New Signings – Fantasy Premier League 2016/17. Chelsea, Everton, Bournemouth, Hull, Leicester, West Ham, Boro

New Signings – Fantasy Premier League 2016/17. Chelsea, Everton, Bournemouth, Hull, Leicester, West Ham, Boro

Deadline Day was the most exciting for a long time and as usual deals were still being processed by the FA late on into the night. We’ll cover the main deadline day signings over the course of two articles, rather than blast you with minimal information and a whole host of names. In part one, we’ll cover the following – Chelsea made the headlines as Antonio Conte strengthened his defence, certainly in terms of numbers and options by re-signing David Luiz and acquiring Marcos Alonso, Everton spent much of the day chasing Moussa Sissoko but ended up with Enner Valencia, Jack Wilshere decided a few months on the south coast would be good for his ankles, Hull plumped for Norwich reject Dieumerci Mbokani, Leicester broke their transfer record as they bought Islam Slimani, Alvaro Arbeloa joined West Ham and Boro signed Adama Traore from Villa.

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David Luiz (Chelsea – defender – FPL price 6.0mln)
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[/three_fourth]Well, no-one was expecting this one were they? Chelsea boss Conte has openly expressed his desire to recruit some defenders and he left it late after being disappointed in the pursuit of Luiz’s PSG team-mate Marquinhos, Leonardo Bonucci and John Stones amongst others. Luiz of course knows Chelsea very well and has stayed on good terms with the club and its fans after leaving for Paris two years ago. Sideshow Bob splits opinion regarding his quality as a defender – often prone to a mistake or an ill-timed lunge at the back, the Brazilian is quality when bringing the ball out of defence and is a quality free kick specialist and can be a dangerous threat from corners. Luiz’s acquisition and qualities allows Conte the option to play or to switch to his preferred system of playing three centre backs alongside John Terry and Gary Cahill and also Kurt Zouma when he returns from injury.

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Marcos Alonso (Chelsea – defender – FPL price 6.0mln)
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[/three_fourth]Marcos Alonso is not a name that was high on the list of any Chelsea fan until a few days ago – and understandably so. The left back started at Real Madrid, playing just once before moving to Bolton, where he struggled to impress. Fiorentina then came in for him, they loaned him to Sunderland before Fiorentina recalled him. He was linked to a move to Norwich last summer and was then “watched” by Barcelona six months later – neither move happened and Alonso signed a new 5-year deal at Fiorentina where he scored three goals last season. And now onto Chelsea. Conte has obviously seen enough of him to be impressed and while a starting spot is far from guaranteed he offers competition to both Cesar Azpilicueta and Branislav Ivanovic where before there was none. We recommend waiting a few weeks to see if he can force a start before investing in him.
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Enner Valencia (Everton – forward – FPL price 5.5mln)
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[/three_fourth]The Ecuadorian has joined Everton from West Ham on a season long loan, where he will provide cover to Romelu Lukaku. He does give Ronald Koeman the option of playing two up front or alternatively can play on the wing, but we feel he is unlikely to be a definite starter for the Toffees unless there are a couple of injuries or a complete lack of form! Many Hammers fans have been critical of Valencia and will be glad to see the back of him, albeit temporarily. Everton do have the option of buying Valencia for £14mln next summer – and I’d imagine many at West Ham would be delighted if that occurred. The striker was rumoured to be considering a move to Swansea but the move to Merseyside was agreed late on in the window and took place without Koeman even meeting Valencia, as the player is on international duty and will meet up with his new team-mates on his return.

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Jack Wilshere (Bournemouth – midfielder – FPL price 5.9mln)
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[/three_fourth]The great hope of English football we were told years ago when Wilshere was instrumental in Arsenal outplaying Barcelona one night in 2011. Sadly, that was the high point for the midfielder. Ravaged by injury, Wilshere has never been fit enough to fulfil his potential at Arsenal and his spells on the sidelines has meant Wenger has needed to recruit more dependable replacements leaving a now fit Wilshere to be found down in the pecking order. It is understood that the club suggested it would be a good idea for Jack to go and play football instead of sitting on the bench, hence his deadline day loan move to Bournemouth for the rest of the season. Wilshere did have other options – AC Milan, Roma, Sporting Lisbon and Crystal Palace, but he chose the beach town over the fashion capital of Europe, the historical city of Rome, the cultural delights of Lisbon…..and south London and Pardew. Time will tell if Wilshere can ever become the player many once believed he could be – but if he does, then this season will be fundamental. If he can stay fit then he’ll fit in well at Bournemouth, a team who play football in an attractive style, but as ever, Wilshere’s fitness is the key issue and a FPL price of 5.9mln doesn’t represent clear and obvious value with the risks that come with the player.
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Dieumerci Mbokani (Hull – forward – FPL price 5.5mln)
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[/three_fourth]The Tigers have signed Dynamo Kiev striker Dieumerci Mbokani on a season-long loan, with a view to a permanent deal. Mbokani, 30, spent last season with Norwich City, where he scored seven times in 29 Premier League appearances. A powerful forward and former Democratic Republic of Congo international, Mbokani first came to prominence during a prolific spell with TP Mazembe in his home country, form which earned him a move to Standard Liege in 2007. 39 goals in 87 appearances for the Belgian side brought a move to Monaco and then Anderlecht where he netted 37 times in 63 games. A move to Dynamo Kiev was secured in 2013 before his loan move to the Premier League last season brought a number of impressive performances for the Canaries. Mbokani also scored 16 goals in 35 appearances for his country before retiring from international football last year. The striker will offer direct competition to Adama Diomande, which could ruin many a FPL manager’s plan of playing Diomande as a cheap striker in a 3-5-2 formation.

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Islam Slimani (Leicester – forward – FPL price 8.5mln)
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[/three_fourth]The Foxes have broken their transfer record for the second time in the window as they spent £30mln on Algerian striker Islam Slimani from Sporting Lisbon. At this point, we are going to directly quote DMC, who knows all about Slimani from watching him in Portual…
“Slimani has double Vardy’s work rate, Bierhoff’s header and an Islamic soul. He believes, I believe. I’m not Islamic btw, nor Catholic. I don’t have a religion actually, just pointing out that this guy never gives up on a ball, is very aggressive in the opposition half, and has that goal instinct that only the elected ones have. He’s the real deal and with his Algerian team mate Mahrez on the team we won’t struggle with the typical adaptation process, etc.. He’ll fly straight into the line-up, possibly with Vardy or Okazaki being benched. When the time comes, he’ll be their first choice striker, no doubt. And I do rate Vardy mind you. I just hope they don’t price him too high.

All that being said, we need to have in mind that him and Mahrez will be out during January, so we’ll have a window of opportunity between mid-September/early October to December! He will enhance Mahrez’s potential brutally. Now watch Ranieri play him with the reserves!!”

Another point to mention is that the acquisition of Slimani also offers Ranieri the opportunity to rest Vardy, especially when the Champions League matches begin.

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Alvaro Arbeloa (West Ham – defender – FPL price 5.0mln)
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[/three_fourth]The Hammers have signed World Cup winner Arbeloa on a one-year deal from Real Madrid, where he has spent the previous six seasons. Before that he is known to us from his time at Liverpool, where he made 66 appearances. The Spanish full back is more comfortable on the right, but can also play on the left and can therefore offer decent cover while Aaron Cresswell is sidelined and just as importantly he can mentor the young Sam Byram at right back. The short term purchase of Arbeloa does suggest that Slaven Bilic is not looking to play Michail Antonio at the back anymore and its is Antonio and his FPL owners who may just be the biggest beneficiaries of Arbeloa’s arrival assuming he continues starting further upfield. We’d recommend not to dive into Arbeloa quite yet as we would expect Bilic to use the experienced Spaniard only when he has to.

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Adama Traore (Middlesbrough – midfielder – FPL price 5.0mln)
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[/three_fourth]Traore became Boro’s 11th signing of the transfer window when he joined from Aston Villa on a four-year deal. Traore only joined Villa last year from Barcelona but he frustrated managers Tim Sherwood, Remi Garde and Eric Black so much that he failed to start a single game for the Villans. Boro boss Aitor Karanka knows Traore has long experience of the player and says of him, “He is another important player and I am expecting a lot from him. I’ve known him since he was a kid. He went into the national team (U16s) just after I left, but I know all about him and what he can do. His level is higher than he showed last season, but in the right environment I’m hoping that he will show what he is capable of”. So, it’s very much a wait and see on Traore – Karanka we know loves to rotate, especially when the fixtures come thick and fast so it would seem that he will give Traore the chances to show Villa fans what they have missed out on.

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Thanks for reading New Signings – Fantasy Premier League 2016/17. Chelsea, Everton, Bournemouth, Hull, Leicester, West Ham, Boro. This article was written by Cookie

Follow @SteveCook9

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