Another summer of big spending in the Premier League means inevitably means there will be transfer successes and flops.
As teams try to improve their lot or replace players that have left for new pastures, there are always risks attached with bringing in fresh faces. Some new arrivals may start out well and then tail off or take a while to bed in.
Which clubs look to have done risky deals and who are the players they have taken a punt on? We look at four examples as the 2018/19 season kicks off…
Riyad Mahrez (Manchester City)
You might think describing a former PFA Player of the Year in Riyad Mahrez as a risky signing for reigning Premier League champions Manchester City, who are hot football betting favourites to retain their title at 4/6 with bet365, is bold. Ask yourself this, though; was it worth paying £60 million for the Algeria international when it’s going to take a lot for him just to break into the Etihad XI?
Money is no object for the mega-rich Middle Eastern owners of City, so Pep Guardiola has extra depth in attacking areas where there is already so much talent at his disposal. Mahrez may regret leaving Leicester City – who are certainly weakened without him – especially if he ends up on the bench at his new club, because the likes of Kevin De Buryne, Leroy Sane, David Silva and Raheem Sterling continue to perform.
Max Meyer( Crystal Palace)
As a highly-rated Schalke academy graduate, Max Meyer let his contract expire at the Gelsenkirchen club and left the Bundesliga this summer joining Crystal Palace on a free. Reports claim Meyer is on massive wages of £170,000 per week for his three-year contract at Selhurst Park which, although good for him and seemingly a coup for Roy Hodgson, is worth closer inspection.
Why haven’t the top clubs around Europe signed this midfield player who has been so promising since breaking through as a teenager ar Schalke? Meyer has scored just one Bundesliga goal in the last two seasons and made three assists, so should we believe the hype? It’s actually a monster gamble from the Eagles and veteran manager Hodgson.
Richarlison (Everton)
There’s no doubt new Everton boss Marco Silva brought the best out of top Brazilian prospect Richarlison in his debut Premier League campaign last season before Watford sacked him. The Toffees’ interest in the Portuguese coach seem to destabilise everything at Vicarage Road, however, when Ronald Koeman was axed on Merseyside last autumn.
Richarlison played every league game for the Hornets, but scored all five of his league goals (and made all but one of as many assists) in the first 13 matches of the season. That means he simply wasn’t doing it on the pitch for two-thirds of the campaign and Everton, who signed him in a deal potentially worth £50,000,000 and are chasing a top-six finish at 7/2, cannot afford to carry passengers on the wing.
Jack Wilshere (West Ham)
Anyone who has paid attention to the Premier League in recent years knows why this is risky. Jack Wilshere’s career has been hampered by injuries; so, even though he left Arsenal for London rivals West Ham on a free transfer, he’ll always have fitness question marks hanging over him.
What new Hammers boss Manuel Pellegrini has to do is get the England midfielder to put a run of games together. If he can keep Wilshere off the treatment table and in his XI, then this could be a great signing, but doing that is far easier said than done, so this is a definite gamble.
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