Victor Osimhen, Scott McTominay & the 15 best signings of the 2024-25 European season so far - ranked

Another forgotten ex-Premier League man, Ayoze Perez has been rejuvenated since returning to Spain in 2023, first joining Real Betis before moving onto Villarreal back in the summer after his time at Newcastle and Leicester City in England.

Despite having his fair share of injury problems, Ayoze has already clocked up 13 goal involvements in 14 appearances for his new club, with five of his own strikes coming in a burst between late August and September. He's on course for one of his best-ever seasons, if he can stay fit.

A transfer that was mired in controversy and divided Marseille's fanbase as a result of the charges of attempted rape, controlling and coercive behaviour and assault against Mason Greenwood that were discontinued in 2023.

The forward permanently cut ties with Manchester United in July following a season-long loan at Getafe, and he has hit the ground running in France to a hero's welcome as he continues to rebuild his football career abroad. The Englishman has scored 11 goals in 16 appearances so far.

Probably not the man you would have picked as the Premier League signing of the season so far before a ball was kicked, but Nikola Milenkovic has excelled at Nottingham Forest having long been linked with a move to England.

The ex-Fiorentina centre-back has formed part of a staunch Forest backline that has been the basis of their shock top-four push, and even popped up with vital goals in consecutive games against Manchester United and Aston Villa recently.

A key part of Fiorentina's unexpected resurgence this season, Moise Kean has been another unlikely hit. Still just 24, the latest move in the striker's nomadic career has taken him to Florence.

He didn't score a single goal for Juventus last season, but Kean already has 14 strikes in 21 appearances this term having rediscovered his touch. That haul includes a match-winning hat-trick against Hellas Verona.

Remember Hugo Ekitike? The man who broke through as a prodigious teenager at Reims has been reborn at Eintracht Frankfurt after a failed spell with Paris Saint-Germain. Having joined the club on loan in January, he signed permanently in the summer for a cut-price fee.

Now 22, he is looking capable of fulfilling his significant potential in Germany as an all-round attacking threat, creating and scoring goals (11 goals, six assists) in a side who find themselves on the fringes of the Bundesliga title race.

It's always a risk to bring in a striker from outside Europe's so-called 'top five' leagues, but after a prolific campaign in Belgium with Union Saint-Gilloise, Mohamed Amoura is showing that he can cut it at the highest level.

The Algerian signed for Wolfsburg on an initial loan with an obligation to buy for €17m (£14m/$17.5m), and the German club will be very pleased with their business so far; Amoura has been involved in 12 goals in 15 appearances, including a run of five assists in his first four Bundesliga games.

David de Gea is back in the game, and his season-long sabbatical seems to have done him no harm at all. After being unceremoniously ditched by Manchester United in 2023, the goalkeeper finally joined Fiorentina as a free agent in the summer.

After a tough start, De Gea has emerged as a key figure in the Viola's unexpected surge up the Serie A table, keeping six cleans sheets in 13 appearances and remarkably saving two penalties in one game in a huge win over AC Milan in October.

Another ex-Manchester United man thriving away from Old Trafford, Scott McTominay has become part of a growing Scottish contingent in Italy and is playing a central role in Napoli's title challenge.

Antonio Conte has deployed the midfielder in a more advanced role and has reaped the rewards, with the all-action 28-year-old scoring crucial goals against Inter and Torino and emerging as an unexpected fan favourite.

In the aftermath of a superstar era of attackers including Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Neymar, PSG have an unexpected new hero in young Portugal midfielder Joao Neves.

The French giants saw off some stiff competition - including from Manchester United - to sign the 20-year-old from Benfica in the summer, but he has proven to be worth every penny of the €60m (£50m/$63m) fee he commanded, starting the season by providing four assists in two games and later scoring his first goal for the club against fierce rivals Marseille to endear himself to the fans.

One of the lesser-known names on this list, Tim Kleindienst has been a revelation for Borussia Monchengladbach having arrived from Heidenheim for just €7m, earning a first senior Germany call-up at the grand old age of 29.

The towering striker has 14 goal involvements in 15 league games, including a brace against his former club and a remarkable hat-trick of assists against Werder Bremen. A very shrewd piece of business for Gladbach.

Born in Argentina, Italy international Mateo Retegui's fascinating story took another intriguing turn when he signed for Atalanta from Genoa in August for €28m (£23m/$29m).

It's proven to be a worthwhile investment, with the man nicknamed 'The Hornet' joint-top scorer in Serie A (12) while helping to fire La Dea to the top of the standings in what is an intense title race. A mini-goal drought and the injury he suffered against Empoli recently will be a serious concern, though.

This was a transfer that always felt like a banker, as wantaway Victor Osimhen found an unlikely escape route from Napoli by heading to Galatasaray on loan at the peak of his powers.

Predictably, he has been on fire in Turkey, scoring 12 times in 15 games and laying on five more across all competitions. He's unlikely to hang around in Istanbul beyond the end of the season as Europe's elite continue to circle - and he could even leave in January - but Gala will enjoy him while they have him.

We all knew Michael Olise was cut out for the very highest level, but few could have predicted just how good - and indeed important - he would be for Bayern Munich after making the step up from south London's Crystal Palace in the summer.

The winger has 16 goal involvements in 22 appearances so far, including a sublime individual effort against Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League as he turned the defence inside out with a slaloming dribble.

Winger Kerem Akturkoglu had been a consistent performer at Galatasaray for some time, but it was only in the summer that another European giant finally gambled on bringing him in at the age of 25, paying just €12 million (£10m/$12.5m) for his services.

Benfica was probably a logical next step, but the bustling wide man is arguably already proving that he is ready for bigger things with 20 goal contributions in 25 games so far - including a clinical hat-trick from a central role against Rio Ave.

You'll probably recall the transfer saga surrounding Samu Aghehowa (previously Omorodion), whose proposed €42m (£35m/$44m) move to Chelsea from Atletico Madrid dramatically collapsed in August over an issue with his medical as he instead joined Porto for a significantly cheaper fee.

Porto will certainly feel the Blues' loss was their gain, with the 20-year-old striker rattling in 16 goals in 20 appearances so far, including a Europa League brace against Manchester United. It would be little surprise if Chelsea went after him again in the future.