Kovacic, Keita and the top 20 transfers of English summer market

The former Barcelona man was unquestionably one of the most exciting forwards in the Championship last season and it proved only a matter of time before he was again handed an opportunity to perform in the Premier League. Newcomers Wolves added the explosive winger to their squad ahead of the new season for a club-record £18 million and will be sure the 22-year-old will finally leave his mark in the top flight.

Veteran goalkeeper Petr Cech has held the title of first-choice shot-stopper at Arsenal for three seasons but is now 36 years of age and often faced widespread criticism last season. As a result, the Gunners penned a deal to sign the Germany international. Cech may be afforded the start of the season to prove his worth but Leno's technical ability and composure on the ball will ensure he will immediately be on his team-mate's toes.

Pep Guardiola required minor tweaks to his Manchester City squad this summer, with Riyad Mahrez again being a target to strengthen his attacking options. The £60 million switch from Leicester City was duly completed and the Algeria international took to the field in his new colours during the International Champions Cup and in City's 2-0 Community Shield victory against Chelsea, immediately impressing his manager. While the price is perhaps a touch heavy, Mahrez's arrival ensures City's strength in depth in attack is unrivalled.

The 2018-19 Premier League season stands as a decisive one for West Ham, with the relationship between the club chiefs and fans strained. The financial backing Manuel Pellegrini has received as manager offers hope of improvement for the Hammers, with Felipe Anderson's arrival a particularly exciting one. The 25-year-old can be inconsistent but has incredible talent, with brilliant dribbling qualities and lightning pace - and he was one of the best players in the Europa League last term.

Max Meyer's decision to run down his Schalke contract perked the ears of a number of Premier League clubs this summer, though the Germany international opted to sign a lucrative, three-year deal at Crystal Palace. The 22-year-old emerged as one of the most exciting forwards in the Bundesliga early in his career before being shifted into a deeper role in midfield, seeing his stock fall dramatically. His arrival at Selhurst Park will provide a fresh start for the youngster with little risk to Palace.

Like Mahrez at Manchester City, Xherdan Shaqiri's arrival at Liverpool provides his new side with another option in an attacking unit which caused havoc last season. With Stoke's relegation and Shaqiri's strong showing at the World Cup, the Reds will be confident the relatively low £13 million outlay will prove a shrewd one.

Jose Mourinho's hunt for a dynamic, box-to-box schemer to partner Nemanja Matic at the base of his midfield - and subsequently help draw the best out of Paul Pogba - led him to Fred, who signed a five-year deal at Old Trafford. Much is expected of the 25-year-old and United are hopeful he can guide the club to a genuine Premier League title challenge.

Everton needed a left-back, and they got a top one in the shape of Barcelona's Lucas Digne. “He is a high-quality player, aggressive, with good technical ability and in the past five seasons he has played two years at Paris St-Germain, one in Roma and for the past two seasons he has demonstrated his clear quality in Barcelona," Toffees boss Marco Silva rightly said upon his arrival. 

How do you replace one of the finest specialists in the game, with only a day or so to do it? Thibaut Courtois' desire to return to Real Madrid forced Chelsea's hand, with the Blues forced to pay out a record-breaking €80m to Atheltic Bilbao for the services of Kepa Arrizabalaga. Ranked amongst the finest shot-stoppers in La Liga, Kepa is an exciting signing for the club. And while the quality of the former Real Madrid target is undoubted and he may eventually prove a worthy replacement for Courtois, to pay twice the amount they received for the established Belgium international means there are plenty of questions still to answer.

Uruguay international Lucas Torreira is the tenacious central midfielder Arsenal fans have been calling for and a player who had already captured the attention of new manager Unai Emery from his time at Sampdoria. The north London club paid just £26 million for the 22-year-old and will be sure of a fruitful return based on his exceptional World Cup for Uruguay.

Stephen Lichtsteiner has the experience, the leadership qualities and the tactical intelligence to make a major impact at his new club, with his streetwise approach to the game a real turn-on to the Arsenal fans. The 34-year-old won seven consecutive Serie A titles with Juventus and goes some way to toughening up a defence that has been far too brittle in recent years.

To sign a player of Bernard's pedigree without an initial outlay is remarkably good business, the energetic and creative Brazil international spending the past five seasons with Ukrainiain champions Shakhtar Donetsk. Bernard, 25, claimed nine major trophies in that time before his contract expired and Everton pounced on the winger, signing him on deadline day.

Ignoring that the deal saw Thibaut Courtois leave for Real Madrid, the arrival of Mateo Kovacic is a clever piece of business from Chelsea and sees their midfield options increase massively. The Croatia international has not fulfilled his incredible potential just yet but technically, tactically and physically he ticks all the boxes. Together with Jorginho and N'Golo Kante, he can form an impressive three-man midfield for Chelsea.

To sign a player of Rui Patricio's status - a goalkeeper with 73 international caps, a European Championship winners' medal and over 500 club appearances - on a fee transfer is an exceptional coup for Wolves. The shot-stopper terminated his own contract in the aftermath of a violent attack on Sporting players by a section of the club's supporters at the end of last season, gifting Wolves an elite goalkeeper on a very attractive deal.

In a transfer window in which a number of large deals have fallen through, Liverpool's quickfire signing of Fabinho in May was as surprising as it was impressive. The former Monaco midfielder has been billed as the man to hold the Reds team together this season, though Jurgen Klopp has hinted that he may have to be eased into action at Anfield. Fabinho will almost certainly line up with Jordan Henderson and Naby Keita in the middle of the park for Liverpool this term, though, and is likely to prove a crucial part of Klopp's puzzle.

Five years ago, Portugal international Joao Moutinho signed for Monaco in a combined deal with James Rodriguez worth around €70 million. In July of this year, the Euro 2016-winning midfielder - who has 113 international caps to his name - penned a two-year deal with Wolves in a transfer costing the club just £5m. The 31-year-old's arrival is an unequivocal triumph in the fight to find value for money in today's market.

Things could have been very different for Jean Michael Seri. The midfielder was on the cusp of a move to Barcelona this time last year, indeed personal terms were agreed with the Camp Nou club. The move collapsed, though, and an incredibly successful season with Nice followed. Seri was then targeted by Arsenal and Napoli, before opting for a shock move to Premier League newcomers Fulham this summer, leaving many supporters stunned. The 27-year-old deep-lying playmaker racked up 31 Ligue 1 appearances last season and another five in the Europa League, averaging a whopping 92 passes per 90 minutes throughout the campaign.

Liverpool fans have had time to digest the signing of Naby Keita from RB Leipzig as it was announced last year but the excitement has only grown as Jurgen Klopp makes space for the physical and energetic midfielder in his team. Keita will sit next to Jordan Henderson and Fabinho in the Reds side this season, looking to make the difference for the Anfield club against those challenging for the Premier League title. He will have little problem repaying the initial transfer fee the club have paid for him.

Jorginho's importance to Maurizio Sarri's Chelsea cannot be understated. Having worked so successfully together at Napoli, Sarri is now planning to build his new side around the Italo-Brazilian. Jorginho topped multiple passing rankings in Europe last season and will be the player controlling proceedings at Stamford Bridge, sitting slightly advanced of the two central defenders in a midfield three with N'Golo Kante and, either Cesc Fabregas or Mateo Kovacic. The £57 million forked out by Chelsea should prove to be an astute piece of business.

Liverpool's signing of Alisson from Roma was essential for Jurgen Klopp and his ambitions of challenging Manchester City for the Premier League title this season. The Reds have been crying out for a top goalkeeper for a number of years - with neither the hapless Loris Karius nor Simon Mignolet proving up to task. In Alisson - who temporarily broke the world record fee for a goalkeeper - they have a proven world-class No.1 who produced miracles for Roma last term.