Dedicated footy fans are always on the lookout for that player from a foreign league who could enter the Premier League for a cut-price fee and then wow everyone with some stellar performances. Certainly, anyone looking to put together multi-bets on the Premier League’s weekly fixtures needs to have one eye on which players are kicking up a storm in foreign leagues like La Liga, Ligue 1, the Bundesliga, and Serie A, or else they could be found wanting. Here we detail some of the players who have been wowing crowds overseas, but who could be Premier League bound come the summer, so that fans and bettors alike can keep abreast of which players are hot, and which are not.
With many top Premier League teams having to tighten their belts this summer, they will be under increasing pressure to search for deals abroad when the transfer window opens
Jude Bellingham – Attacking Midfield
It was only a year ago that Jude Bellingham was being talked about as a £100 million target for the likes of Manchester United. All that noise about the 18-year-old has largely died down throughout the current season, although it did pick up again in February, when reports began to surface that Bellingham had rejected Old Trafford in January, preferring a move to Anfield instead.
Of course, there will be plenty of buzz surrounding Dortmund this summer, regardless of what happens with Bellingham, because his clubmate Erling Haaland is expected to finally make his exit, to either Man City or Real Madrid.
While the Norwegian baller is the higher profile name of the two, it could make way for an under the radar bid for Bellingham, with offers most likely to come from Liverpool, as well as a renewed effort from Man Utd.
Aurélien Tchouaméni – Midfield
This Monaco midfielder has had an incredible price tag put on his head, with the principality’s club rating him at close to the €80 million mark. This is due to him already having nailed down a regular place in the French international side’s midfield, as well as turning in eye catching performances for his club side, who have improved no end since the 22-year-old made his presence felt.
Reports earlier in the year stated that Tchouaméni preferred to stick with Monaco during this, World Cup, year. However, with footballers only having a finite amount of time at the top of the sport, his agent may convince him to take the money that will undoubtedly be on offer in the summer.
Spring in Europe is the time when top clubs, scouts, and agents all start getting their ducks in a row, so that come the summer lots of high-level deals have already been agreed in principle
Jules Kounde – Centre Back
Kounde has been at the centre of transfer speculation since the summer when Chelsea made some audacious attempts to take the Frenchman from La Liga outfit Sevilla. In the end, the Spanish club stuck to their guns and refused to budge on anything less than their €80 million release clause.
The clamour for the central defender continues unabated and Chelsea would love to bring in the 23-year-old as cover for the significant number of defenders they will lose on free transfers this summer. Unfortunately for the Blues, recent events look like derailing such a move, meaning the door is now wide open for one of their main European rivals to step in and steal the player from under their nose.
Renato Sanches – Attacking Midfield
Lille are a side that has made waves this season, surpassing expectations, with players that were brought in from the cold – having been deemed surplus to requirements by their previous clubs. At the age of just 24, Renato Sanches had already been written off by Europe’s elite clubs, as he was jettisoned from the Bayern Munich fold.
He has since made a name for himself in Northern France, where his performances for Lille in Ligue 1 have now set Europe’s top clubs sniffing around him again. The front runners for his signature are said to be AC Milan, who are increasingly likely to secure a Champions League win next season.
However, there may well be some curve balls thrown into the mix, with the likes of Newcastle Utd also readying lucrative deals that might just tempt the Portuguese baller to the Premier League.
Sven Botman – Centre Back
Another Lille player who looks likely to be packing his bags this summer is Dutch under-21 regular Sven Botman, whose displays in the Champions League have proven he can mix it with world class attackers.
Once again, the two clubs doing battle for his signature are the newly flush Magpies, and the Rossoneri. Recent reports have even suggested that the Italian giants may mount a dual bid for the duo, scuppering the best set plans of the cash-rich Geordies.
Julian Alvarez – Striker
With all the attention this summer likely to be focussed on where Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappé will end up, Man City quietly went about their business of signing a replacement for Sergio Agüero. They did this by snapping up his young Argentine compatriot, Julián Álvarez, from River Plate.
This versatile attacking player is already a proven winner, having helped the Argentine national side win the Copa America, as well as claiming the Argentine league title with River Plate. He is now looking for new challenges in Europe and couldn’t have asked for a better time to join Man City, with the team riding high in the Premier League, yet in desperate need of new striking talent to compliment their stellar midfield.
Alvarez weighed in with no less than 36 goals and 25 assists during his 96 River Plate matches, and at the age of just 22 has his whole career in front of him. If he can be half the player that Agüero was for the blue half of Manchester, then Pep Guardiola and Txiki Begiristain will be very happy men.