West Ham, Reading, and Southampton, the three promoted sides have not been shy so far this transfer window.
Surviving in the Premier League is no easy task, just ask Wolves, Blackburn, and Bolton, the three sides relegated from England’s top division in May.
What was notable about the three was that they included none of the previous year’s promoted sides, the first time it had happened in 10 years.
Norwich, Swansea, and by the skin of their teeth, QPR, all survived, and already it is looking like this year’s new boys are leaving nothing to chance.
West Ham, Southampton and Reading all of course have recent Premier League experience, and sizeable fanbases, and all three know what it takes to survive, as well as fail.
So far the new boys have been among the busiest in the transfer market, snapping up bargains and spending when required too. Here’s a look at their acquisitions so far…
Southampton:
Jay Rodriguez – £6.5 million, Nathaniel Clyne – undisclosed
Reading:
Adrian Mariappa – £3 million, Gareth McCleary – Free, Pavel Pogrebnyak – Free, Danny Guthrie – Free, Chris Gunter – £2.3 million, Nicky Shorey – Free.
West Ham:
Mohammed Diame – Free, Modibo Maiga – £5 million, Jussi Jaaskelainen – Free, George McCartney – Undisclosed.
Clearly, for all three, scoring goals is going to be a priority – but each have taken differing routes to tackle this. Reading have taken perhaps the best route, snapping up Russian international Pavel Pogrebnyak on a free transfer.
The wages they are paying him may be high, but it will be well worth it if he can replicate the form he showed for Fulham on loan last season. While too soon to say he is proven, in the Premier League, he represents less of a gamble than the men brought in by their rivals.
West Ham have dipped into France’s Ligue One to sign Modibo Maiga from Sochaux. Targeted by Newcastle in January, he is clearly no slouch, but just how much to expect from him we remain unsure of.
Another unproven striker in the top division is Southampton striker Jay Rodriguez. The 22-year-old signs from Burnley for a fee of £6.5 million. Having watched him in the Championship I can vouch that he is clearly a top talent, but the step up to the Premier League can be a tough one for young strikers, just look at Connor Wickham at Sunderland last season.
Southampton’s addition of Nathaniel Clyne is an excellent addition, the right-back is a future England international in the making, and teams including Manchester United were linked with his signature. Reading’s signings of Adrian Mariappa and Chris Gunter will both have to prove they belong at the top level, but are at the stage of their careers where both were outgrowing the Championship and the challenge of a move was what they needed in their careers.
There have been more shrewd free additions to Pogrebnyak, Reading’s signing of Danny Guthrie and West Ham’s Mohammed Diame are the best, two solid midfield players who are hard working and won’t let their clubs down, most importantly they bring crucial Premier League experience.
So what next? Don’t count on it being the end either, despite Reading indicating they were going to relax their search for new players. When the ‘top teams’ return from their pre-season tours and complete their deals, they will start to turn towards thoughts of loaning out young and fringe players.
There will be bargains to be had, as well as the usual flurry of deals on transfer deadline day, the activity is far from over yet. All three will be very competitive next season, and will push their battles all season.
We expect each of the three to pick up some significant scalps over the season ahead, and be intelligent and talented additions to the league. Don’t bet against all three promoted sides surviving for a second year in succession.
image: © joncandy
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