We’ve reached a point in European football where the Premier League has by far the biggest spending power among the big five leagues. It had been a gradual push in the 21st century, before the COVID-19 pandemic truly solidified things. Ultimately, Premier League clubs were able to power through despite the loss of income from having no fans in the stands due to their massive TV deal, which wasn’t the same case elsewhere in Europe. Even with a stagnation in domestic TV money from the latest contract, they are still set up better than the other major European leagues (especially when also accounting for international rights).

The behavior of recently promoted clubs is an example of how much things have changed. Sunderland have forked over around £100 million in the hopes of avoiding relegation, which follows what happened with Ipswich Town last summer. Beyond that, promoted and lower-tier clubs can also acquire heralded young prospects from historic clubs outside of England, as seen with Southampton acquiring Mateus Fernandes last summer from Sporting CP. This distortion has led to claims that the Premier League is actually a Super League in all but name, though that’s a discussion for another time.

Given how much Premier League clubs can spend these days, there are bound to be some transfers to pique people’s curiosity, and that is the genesis of this piece. We’re going to be looking at the five most intriguing transfers, in this writer’s humble opinion, heading into the 2025-26 season. Five of them will be discussed, in ascending order from last year’s standings, starting with one of the promoted clubs in their return to the English top flight after a two-year absence.

The past two seasons have seen promoted clubs from the Championship get relegated immediately after a season in the Premier League. Luton Town (18th) finished six points behind Nottingham Forest (17th) in 2023-24, and that was after a four-point deduction for breaching financial regulations. In the past season, the gap between 17th (Tottenham) and 18th (Leicester City) was 13 points. The average points accumulated by promoted sides has sunk to levels not seen in the Premier League era and with the financial gap continuing to grow, this trend may well continue.

As a result, promoted clubs need to sign defenders and midfielders who can handle defending a ton in their own third against established Premier League teams that will have a talent advantage. In that case, it’s not hard to see why Leeds United have acquired Anton Stach from Hoffenheim. He’s been a defensive stalwart for quite some time in the Bundesliga with Mainz. He actually played higher up the pitch during his younger years, before settling into a sitting role where he can do more of the dirty work defensively.

At 6-foot-4, Stach’s size certainly helps amplify his defensive capabilities. In combination with his positional sense, his ground coverage was impressive in the Bundesliga. He showed consistent ball-winning technique, with FBRef having him in the 95th percentile among Bundesliga central midfielders in percentage of dribblers tackled. Being really tall also helps with winning aerial duels in his own third. Despite the prodigious defensive output (90th percentile for tackles plus interceptions per 90), he is more conservative with his positioning than others who play his position. Rather than gamble on trying to box the opponent deep in their own third in certain situations, he retreats back to try and cover space for potential counter attacks.

His defensive action map shows a busy midfielder, although it’s partly influenced by him playing a ton of the first half of the 2024-25 season at center back.

Stach’s strengths lie more on the defensive side rather than going forward, but he’s not a lost cause. He shows awareness of knowing where to be in trying to tie together buildup sequences, although his play with his back to goal isn’t always smooth. He possesses long strides as a progressive carrier, which is a useful trait to have. While active at looking to switch the play, there are occasional attempts where he puts too much loft on the ball and gives opponents more time to reorganize. I also think that despite being in the 70th percentile or higher for passes into the final third and penalty box, you’ll find instances of him recycling possession rather than attempting a high value pass to open up a set defense.

There are questions about how scalable Stach’s skill set is for a club that hopes to dominate possession and has big aspirations in the short-term. However, his profile works for Leeds and arguably gives them a chance at survival. In addition to acquiring him, the signing of goalkeeper Lucas Perri from Olympique Lyonnais allows them a better opportunity to win those battles more often in their own third and penalty box.

If Leeds’ stay in the Premier League is longer than this season, Stach will likely have a major say in that.

For many years, it’s been an Everton tradition to employ a physical striker who causes headaches for opposing center backs, a practice dating back to the days of Duncan Ferguson in the 1990s and 2000s. In more recent seasons, Dominic Calvert-Lewin was a mobile target man with an interesting skill-set, but couldn’t quite put it all together consistently during his time with the club. Beto was signed from Udinese in the summer of 2023 as another attempt of finding a physical striker, but the jury is still out on him.

The hope is that Thierno Barry can eventually grow into being the kind of No.9 who regularly creates mismatches in different scenarios and opens up space for others. It’s especially true given he’ll be playing under David Moyes, whose teams have tended to have less possession in the final third. Such a player would be useful given how anemic Everton’s goal output has been in open play over the years.

The stat below shows where the club has ranked in the PL for open-play goals scored over the past five seasons, as the last time Everton finished 10th or above for goals scored in open play was the 2018-19 season:

2019-20: 11th
– 2020-21: T-11th
– 2021-22: T-15th
– 2022-23: 18th
– 2023-24: T-19th
– 2024-25: T-18th

The appeal of Barry is rather clear, as another in an increasingly growing line of big, physical strikers plying their trade in the Premier League. At a listed 6-foot-5 with a strong frame, he is more than willing to initiate contact with opposing CBs and can be a handful to deal with. However, so far his link-up play is a mixed bag, though headed flick-ons are a strength, shown by him being in the 83rd percentile for aerial wins per 90 and 98th in percentage of aerials won according to FBref.

It is a different story when it comes to receiving ground passes. Barry’s touch was inconsistent last season with Villarreal; there was too much weight on them while playing with his back to goal as teammates were trying to make off-ball runs around him. He did prove to be a more capable carrier of the ball than his stature would suggest, ranking in the 76th percentile among LaLiga strikers for both carries into the final third and carries into the box, per FBref.

Barry’s movement is the swing skill for how good he can be. The league he’s coming from provides at least a bit of promise for it translating to English football. LaLiga has long been a good platform where young strikers could get valuable experience and learn the trade. In part due to how tight defenses tend to be in Spanish football, this helps mold forwards to become more prolific off the ball since space is at a premium. His physicality certainly helps, but he’s also shown flashes of cerebral off-ball cuts in the box. In addition to hunting for channel runs in behind, he’ll show the willingness to try and work the blindside of defenders so he can crash either posts. The end result is a very healthy shot chart, with a ton of high quality chances:

Barry’s career has seen almost linear growth so far. He moved from the second division of Belgian football (SK Beveren) to FC Basel in the Swiss Super League. Villarreal acquired him last summer for €14 million, and he produced 15 goals and assists in his lone season in La Liga. If he continues at the pace he’s shown so far, the transfer fee Everton paid (€35m + add-ons) will look like a bargain.

Brighton’s reputation as a shrewd operator in the transfer market has long been established. During their initial rise, it was largely due to low-risk, calculated bets on young players who had intriguing data profiles in smaller leagues across different continents. The past couple of years saw the Seagulls be more aggressive with their recruitment, routinely spending €30 million or more on transfer fees for prospects in the hope of finding talents who can make an impact in the not-too-distant future and eventually net a massive financial fee.

De Cuyper differs a bit in that at 24, he’s already entering his prime years and his acquisition leans more towards immediate production than future return.

The creative numbers jump out. He led the Belgian Pro League in total key passes among defenders last season with 68 — 28 more than the two next highest (Bryan Reynolds, Gary Magnée). Among all players, De Cuyper was third behind Adem Zorgane (78) and Jarne Steuckers (91). Some of this was due to him being the regular set-piece taker for Club Brugge: Only Dogucan Haspolat generated more shot creating actions (the two offensive actions directly leading to a shot, such as passes, take-ons and drawing fouls) from dead-ball passes than De Cuyper via FBref.

A theme with the majority of the players on this list is the importance of off-ball movement, and De Cuyper is no different as he has a vast repertoire of runs to work with. He’ll try underlapping runs during buildup, third-man runs along the flank to get into the final third, or he’ll occupy the left flank and attempt diagonal cuts in behind against the grain of his opponent. His performance vs. Atalanta in the first leg of the Champions League knockout phase play-offs was a good example of the positives he can bring going forward. He was constantly finding himself in advantageous positions, helping Club Brugge bypass Atalanta’s noted man-to-man defensive structure.

Defensively, De Cuyper is inconsistent. He’s pretty good at knowing when to juggle different responsibilities in his own box when defending an opponent’s cross, including covering for a teammate. Higher up the pitch, however, the awareness is less present: he can be guilty of ball-watching and losing track of his marker, leading to opponents advancing down his flank. When defending in 1v1s, he can sometimes be guilty of overextending himself and giving an opening to his marker. His slight frame can also be taken advantage of during duels, where he tries to be physical with the opponent only to end up bouncing off of them and losing possession.

Acquiring De Cuyper gives Brighton another option at fullback to help juice their attack. Despite the talent on hand, they ended up middle of the pack in expected and non-penalty goals, but the variety in his movement could make the left-hand side truly stand out in the club’s second year under manager Fabian Hürzeler. If the defensive deficiencies can be kept to a manageable amount, De Cuyper could be another in a growing recent list of stealth signings.

It’s undeniable that clubs are shifting more of their financial resources towards younger players. The average age of players signed by Premier League clubs (weighted by transfer fees) has declined from around 25 in 2009-10 to 23 in 2025-26. You can understand why: if the younger player is a success, you either get a high-end young talent on the left end of the age curve who can be a mainstay for the club over several years, or someone who becomes valuable when it comes to raising funds through the transfer window.

However, the method has become so commonplace that it has led to price inflation, since it’s no longer the clever strategy it once was. As a result, there’s a possibility that guys in the age 24-26 cohort have become slightly undervalued.

At the extreme high case, you get an example like Liverpool, where their decade of excellence is due to hitting the jackpot on multiple early-peak players (Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mané, Mohamed Salah to name just three). While it’s unrealistic for other clubs to expect the same result, there is value to be had and Aston Villa are hoping Guessand, their newest summer signing, over-performs expectations considering the age profile of their squad and related issues with their standing according to the Premier League’s profitability and sustainability (PSR) rules.

The word that comes to mind when describing Guessand is “versatility.” During his time with OGC Nice, especially last season, it was common to see him operate across the front line in part due to how comfortable he was being a receiver between the lines. At times, it feels like the ball is stuck to his feet like Velcro, even against pressure. He compliments this with consistent scanning of his surroundings, and using his arms to gain leverage and space in which to operate. He’s good at knowing when to release a pass, even if it’s just simple passes out towards the flank. There’s a variety of passes he’ll use when facing forward, and he’s good at disguising his intentions to fake the defense.

Playing without the ball is also a strength. Guessand has multiple types of run in his repertoire, and he chooses them smartly. Even in the penalty box, he can fake his opponent one way before going the other like a seasoned striker.

Like with Barry, Guessand’s shot chart has a healthy distribution and he gets a ton of attempts down the middle. It is important to note, though, that he did over-perform his expected goal tally by a notable margin last season, which is hard to expect on a year-to-year basis.

There is a lot to like about Guessand from Aston Villa’s point of view. They acquired a really good attacking talent who can help improve their attack immediately, and he gives them flexibility with future squad planning (including being a sneaky choice as a potential Ollie Watkins replacement down the line). Tracking data paints him in a very positive light with his combination of off-ball running and penetrative passing. For a club who desperately needs Champions League qualification to balance their aggressive wage to turnover ratio, hitting on these types of moves is essential.

For someone in his early 20s, Cherki’s name had long been on the lips of fans and analysts alike. At age 16, he made his senior debut with Olympique Lyonnais in the 2019-20 season, an accomplishment that helped fuel the opinion of him being the best talent to come from Lyon’s academy since Karim Benzema. It’s high praise when you consider the academy graduates (Alexandre Lacazette, Nabil Fekir, Bradley Barcola, Malo Gusto, Pierre Kalulu) to have graduated since Benzema did in 2009.

There were flashes of stardom from Cherki in the years that followed, with the 2022-23 campaign being his true breakout (four goals, six assists in under 2,000 Ligue 1 minutes). After a downturn in 2023-24, last season was Cherki’s best yet, with eight goals and 11 assists — he was also second in Ligue 1 in total key passes, and first in expected assists. Over the past three seasons, he ranked 5th, 11th, and 12th in sequence involvements ending in a shot among Ligue 1 players with a minimum of 1,000 minutes played.

Put another way, few players matched Cherki across Europe when it came to getting his team into the opposition’s penalty box.

Who were the best BOX PENETRATORS in the Top 5 Leagues?

-Doku is an anomaly when it comes to box penetration.
-Cherki, best at passing it into the box, Haaland must be happy.
-Olise and Yamal also pass dominant.
-Barcola, bring him to LFC.
-Minteh, future Salah successor? pic.twitter.com/2IchJMkQEY

— Pranav (@pranav_m28) June 13, 2025

What makes Cherki such a fascinating player is that he plays at his own pace. You wouldn’t confuse him for being an elite straight-line athlete, but his ability to dictate tempo is already near masterful levels despite his young age. He can stop and start almost at will to get opponents on their heels, which makes him a tough player to cover in combination with being able to make almost every pass possible and being close to two-footed. To make a cross-sport comparison, he’s football’s answer to Luka Dončić in the NBA. Neither are elite athletes in the conventional sense, but their unique style of play has helped them be successful.

This past season showed improvements in Cherki’s efficiency, becoming a greater threat in terms of providing goals and assists — it’s notable that the 24-25 campaign was the first season in which his xG/shot was 10% or higher. He was also more aggressive getting into high-value zones off the ball in the final third through third-man runs (when a player moves off the ball into space after a teammate receives possession) and underlapping sprints toward the wide area of the box to juice his passing. There are still questions with his defensive work, though — it’s less to do with his intent, but more a reality of his slight frame.

Cherki’s spellbinding creativity will certainly be an asset to Man City, especially with the departure of Kevin De Bruyne to Napoli during the offseason. On the other hand, fitting Cherki into a functional defensive unit (especially one that looks to press) will be a challenge and could well influence where, and when, Guardiola plays him. This is especially pertinent given City’s defensive woes since winning the Treble in 2023.

How Pep Guardiola brings Cherki into the fold at both ends of the pitch will be one of the most interesting subplots of the 2025-26 Premier League season.