Revealed: Manchester United outcasts among top-10 summer signings in Europe
By now clubs across Europe would hope their summer signings have had ample time to settle in to their new surroundings and start discovering their best form. Some make better transitions than others, while some really struggle to get going.
Using our unique rating system, we can reveal the 10 best WhoScored rated summer signings across Europe's top five leagues, with additional information about their Football Index share prices. In order to qualify for the standings, a summer signing must have featured in at least half of the league games played by their new clubs.
10. Mounir Chouiar (Dijon) - 7.40 rating
Football Index share price - £1.52
Age - 20
Position - AM(L)
Signed from Lens over the summer for €3.5m, Mounir Chouiar has been a revelation for Dijon this season after a less-than-spectacular year in Ligue 2. The 20-year-old is currently the most in-form player aged 21 and under in Europe's top five leagues (7.81 weighted rating) and recently netted his first goals for the club, in 2-1 wins over Paris Saint-Germain and Rennes.
However, Chouiar has proved there is much more to his game than scoring goals. The Dijon winger (3.3) is behind only Nice ace Youcef Atal (4.2) for successful dribbles per game in Ligue 1 this season and impressively ranks in the top-10 (25+ attempted) for dribble success rate (68.8%). Chouiar also has one of the best returns in the divison for key passes per game (2), while a return of 2.1 tackles per game is also highly impressive for a forward.
9. Rodrigo (Manchester City) - 7.43 rating
Football Index share price - £1.67
Age - 23
Position - DM(C)
Injury at the end of October stifled what was a promising start to his Manchester City career but Pep Guardiola will hope club-record signing Rodrigo has turned a page following his sublime display in Tuesday's emphatic win away to Burnley. The 23-year-old is still learning exactly where he needs to be as an anchor to City's midfield but he got it spot on in midweek.
Many tipped a Tuesday night away to Burnley to be a culture shock for the 23-year-old but the former Atletico Madrid midfielder rose to the occasion. Rodrigo recorded his best WhoScored rating of the season in City's 4-1 win at Turf Moor (8.85 rating), scoring his second league goal of the campaign with a venomous effort from the edge of the box. Despite some positional problems here and there, only three players have won possession in the midfield third more times than Rodrigo in the Premier League this season (63).
8. Romelu Lukaku (Inter) - 7.45 rating
Football Index share price - £1.86
Age - 26
Position - AM(R), FW
Demoted by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as Manchester United's first-choice striker towards the end of last season, Inter manager Antonio Conte finally got hold of Romelu Lukaku over the summer and United's loss has certainly been Inter's gain.
Lukaku became the first striker to score nine or more goals in their first 11 Serie A games for Inter since Ronaldo in the 1997/98 campaign and has 10 in total. Not only is the 26-year-old just two goals away from matching his tally in the league for United last season, but he has struck up a formidable understanding with strike partner Lautaro Martinez in a short space of time.
7. Nabil Fekir (Real Betis) - 7.46 rating
Football Index share price - £1.56
Age - 26
Position - AM(C,R)
Nabil Fekir's move away from Lyon over the summer was expected but his decision to join Real Betis raised eyebrows, particuarly after coming so close to signing for Liverpool the summer before. It's fair to say the 26-year-old took time adjusting to the rigours of LaLiga but he is finally starting to hit his stride, with three WhoScored Man of the Match awards in his last five league appearances.
Fekir has picked up five star man awards in total in LaLiga this season, a tally bettered only by Lionel Messi (6). Fekir is the most fouled player in LaLiga this season (4.1 times per game), while only Eden Hazard and Messi (both 5) average more dribbles per game than the Betis star (3.5).
6. Islam Slimani (Monaco) - 7.46 rating
Football Index share price - £0.80
Age - 31
Position - FW
Islam Slimani will go down as one of Leicester's worst ever buys after costing the Foxes a record £29m fee but his stock has certaintly soared since joining Monaco over the summer. The Algeria international has been in remarkable form in front of goal, with his only blemish a red card in Monaco's 2-1 defeat away to Bordeaux at the end of last month.
Other than that, almost everything Slimani has touched has turned to gold for Monaco. The 31-year-old has scored six goals and returned seven assists, a direct hand in more goals than any other player in Ligue 1 (13). It's even more remarkable when you consider Monaco are currently just three points above the relegation play-off zone and Slimani's goal involvements make up 61.9% of Monaco's league tally this season (13/21).
5. Chris Smalling (Roma) - 7.49 rating
Football Index share price - £0.56
Age - 30
Position - D(C)
Chris Smalling made the bold decision to move abroad over the summer after it became clear he was deemed surplus to requirements at Manchester United and the move has paid dividends for the 30-year-old. While United continue to struggle, Smalling has established himself as arguably the best defender in Serie A. Smalling has not only impressed at the back but has proved a goal threat for Roma, with two goals and one assist in his first 10 league appearances.
The former England international also boasts an impressive 90.5% pass success rate after Gareth Southgate dumped Smalling from his Three Lions' plans due to an apparent inability to pass. Smalling has constantly been in the right place at the right time for Roma, illustrated by 4.6 clearances per game and as many aerial duels won per game in Serie A this term.
4. Radja Nainggolan (Cagliari) - 7.49 rating
Football Index share price - £0.70
Age - 31
Position - M(C)
Radja Nainggolan made an emotional return to Cagliari over the summer after failing to settle at Inter and the move has paid off on the pitch more than anyone would have expected. Cagliari are currently on a remarkable 12 game unbeaten run in Serie A and occupy fourth spot in Serie A.
Nainggolan has been key to that, with four goals and five assists in 11 league appearances. The 31-year-old has already matched his goal involvements for Inter last season and done so in 16 fewer appearances. Moreover, only Lionel Messi has scored more goals from outside the box (5) than Nainggolan (4) in Europe's top five leagues this season.
3. Marcus Thuram (Gladbach) - 7.50 rating
Football Index share price - £1.63
Age - 22
Position - AM(L), FW
Marcus Thuram's first season at Gladbach has gone better than most would have anticipated after struggling for consistency with French side Guingamp over the summer. The 22-year-old is helping inspire Gladbach's unlikely title push in the Bundesliga, as the German outfit currently top the table ahead of their clash with Bayern Munich on Saturday.
Thuram, the son of former World Cup winner, Lilian, has in the space of four months played a direct hand in more league goals for Gladbach (11 in 13 appearances) than he managed in 32 league appearances for Guingamp (10) last season. Thuram is not dribbling as much (1.8 successful dribbles per game) as he did last season (3.2) but he is now being much more effective in front of goal for his new club, illustrated by the startling return for goals and assists.
2. Martin Odegaard (Real Sociedad) - 7.53 rating
Football Index share price - £3.43
Age - 20
Position - AM(C,R)
Real Sociedad will be kicking themselves for not engineering Martin Odegaard's departure from Real Madrid on a full-time basis, though the chances of that were probably slim. Nevertheless, the 20-year-old has been one of the best players in LaLiga this season. Odegaard has played a direct hand in seven goals in 13 league appearances for Real Sociedad (three goals, four assists) and has impressively racked up 10 statistically calculated WhoScored 'strengths'.
Furthermore, Odegaard averages more key passes per game (2.8) than any other player in LaLiga this season and ranks in the top-10 for dribbles completed per game (2.6). The Madrid loanee was the WhoScored Man of the Match after scoring the winning goal against Atletico earlier this season, one of three star man awards recieved by the Norway international.
1. Idrissa Gueye (Paris Saint-Germain) - 7.65 rating
Football Index share price - £0.62
Age - 30
Position - M(C)
After being denied a move to Paris Saint-Germain at the start of the year, Idrissa Gueye may have thought he'd missed the chance for a high profile transfer as he approached his 30th birthday, but PSG were successful at the second attempt, prising him away from Everton for around £30m at the end of the summer transfer window. With Everton languishing only one place above the bottom three, it's fair to say the Toffees are missing their former defensive midfielder.
Gueye, meanwhile, has already taken on new responsibilites at PSG. He is still a serial ball-winner, highlighted by a return of 3.8 tackles per game, but he is now being asked to do more when in possession. Only PSG team-mate Marco Verratti (88.8) averages more passes per game than Gueye (86.2) in Ligue 1 this season, up from 52.8 per league game at Everton last season. His pass success rate has also increased to 92.9% from 84.3%, which again ranks among the top-10 in Ligue 1. Dribbles per game (1.2) and key passes per game (1.6) are also up considerably compared to his last year at Everton (0.7 & 0.5 per game, respectively).
