July Transfer Window Review

With less than a month away until the Barclays Premier League is back up and running, we take a look at some of the dramatic transfers that have taken place in this years spectacular transfer window.

1st of July 2015, Nathaniel Clyne Southampton - Liverpool, £12.5m.

Nathaniel Clyne said he was 'delighted' to sign for The Reds.

The month of July started with a crucial signing for Liverpool, and a great loss to Southampton as their star right-back Nathaniel Clyne joined Liverpool on a five-year deal. 

The Reds were in desperate need of a new full-back, as inconsistent performances from the likes of Glen Johnson and Alberto Moreno, and also injuries to Jon Flanagan meant that Liverpool were in desperate need of a strong right-back. Fortunately, this season they will have that through the signing of Clyne. 

The 24 year olds former manager at Crystal Palace, Neil Warnock, described Clyne as "the best defensive right-back in England currently" when speaking to the BBC.

13th of July 2015, Morgan Schneiderlin Southampton - Manchester United £25m.

Schneiderlin says he wants to 'win everything' at United.

It was not only Clyne who was a great loss to Southampton in July, as Morgan Schneiderlin also left the Saints to join The Reds, but in this case it was The Red Devils. The 25 year old French midfielder spent seven years at Southampton, specifically shining in the 12/13 and 13/14 season. 

In the 12/13 season, Schneiderlin was credited for the most tackles, interceptions and highest work rate in the Premier League. This ultimately meant that he had established himself as one of the best midfielders in England, and is why he was under so much interest from clubs such as Manchester United, Arsenal and Spurs. 

However, it is United where Schneiderlin will play next season, and he will be a key part of Louis Van Gaal's rebuilding plan.

17th of July 2015, Fabian Delph Aston Villa - Manchester City £8m

Manchester City sign Villa captain Delph for £8m.

Less than a week after Fabian Delph stating that he was staying at Aston Villa this season, he signed a five year deal at Manchester City. This controversial signing of Villa's captain has left him on bad terms with a lot of Villa fans. As only several days before signing for The Blues, the 25 year old England international released this statement. "I'm staying at the football club (Aston Villa) and I can't wait for the start of the Premier League season."

Delph will certainly have to work hard at City if he aims to achieve a first-team place. With the likes of Yaya Toure and David Silva regularly starting, Delph will defiantly be second choice.

Latest Premier League Transfers

Micah Richards has just signed a four-year deal with Villa.

Starting with FA Cup runners up, Aston Villa, who have just announced on their Twitter page that they have signed former Manchester City full back, Micah Richards, on a four-year deal.

The 26 year old, whose injuries have dismantled his career, could play ahead of, or act as back up, to the likes of Alan Hutton and Aly Sissokho, who where somewhat incosistent last season for the Villans.

Falcao struggled to make an impact at United last year.

Premier League champions, Chelsea, have almost completed the loan signing of Radamel Falcao, who didn't live up to his great expectations at Old Trafford last year. The 29 year old Colombian, only scored four goals in 29 appearances for the Red Devils last year, which certainly did not make up for his extravagnat salary which he was being paid (£265,000 a week.)

However, the Blues are confident they can turn Falcao back into the form he was in at Atletico Madrid. With Jose Mourinho recently stating in a interview with DirecTV Sports,"If I can help Falcao reach his level again, I will do it."

Sterling is one of City's top transfer targets.

Finally, the race for Raheem Sterling is still ongoing, with Manchester City being the favorites to sign the youngster. They have now upped their offer to a great £40m for the 20 year old, but Liverpool have not announced any interest in selling him.

Sterling, who has been in the media for all the wrong reasons in the past year, is likely to stay at the Reds, unless City raise their offer to £50m.

Spurs Say Bye to Nine!

Tottenham are looking to get rid as many as nine of their players in this summer's transfer window, many of them who signed back in 2013 after Gareth Bale's depature.

The players that Spurs are looking to offload are as follows: Roberto Soldado, Emmanuel Adebayor, Younes Kaboul (who is their current captain), Vlad Chiriches, Etienne Capoue, Mousa Dembele, Aaron Lennon and Benjamin Stambouli.

Spurs have apparently already agreed a £4.3m deal for Kevin Wimmer.

Most of these players first team places have been taken by Tottenham's young academy players who have came through the ranks, such as Harry Kane, Nabil Bentaleb and Andros Townsend. The total cost of all these player cost Tottenham a great £90m, and that is just transfer fees, not including wages.

If Spurs do offload the majority of these rushed transfers, they will certainly be losing at least 50% of what they spent, with none of these signings reaching any form of potential at Tottenham, their transfer value will be cut exponentially. Replacements have already been mentioned though, names like Kevin Wimmer (who has apparently already signed for the North London club), Kevin Mirallas, Christian Benteke and James Mccarthy.

Spurs will have to do some convincing if they want to sign those players though, as there inconsistent season proves to be an push factor for any players they want to sign.

North London Derby: Match Review

Due to both Spurs and Arsenal being in great form in the build up to this fixture, it was destined to be a thrilling match-up. Arsenal came in to this game on the back of a brilliant 5-0 walkover against the struggling Aston Villa, and they proved to their doubters they were not a one man team, as star man Alexis Sanchez was out with a hamstring injury. On the other hand, Spurs last fixture saw them cruise over West Brom at the Hawthornes. With a great free kick in the opening minutes from Christian Eriksen, and a brace from the in-form Harry Kane lead them to a 3-0 victory.

Kane heads in the winner for Tottenham

Both teams looked bright in the opening minutes at White Hart Lane. It was obvious that Arsenal had a game plan to sit deep, invite pressure on themselves and let Spurs come forward with the ball, this which worked against Manchester City, also the opposite of what they did against Spurs in previous years. However, this game plan seemed to work as in the 11th minute Arsenal broke and a great cross from Danny Welbeck fell to a Oliver Giroud whose miss-hit fed Mesut Ozil, and he calmly slotted in the opener.

After the break Spurs continued to trouble Arsenal's defence, with David Ospina making some outstanding stops, it looked like it wasn't going to be Tottenham's Day. This was until the 54th minute, Spurs had a corner which Ospina spilled and Kane was there to slot it in at the back post and equalize, a typical poachers goal. Following this the Lily Whites had a period of constant shots at Ospina which shook up the Arsenal defence and really 'spurred Spurs' on to take the lead. Arsenal did have their chances though, with Danny Welbeck forcing a great save out of Frenchman Hugo Lloris, and Laurent Koscielny heading it straight into Lloris' arms from a corner. However, Spurs left it late to take the lead as in the 86th minute, a great ball from Nabil Bentaleb met Harry Kane's head and he exquisitely guided it in to the top left corner, leaving Ospina helpless.

It was a outstanding performance by Tottenham, and Arsenal will be dissapointed with themselves as they never looked like the better team throuhgout the whole 90 minutes. This win puts Spurs a point above their North London rivals, and will help them drastically if they aim to achieve that top 4 finish at the end of this unpredictable season.

Transfer Deadline Day Round-Up

Although this year's transfer deadline day did not live up to its expectations of which it recieved, it certainly was not a boring day for Premier League clubs. There were a lot of last minute negotiations which did and didnt go as planned for certain teams, for example Emmanuel Adebayor's move to West Ham which was blocked by Spurs Chairman, Daniel Levy.

Juan Cuadrado completes his £23.3m signing to Chelsea

Before all the drama, we will start with the main signing of this year's transfer deadline day, Juan Cuadrado's £23.3m pound move from Fiorentina to Chelsea. This transfer had been on the cards for a while before deadline day, as the Colombian international uploaded a photo twitter of him at Stamford Bridge captioned "Hello, from the Bridge", which sent the Chelsea fans on social media bezerk. Cuadrado will ironically wear the number 23 shirt for the Blues, and he is certainly set to be a fan favourite with his silky footwork and exquisite first touch.

However, the arrival of Cuadrado meant the departure of Chelsea winger, Andre Schurrle. The German World Cup winner did not see anywhere near as much playing time as he would of liked for the Blues, and with the signing of Juan Cuadrado, it was inevitable that he was going to leave. The 24 year old coincidentally signed for Wolfsburg for £24m pounds. There are high expectations for Schurrle following his expensive transfer, but he has proven for his club and also country that he has what it takes to peform at the best level, following his great performances for Germany in last year's World Cup.

Other deals in the Premier League included Aaron Lennon's loan deal from Spurs to Everton, which I think is a great signing by Everton as they need a bit more pace and creativity in their team and Lennon can give them this. Southampton signed Serbian international Filip Durjicic on loan from Benfica, and they also completed the permenant signing of Ryan Bertrand who has been a regular starter for the Saints.

Transfer News: Hernandez to make a Old Trafford return?

Could Benzema be set for a Bernabeu exit?

Due to the poor form of Mario Balotelli and the absence of Daniel Sturridge, it looks like Liverpool could be set to bolster their attack. According to the Daily Mirror, Liverpool are set to place a £38m bid for Real Madrid forward, Karim Benzema. The Frenchman has been in great form for Madrid this season, with 14 goals under his belt and several assists. Considering that Benzema moved to Real for £30m back in 2009, and Liverpool are in desperate need of a striker, I think that Real will demand more than the £38m offer for the French international. This is also because Benzema is Real Madrid's only natural striker apart from Javier Hernandez, and with him being set for a Old Trafford return, Madrid will certainly not want to offload their main striker for a cheap price. I think that the signing of Benzema could be a turning point in Liverpool's season. What they have lacked is a consistent, reliable forward that can not only score goals, but create them too, and the signing of Benzema will fulfill these aspects.

Reports from the Daily Express show that Chelsea have offered £23m for Fiorentina's Jean Cuadrado. Although Jose Mourinho has recently said that he is 'happy' with his current Chelsea squad, it is understood that the Blues have shown great interest in the Fiorentina winger. Cuadrado, who shone in in last years World Cup for Colombia is a tricky, pacey and versatile winger. There are rumours that if Cuadrado does join Chelsea, then Fiorentina boss Vincenzo Montella will leave the club. This shows how influental Cuadrado is for Fiorentina, which may mean that Chelsea may have to up their bids if they really want the creative Colombian. Chelsea have turned to Shakhtar Dontesk's Douglas Costa as a backup plan if this deal does not go through, but that deal also looks wayward as Donetsk demand £30m where as Chelsea have only offered £20m.

Premier League Preview: Champions Manchester City take on Arsenal.

Match Preview: With these two teams having a bit of tense history between each other, this fixture will certainly be a belter. Arsenal will be heavily relying on their star man of the season, Alexis Sanchez, to do the deeds against the Champions. The Chilean maestro has been involved in more Premier League goals then any other player this season, 19. Racking up a total of 12 goals and 7 assists. In comes City's genius though, David Silva, who has been prolific for City whilst their main strikers have all been absent in their previous matches. It will be throughly entertaining to watch these two magicians work their magic tommorow.

Alexis Sanchez has been in outstanding form for Arsenal this season.

Although it is obvious that both teams can put the ball in the back of the net, it is also quite evident that they are condeding goals too. Both Arsenal and City have only had one clean sheet in their last five matches, which shows that tommorow's fixture could be a goal fest. The chance of this is also enhanced by the return of Sergio Aguero, who now looks to be fully fit so this means he could feature from the start tommorow. The Argentinian has been out for 6 weeks, but he is still 2nd top goalscorer in the Premier League. This just shows how lethal Aguero is infront of goal and he could really cause Arsenal some problems tommorow, like he did in this fixture last year when Arsenal were humilated 6-2 by the Champions.

Prediciton: Don't get me wrong, Sanchez has been single-handly winning Arsenal games all season, but I don't think that this will be the case tommorow. Yes, City's defence may not as been as strong as it has been in previous times, but what they don't have in defensive power, they make up for in the attack. Unbeaten in their last 12 matches, City certainly look the favourites for this match up. I think that Aguero and Silva will have too much pace and skill for the somewhat 'dodgy' Mertesacker and this will be the downfall to Arsenal's loss. I am going for a 3-1 win to City in this fixture, which is only a fraction to what the result was last year!