The top 10 best Premier League signings since the year 2000.
10. Jay-Jay Okocha – Free agent to Bolton Wanderers, 2002
It may be easy to sneer at Okocha’s inclusion on this list, but he was a key catalyst to an weirdly good Bolton side in the early ’00s, and considering he arrived on a free transfer his signing was something of a coup for Sam Allardyce.
So good they named him twice, he went on to bag 15 goals in 142 appearances for the Trotters over four years and began the trend for mid to small sized English clubs looking to older players to help establish and push them up the table.
9. Wayne Rooney – Everton to Manchester United, £30m, 2004
Rooney’s arrival on the scene as English football’s most valued young asset was pounced upon by United in 2004 and Sir Alex made sure he was at the front of the queue to snap him up back in 2004.
He hit the ground running with a hat trick in the Champions League and so far his time at Old Trafford has yielded five Premier League titles, two League Cup’s, one Champions League and one FIFA Club World Cup.
His time with the club may be coming to an end, but at least one of the country’s brightest sparks has enjoyed a monumental amount of success there.
8. Fernando Torres – Atletico Madrid to Liverpool, £35m, 2007
Torres added a significant threat to the Liverpool frontline when he made his long anticipated exit from Atletico Madrid in 2007 and quickly began to make up for all the disappointments made by the Milan Baros’ and Florent Sinama-Pongolle’s of previous years.
Chipping in with 81 goals across 142 appearances in four years made him one of the league’s deadliest strikers, but sadly the only thing missing from his time at Anfield was any silverware.
7. Gareth Bale – Southampton to Tottenham Hotspur, £7m, 2007
Bale was hailed as one for the future when he joined Spurs, but it took him long enough to get going and the club even failed to chalk up a win when he was in the squad.
However, he quickly blossomed into not only one of the league’s best players, but one of the world’s too and earned his move to Real Madrid thanks to some scintillating form in Europe.
6. Edwin Van Der Sar – Fulham to Manchester United, £2m, 2005
United’s struggle to replace Peter Schmeichel was well documented and for several years the likes of Mark Bosnich, Massimo Taibi and Roy Carroll could not fill his gloves.
However, that all changed when he paid a minimal fee to Fulham for the already experienced Dutch international and he played a crucial role in their success over the next six years.
5. Didier Drogba – Marseille to Chelsea, £24m, 2004
The big Ivorian caught Chelsea’s eye thanks to a strong performance against them in the Champions League the previous year and upon signing a deal to make him the most expensive African player at the time quickly set about proving why he was worth so much money.
He enjoyed significant success at Stamford Bridge, notching up 137 goals in 341 appearances across a seven year period that also draw him collect three Premier League titles, four FA Cup’s, two League Cup’s and one Champions League winners medal before leaving for the far east.
4. Vincent Kompany – Hamburg to Manchester City, £6m, 2008
The Belgian stopper arrived at City as one to watch for the future, but quickly made himself at home in the Premier League and it is sometimes easy to forget that he is still actually only 27-years-old.
Skippered the side to their greatest achievement in winning the Premier League title and has been with them every step of the way for their two forays into the Champions League.
If he can keep his fitness concerns under control then there is no doubt that he will be present for a lot more honours with the Sky Blue’s.
3. Luis Suarez – Ajax to Liverpool, £22.8m, 2011
The Uruguayan has been controversial above all else, but one thing not in question is his electric record on front of goal.
He has yet to win anything other than a League Cup with the Reds, but with the rebuilding process at Anfield well underway he may get a chance to add to that collection in the near future.
But only if the Reds can keep him beyond the summer, of course.
2. Robin Van Persie – Feyenoord to Arsenal, £2.75m, 2004
Arsene Wenger was warned about his moodswings and injury problems when he took the plunge for the Dutchman in 2004, but he got a player that grew into somebody capable of carrying the team in later years.
He was later sold for nearly ten times that amount and is still getting better even though he is now with rivals Manchester United.
1. Cristiano Ronaldo – Sporting Lisbon to Manchester United, £12.2m, 2003
Quite simply: the best.
In a summer that saw him pick up David Bellion and Eric Djemba-Djemba, this young Portuguese ace came along and blew them out of the water before going on to become one of the best player’s in the world.
He won everything there was to win with the club, and even notching up 118 goals in 292 appearances before being moved on to Real Madrid in 2009 for a whopping £80m.