The 'here we go' is on hold, the 'bombas' are done and dusted and the window panes are reverberating after being forcefully closed on Tuesday night. Now comes the moment for new arrivals to make their mark on the pitch rather than the balance sheet. Throughout the Premier League era there have been hordes of transfer hits and misses, but today we're looking at those signings who proved game-changing for their club and the competition, the ones who really moved the needle.
I've ranked my top 10 below. You can have your say in the comments. You could make an argument for plenty of players who were left off this list.
Thierry Henry is probably the one quibbled over the most, Arsene Wenger turning him from misfiring winger to one of the generation's greatest forwards. But Arsenal had been champions 12 months before he arrived, and it took until Henry's third season for the Gunners to reclaim that crown. You could point to Cristiano Ronaldo, who won a Ballon d'Or at Manchester United, or Wayne Rooney, who became the club's record goalscorer.
But a teenage Ronaldo took time to bed in, while Rooney, despite a debut hat-trick in Europe, had to wait until his third season for a Premier League winners' medal. Then there's a plethora of Manchester City signings. Erling Haaland announced himself with 36 goals in 35 top-flight games but arrived in the middle of City's four-year title-winning streak.
Yaya Toure, Kevin de Bruyne and Rodri all had big impacts. However, the list can only be 10 names long. Petr Cech - Rennes to Chelsea, £7m, July 2004 Austrian goalkeeper Jurgen Macho was one of first faces through the door as the Roman Abramovich era began at Chelsea, arriving on a free transfer from Sunderland, only to tear his cruciate ligament and never play for the club.
A keeper signed the following summer would prove far more influential at Stamford Bridge. While prising Claude Makelele from Real Madrid's Galacticos was a huge statement - likewise Hernan Crespo from Inter Milan - Petr Cech was the wall on which back-to-back titles were built. Cech conceded only 15 goals in his debut league campaign, going on a run of 1,025 minutes without being beaten and ending the season with a record 24 clean sheets.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
