The halfway point of the Premier League season is fast approaching, and while many signings have failed to make notable impressions at their respective new clubs, we thought we'd highlight five stars who have had significant impact on their new teams.
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The English top flight is arguably the most competitive league in the world, so to join any side in it and make an immediate impact is a commendable achievement.
Spending big money does not always equate to success, and perhaps nobody knows that sentiment better than Chelsea at the moment. For the second straight off-season window, the Blues made a massive splash in the market, buying the likes of Christopher Nkunku and Moises Caicedo. However, it has been their €41 million (R829 million) deadline-day acquisition of Cole Palmer who has stepped up for the Pride of London this season.
Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko are examples that just because Pep Guardiola does not fancy you, it doesn't mean you aren't a quality player, and 21-year-old Palmer has continued that trend having moved to west London. The young attacker already has six goals and five assists in his first 16 matches as a Blue, culminating in his first senior England call-up, but outside of his goal contributions, his mentality has been impressive too.
Palmer has only just arrived at Stamford Bridge but can be seen holding his teammates to account. He can be seen advising legends such as Thiago Silva where to be on the pitch, or telling strikers such as Nicolas Jackson that there are still improvements that can be made to his game even after scoring a hat-trick against Tottenham Hotspur, and even displacing senior player Raheem Sterling for penalty duties.
Click through the gallery below to see Soccer Laduma's five most impactful signings in the Premier League so far this season:
He has been a shining light in what has otherwise been a torrid campaign for Mauricio Pochettino's men. The same cannot be said for another Englishman who has adapted well to life at his new club, though.
Declan Rice became Arsenal's biggest-ever acquisition when they paid West Ham United €116 million (R2.3 billion) for his services, but given his early performances, the Gunners may feel they have underpaid for the England international.
The Cobham alumni has been the best player for Mikel Arteta's side in this campaign, and has been allowed to show more of his attributes since arriving at the Emirates Stadium. All of his capabilities have been accentuated, especially his goalscoring ability, having bagged some massive strikes for his new team late on in games against the likes of Manchester United and Luton Town.
It's at the base of the midfield where he has shown his world-class quality, however. Receiving the ball in tight spaces, he has often showcased his long and short passing ability, continuously illustrating his knack for breaking opposition attacks up.
Players playing further forward on the pitch such as Jeremy Doku are judged by their goalscoring and assisting capabilities. The Belgian has taken no time in adapting to Pep Guardiola's system as his directness and willingness to take players on provides City with a unique dimension to their already prolific attack, an element that may have been lacking following the departure of Riyad Mahrez.
The European champions paid €60 million (R1.2 billion) for the 21-year-old's signature, but already the young attacker has seemingly displaced club record acquisition Jack Grealish from his starting position on the left wing.
Players such as Doku can operate outside of a system and perhaps because of that, Guardiola may not rely on him as much as he does other players, but somebody like Micky van de Ven is the antithesis as he is an essential part of making Tottenham Hotspur's new system under Ange Postecoglou work at its optimum.
It was a toss-up to decide on who has been more impactful between the Dutchman and James Maddison, but the 22-year-old's capabilities allow for Postecoglou to play an attacking style of football that Tottenham fans have not seen seen for a while. Van de Ven is quick, good at distributing and his composure complements Cristian Romeo's aggression very well. With Van de Ven having joined from Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga for €40 million (R806 million), another player who has moved to London from a not-so-prominent league is Mohammed Kudus.
The 26-cap Ghana international arrived for a fee of €43 million (R867 million) from Ajax Amsterdam, and earlier this year Soccer Laduma had an exclusive interview with the person who unearthed the Accra native, Jeremy Seethal, and when he was quizzed about what type of player West Ham United would be receiving, he insisted he is a world-class attacker. So far, he has lived up to that expectation as he is quickly establishing himself as arguably the Hammers' best player.
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Eight goals since arriving at the London Stadium makes him the club's second top scorer in this campaign, behind only Jarrod Bowen, and he only seems to be getting better.
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