This summer transfer window has reached a record £2.41 million and promises to be more, as Man City reportedly have two more deals to close. It’s been widely reported that after selling defensive midfielder Rodri, The Blues are signing two players towards the end of the window.
Lille’s Ayoub Bouadi and Chelsea star Enzo Fernandez are the two players said to be of interest to Manchester City. Whether the pair come to Manchester is one thing, and improving the former Premier League winners is another.
Squad balance and signing the right player to support it are two important issues. Here I talk about some of the signings over the years, where arguably just the one signing rocked the boat.
The most recent example, I argue, is Arsenal’s pursuit of Newcastle United captain Bruno Guimarães. Bruno, formerly of Lyon, came to the Premier League with The Magpies and helped The Toon Army win the League Cup.
After two high-profile teammates (Anthony Gordon and Sandro Tonali) left the club, Bruno’s situation may have changed. Arsenal would be the club to sign him, which I argue was not the best decision. Why?
The Gunners, despite signing Swedish striker Victor Gyokeres, still looked short in terms of firepower. With that in mind, logically, Arsenal would be looking to address that issue and sign a forward, but much to the surprise of many, they ended up signing box-to-box midfielder Bruno Guimaraes.
This signing, although on the face of it a good one, is a signing that wasn’t as necessary as signing a defender or a striker. Other clubs have been guilty of this; one of those clubs was Manchester United.
It was when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was manager, and there were murmurings that Cristiano Ronaldo was available. The Red Devils didn’t need him but signed him anyway, which arguably disrupted the team’s balance.
Which brings me to Real Madrid, who signed a player who arguably disrupted the team’s balance. Who was that player, a player that some argue is the best player in the world? You guessed it: Kylian Mbappe.
The French skipper has been with the 15-time Champions League winners since 2024, but arguably has affected the balance of the team because the side that he operates on is the same side his teammate Vini Jr operates on.
That’s harsh to say that someone who has scored 56 goals in 65 games has affected a team in a bad way. Do you agree with my other picks?
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