Barcelona was set up perfectly for him, with three brilliant progressive passers in central midfield at any given moment, and the brilliant Dembele providing incredible service from the right wing. Chelsea don’t have that level of creativity. In addition, Tuchel’s system simply hasn’t lent itself to success for strikers. Both Havertz and Lukaku have banged in plenty of goals elsewhere, then struggled up top for Chelsea. 

The price point is fair, although – since you already have Haaland and Jesus – it might take a (Salah-shaped) rejigging of your squad to get Auba in too. For now though, mostly thanks to concerns about the system, this is a wait and see, but with significant interest. 

 

Antony – Man United – 7.5

The most annoying transfer saga of the summer came to a close late in August, when Man U finally got their man. 

The fee for Antony was a staggering £80-85million, making him one of the most expensive players in Premier League history. The track record of these mega-money moves to the EPL is… not great:

 

 

Of those 10, only van Dijk could be described as an unmitigated success. All the others either flopped, or are yet to live up to expectations – including all of Man U’s entries on this list. 

The point is, there’s no correlation whatsoever between spending a ton of money on a player, and them being successful in the Premier League. Nor – as well-documented – do Eredivisie stats necessarily translate to the Prem. 

Man U have looked a lot better in the last few games, and – if Antony pops – he’s obviously great value at 7.5. This is the absolute definition of a wait and see, however.

 

Isak – Newcastle – 7.0

I’ve seen Isak plenty of times on TV over the past couple of seasons, and once in-person when Sociedad came to Barcelona. I think he’s absolutely fantastic, and was very disappointed indeed when Arsenal didn’t sign him last January (Jesus has since proved to be a decent consolation). 

Isak is tall, fast, confident, aggressive, and a surprisingly good dribbler considering his lanky frame. Yes, his numbers dropped massively between 20-21 and 21-22, from 17 league goals to six. But Sociedad had a ton of injuries to their main creative players, which resulted in the entire team going off the boil – after a fast start – as the season drew on. 

Despite middling results, Newcastle have definitely passed the eye test so far. Wilson is injured, giving Isak a straight-run at the starting striker job, and he already smashed one in against Liverpool in his first game. 

Isak’s price is also fantastic, putting him right around the Mitrovic (6.8) / Toney (7.1) bracket. He’s slightly behind Mitro in that trio for me, but – as a Toney owner – I’d much rather have him than Ivan-the-not-so-Terrible. I love Isak, and he’s the most exciting FPL arrival on this list for me.

 

Paquetá – West Ham – 6.0

This was definitely one of the most fun late arrivals in the transfer window. 

To be clear I’ve never seen him play, but the French football experts I follow seem to love watching him. It remains to be seen how his reputation for flicks and tricks goes down with the meat-and-potatoes David Moyes approach. He put up nice numbers in Ligue 1 last year though (nine goals, six assists), and – judging by how desperate they were to get him – you’d expect West Ham to start Paquetá very soon. 

The ghost of Felipe Anderson looms large over this transfer. He’s nice and cheap though, and – in Bowen, Scamacca, Antonio, and Benrahma – has plenty of skilful attacking players to link up with. If Paquetá hits the ground running, he’ll be a popular wild card pick in several weeks’ time.

 

Kalajdžić – Wolves – 5.5

This one is very, very intriguing. The cliché that Wolves have so many good attacking players, but no focal point, has been repeated ad nauseam. That doesn’t mean that it’s wrong though, and – with Sasa Kalajdžić – they finally have a replacement for the declining Jiménez. 

As you’ve probably heard, Kalajdžić is enormous. He’s 6ft7in tall, but has a reputation for – say it with me – having ‘good feet for a big man’. His goalscoring record has been solid over the past two years as well, with six goals in 15 games in 21-22, and 16 goals (plus five assists) in 33 games in 20-21. 

The fit, on paper, looks perfect. Guedes, Neto et al are all great, and have been crying out for just this kind of striker to knit it all together. If Kalajdžić gets off to a good start, and looks like the new Jiménez, he’ll be very, very tempting at a mere 5.5.

 

Arthur Melo – Liverpool – 5.0

Meh. 

I watched Arthur quite a few times when he was at Barcelona. He’s fine. He’s tidy. He gets and gives, and doesn’t give the ball away. 

He also doesn’t really make things happen though. He’s also had 10 mid-to-serious injuries since getting to Europe in November 2018, and already missed time this season with ankle problems, making him an… interesting solution to Liverpool’s injury problems in midfield. 

I’m sure he’ll get minutes in the short term, but I doubt he’ll do much with them. Even as a cheap starter for Liverpool, I’m not interested in Arthur.

 

Manuel Akanji – Man City – 5.0

A not-very-serious injury to Aymerick Laporte left poor Man City desperately short in central defence. 

Faced with the prospect of struggling by with only Ruben Dias, John Stones, and Nathan Ake (combined outlay – around £150m) for a whole month, they desperately needed to dive into the transfer market and relieve Borussia Dortmund of their starting centre-back. 

Welcome to The Ake Life, Manuel Akanji. Enjoy your spot on City’s bench this season – maybe between Kalvin Philips (£42m) and Jack Grealish (£100m) – and your Premier League winner’s medal next spring!

(Reluctant FPL Analysis: yes he’s cheap, but you’ll never be able to tell when he’s actually starting. Avoid.)

 

Bonus – Nottingham Forest Transfer Army

I can’t even. 

 

Moving Forward

Annoyingly, after being starved of forward options for years now, we’ve got way, way too many options and not enough spots.

As noted, you’ve got Haaland and Jesus already. Based on the quality of the position this year, I’d recommend starting a third forward. Mitrovic is the best option right now, and still offers great value despite the price rises. If Auba carries on his Barcelona form, it might be time to go all-guns-blazing and have three top strikers in your team. I’m very excited for Isak, who’s already off to a good start, and Kalajdžić could be a great budget option at 5.5. 

Don’t get caught up in the Antony hype. Both him and Paquetá are wait-and-sees until we’ve got more info. 

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