Ten Premier League transfers you may have missed during the Euros
By Ben Gray
Tosin Adarabioyo: Fulham to Chelsea- free transfer
It's set to be another summer of big spending at Chelsea, but the one incoming signing they've confirmed so far is a rather astute free transfer, certainly not in keeping with their recent strategy. Tosin Adarabioyo has arrived on a Bosman, after his contract with West London rivals Fulham expired.
Back in April, Tosin turned down an extension from the Cottagers, before seemingly set to move to Newcastle, as reported by Jacob Steinberg in the Guardian, until Chelsea swooped in and convinced him to sign a four-year deal at Stamford Bridge instead. The 26 year old centre-back bolsters the Blues' centre-back options, following the departure of Thiago Silva, but faces stiff competition for a starting spot, with Benoît Badiashile, Axel Disasi, Levi Colwill, Trevoh Chalobah and fit again Wesley Fofana also on the books.
Luis Guilherme: Palmeiras to West Ham United- £25.5 million
The biggest signing, in terms of transfer fee at least, of the summer so far has been made by West Ham United. Back in mid-June, the Hammers announced the arrival of Luis Guilherme from Brasileirão champions Palmeiras, with BBC Sport reporting that the fee is £25.5 million.
Guilherme is only 18 years old, but has made 45 senior appearances for Palmeiras, scoring his first goal for the Verdão against Independiente del Valle in the Copa Libertadores back in April, a 95th minute winner no less. He will add to the Irons' attacking options, as new manager Julen Lopetegui seeks to reshape this squad.
Rodrigo Gomes: Braga to Wolverhampton Wanderers- £12.7 million
This may shock you, but Wolverhampton Wanderers have gone shopping in Portugal, signing Rodrigo Gomes from Braga, with Jonathan Veal in the Independent reporting that the fee is £12.7 million. Gomes is a 20 year old, attack-minded right-back, who spent last season on loan at Estoril Praia, making 36 appearances and helping the Canaries to a 13th placed finish in the Primeira Liga. He becomes the third Gomes at Wolves, not be confused with namesakes João or Toti.
Lloyd Kelly: Bournemouth to Newcaslte United- free transfer
As alluded to earlier, Newcastle United missed out on Tosin Adarabioyo, but the Magpies have bolstered their back-line with Lloyd Kelly arriving on a free transfer after his contract at Bournemouth expired. He made 141 appearances across five seasons with the Cherries, initially signed by Eddie Howe back in 2019, the manager he'll be reunited with in the North East.
Kelly is a versatile defender, starting games at both left-back and centre-back last season, likely to see plenty of minutes in the later, given that Newcastle are still enduring a bit of a defensive injury crisis, with Sven Botman and Jamaal Lascelles both sidelined long-term.
Adam Lallana: Brighton & Hove Albion to Southampton- free transfer
A decade after departing for Liverpool, Adam Lallana is back at Southampton, switching one South Coast side for another, after his contract with Brighton & Hove Albion came to an end. Lallana initially joined the Saints as a 12 year old, making 265 senior appearances for the club before moving to Liverpool in 2014. More-recently, he appeared 30 times for Brighton last season, with the 36 year old now returning to St Mary's, adding some much-needed expirence to Russell Martin's squad who won promotion by winning the EFL Championship play-off final back in May.
Chadi Riad: Real Betis to Crystal Palace- £15 million
With Crystal Palace, potentially, losing star players this summer, they have made one big-money signing, providing supporters with some much-needed good news, as Chadi Riad has arrived from Real Betis; David Ornstein in the Athletic reports the fee is £15 million. The 21 year old Moroccan international spent last season on loan at Real Betis from Barcelona, making 30 appearances across all competitions. Los Verdiblancos had a mandatory €3 million obligation to buy included in this loan deal, so Betis will be delighted to have made a quick profit, even if a touch sad to lose a key starter. Riad is a left-footed centre-back, potentially foreshadowing the departure of Marc Guéhi, who's been sold for England at Euro 2024 and could command a gigantic fee.
Wes Foderingham: Sheffield United to West Ham United- free transfer
Turning our attention back to West Ham, the Irons have brought in goalkeeper Wes Foderingham from Sheffield United on a free transfer. The 33 year old made 30 Premier League appearances for the Blades last season, as they were relegated, shipping a whopping 79 goals across those matches. With Alphonse Areola and Łukasz Fabiański already at the club, it seems unlikely that all three will be needed next season, so could either of the two existing goalkeepers be on the move?
Eric da Silva Moreira: St Pauli to Nottingham Forest- £1.25 million
You didn't think we were going to go through a transfer round-up piece without mentioning Nottingham Forest did you? Since gaining promotion to the Premier League two years ago, Forest have made no fewer than 35 first-team signings, limiting themselves to just two so far, although it's still early. The most interesting of their aquisitions is Eric da Silva Moreira, an 18 year old winger from St. Pauli, for a fee Nnamdi Onyeagwara in the Athletic reports is £1.25 million. The teenager has made just one appearance for St. Pauli's senior team, a one minute cameo against Nürnberg in March, primarily featuring for their second team in the Regionalliga Nord, Germany's fourth-tier. Given his lack of expirence, da Silva Moreira will surely go out on loan.
Speaking of which, Forest's other signing so far this summer is Marko Stamenić, a 22 year old New Zealand international midfielder, arriving from Serbian champions Crvena zvezda for a fee of £4.6 million, as reported by Daniel Taylor in the Athletic. However, don't expect to see the Kiwi at the City Ground any time soon, given that he'll spend next season on loan at Olympiacos, a well-trodden path considering both are owned by Evangelos Marinakis.
Tim Iroegbunam: Aston Villa to Everton- £9 million
These last two transfers are very much intertwined, you'll see why shortly. First, Tim Iroegbunam has joined Everton from Aston Villa for a free that Chris Beesley in the Liverpool Echo reports is £9 million. The 20 year old defensive midfielder made 15 appearances for the Villans last season, albeit only three of these were starts, totalling a miserly 300 minutes. So why have cash-strapped Everton splashed out in a player with such little senior expirence?
Lewis Dobbin: Everton to Aston Villa- £9 million
Going in the opposite direction, from Everton to Aston Villa, is Lewis Dobbin for a fee of £9 million, as reported by Dan Roan in BBC Sport. Dobbin, who'd been with the Toffees since the age of 11, made only 20 senior appearances for the club, memorably scoring during a 2-0 victory over Chelsea at Goodison in December.
More interesting than the actual transfers themselves, on 27 June, the Premier League wrote to their 20 member clubs following a significant number of swap deals featuring players being sold above 'fair market valuation'. This appears to be the latest PSR loophole that clubs are exploiting to circumvent potential points penalties, with these young academy graduates being used as pawns, moved around for accounting rather than sporting reasons.