The 2022/23 English Premier League season will soon be underway, and heading into the last two weeks of preseason training, teams have been suiting up their new transfer acquisitions for the coming season.

With that said, who might be your club’s most exciting prospect coming into the 2022/23 season?

Arsenal

Gabriel Jesus

Arsenal’s acquisition of Gabriel Jesus has been one of the exciting signings during the transfer window and here’s why.

Arsenal, although a pretty creative team, have been having a shortage of goals in the striking department. Previously having their forward lines led by Lacazette, Arsenal averaged 1.61 goals per game, scored 61 in total, and missed a whopping 42 big chances in the 2021/22 season.

With a prolific yet creative player like Gabriel Jesus, Arsenal can surely get on the back of most of their chances, and probably raise their goal tally to the heights of Liverpool and Manchester City.

Aston Villa

Boubacar Kamara

Far too often, Aston Villa have wilted when the going got tough (Villa vs Man City comes to mind). But with Boubacar Kamara essentially acting as a first line of cover for Villa’s mistake-riddled defence, Steven Gerrard might at last see his team stop to lose games from winning positions.

Averaging a return of 3.4 tackles and interceptions combined per game, Kamara’s inclusion to the Villa squad might be overlooked due to big-name signings such as Phillipe Coutinho and Europa League winner Diego Carlos, but his role will be the most important in this Villa team.

Bournemouth

Ryan Fredericks

Although Ryan Fredericks is not exactly a top signing, he comes in as a senior and essentially a leader to this newly promoted side.

Often lambasted for his subpar passing and crossing abilities, the rightback’s pace and good tackling skills will be of great importance to this seemingly frail Bournemouth team.

Brentford

Aaron Hickey

Only 20 years of age, Aaron Hickey is a rare thing in modern football. Not only is he a great crosser of the ball, he is equally good with both feet too.

Hailing from Scotland, the young Scotsman has virtually followed in the footsteps of fellow compatriots Andy Robertson and Kieran Tierney. All playing in the left-back position for their respective clubs, Hickey is equally as good, offensively and in defence.

Brighton & Hove Albion

Deniz Undav

Deniz Undav will be moving to Brighton after signing in January and finishing his successful time at Union SG in the Belgian first division.

Aged 25 years, Undav might just be the striker that Brighton have been lacking. Last season he scored 27 goals and assisted 13 times while Maupay and Trossard both finished the season with 8 goals.

Although this fairytale story of a player who has earned his way to the next level might be inspiring, it is important to note that the Premier League is not like the Belgian top flight, so it will be interesting to see how the young German adapts.

Chelsea

Raheem Sterling

It has been reported that Raheem Sterling will be joining Chelsea from Manchester City on a five-year deal, and this move will not only benefit Chelsea but the English international too.

Recently relegated to an impact player by Pep Guardiola, Sterling will help Chelsea close the gap to Liverpool and Manchester City at the top of the Premier League table.

With his pace and ability to get into great goalscoring positions, Sterling comes as a great help for Chelsea, who will be getting a type of player they haven’t got in the squad right now.

Crystal Palace

Cheick Doucoure

With work permit issues the only thing holding up the €27.6m transfer of Malian international Cheick Doucouré to Crystal Palace from Ligue 1 outfit RC Lens, this transfer could be considered all but done.

Whilst not the most creative player in and around the box, Cheick Doucoure is one of the best upcoming defensive midfielders there is out there.

The Malian international ranks in the 93rd percentile when it comes to the number of progressive carries (6.87) or progressive passes(6.26) made per 90.

With that number of progressive actions made per 90, Doucoure can certainly play a huge role in setting up Palace’s counterattacks.

Doucoure also ranks in the 84th percentile when it comes to defensive actions such as the number of interceptions (2.26) made per 90. It will certainly be exciting to see how the Malian international fills this role that was previously played by Cheikou Kouyate and Luka Milivojevic.

Everton

James Tarkowski

Although not a groundbreaking move, James Tarkowski’s move to Everton is a smart one from both parties.

Parting ways with recently relegated Burnley, The 29-year-old centerback is a rock-solid defender with an excellent progressive passing range and technically good aerial abilities.

Ranked first in the Premier League for both clearances and shots blocked in 2021/22, Tarkowski was ranked second for aerial duels won too, and was ranked in the top three per cent of centre-backs across Europe’s top five leagues in those three categories and touches in the opposition box.

Fulham

João Palhinha

Fulham have completed their first signing of the season and it is none other than Joao Palhinha. Initially a target for Wolves, Palhinha was snapped up by Fulham first.

Better described as an imposing defensive midfielder, Palhinha will be looking to bring stability to that Fulham midfield.

With his not-so-beautiful-to-the-eye style of play, Palhinha will be looked up at the most when it comes to doing most of the ‘dirty work’ for the team. He’ll be looking to recycle possession from dangerous positions, and also make sure that his team doesn’t concede.

He departs Portuguese outfit Sporting Lisbon with 95 appearances, seven goals to his name, and a Primera Liga title.

Leeds United

Tyler Adams

Handed his MLS debut for the New York Red Bulls by then head coach Jesse Marsch in April 2016, Tyler Adams reunites with Jesse Marsch yet again after being signed by Leeds from RB Leipzig.

Able to play anywhere in midfield or defence, Adams comes as an exciting prospect following the departure of Kalvin Phillips.

With his extravagant passing abilities and defensive contributions, it will be exciting to see how Adams holds up that Defensive midfielder position which was previously dominated by Phillips.

Leicester City
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Liverpool

Darwin Nunez

Liverpool have completed the signing of Benfica striker Darwin Nunez for an undisclosed fee, believed to be around £64m with an additional £21m set to be paid as add-ons.

The signing comes after an impressive season within which the Uruguayan international scored 34 times in 41 appearances for Benfica.

Somewhat an unusual player to the system that Klopp has been accustomed to use, it will be interesting to see how Nunez fairs at Liverpool, who will be hoping to challenge Man City for the title again.

Manchester City

Erling Haaland

Haaland is a player who has scored numerous goals in the Bundesliga. In fact, he is one of the players who can be labelled as the best forward of his era. But why is this such a great signing for Manchester City?

Manchester City were in search of a number 9. As per reports and rumours, last year they had Harry Kane in their radar. Apparently, they had the intention to sign Erling Haaland as well. However, they ended up signing no genuine striker. Since City have Pep Guardiola as their manager, it can be said that they don’t necessarily need a proper marksman. This is because Guardiola is a maestro when it comes to the application of a false-nine.

But in the final of the 2020/21 Champions League, that myth died at the hands of Chelsea and City’s hopes of winning the accolade came to an end. This season (till now), Riyad Mahrez is their top scorer with 24 goals under his belt. Behind him is Kevin De Bruyne (19) and Raheem Sterling (17). None of them are centre-forwards. Meanhwile, Erling Haaland, a proper centre-forward, has scored 28 goals in 29 matches across all competitions for Borussia Dortmund this season (till date). That sums it up.

Manchester United

Lisandro Martinez

Jadon Sancho is in my opinion still Manchester United’s most exciting prospect for the coming season, but because we adhere to protocols, I will be going with Lisandro Martinez.

Signed from Ajax Amsterdam for €55m, Martinez is a versatile defensive player who can play as a defensive midfielder, fullback, or centre-back.

Over the past few seasons, Manchester United has been lacking a steady figure in defence and central midfield, after splashing so much money on Maguire, Varane, Wan-Bissaka, and co, there still remains question marks over the trustworthiness of those players in a back 4, so with Martinez added in to the equation, it will be exciting to see how Man United fairs as a collective.

Newcastle United

Sven Botman

It has been reported that the Magpies have acquired 22 year old centerback Sven Botman from French outfit Losc Lille.

Considered one of Europe’s top up-and-coming defenders, Botman is an old fashioned centre-back whom prefers to play it safe with short passes to his flanking full-backs or a midfielder backing up to collect the ball from defence to start the attack.

Being 1.95m tall, Botman is not just tall, but he’s extremely physical as well. This adds as a positive to the young Dutchmans already flawless style of play.

Only 22 years old, Newcastle will be keen to develop and help the player blossom to his full potential.

Nottingham Forest

Taiwo Awoniyi

Nottingham Forest have signed Nigerian forward Taiwo Awoniyi from Union Berlin for a club record fee of £17m, and much will be expected from the 24-year-old striker who returns to the English Premier League after just a year in the Bundesliga.

Joining the newly promoted Forest on a five-year deal, the former Liverpool man scored 20 goals in 43 games across all competitions last season. With his ability to win aerial duels and play with his back to the goal in order to help others around him flourish, it will be exciting to see how his move to Nottingham Forest pans out.

Southampton

Joe Aribo

Yet another Nigerian international signed by a Premier League club, Joe Aribo moves to the St. Mary’s after a three-season stint at Rangers during which he won the Scottish Premiership and Scottish Cup titles, as well as reaching and scoring in last season’s Europa League final vs Frankfurt.

Able to play anywhere in midfield, Aribo likes to layoff the ball and dribble past opponents. His flamboyant style of play comes as an imposing acquisition for Soton, who’ve been lacking that kind of player.

Tottenham Hotspur

Ivan Perisic

In what could arguably be one of the best transfers of this season, Tottenham have signed 33 year old Croatian international Ivan Perisic on a free.

Having previously played under Antonio Conte, the former Bayern man will be looking to prove himself in the Premier League.

With his winning character, mental fortitude, Premier League readiness, versatility and winning pedigree, Perisic will be looking to win a trophy under Conte again.

West Ham United

Nayef Augerd

Timely, Highly concentrated, and strong in the air, Nayef Aguerd is West Ham United’s first signing of the season.

Born in Kenitra, Morocco, Aguerd averages a 6.86 match rating per game, as per WhoScored stats, a feat bettered by none of West Ham’s current defenders.

Reluctant to dive into a tackle and commit a foul, Aguerd is a masterful defender who can play for any team in the Premier League.

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Hwang Hee-Chang

Wolves have exercised their option to buy South Korea forward Hwang Hee-chan on a permanent deal after his loan from RB Leipzig expired at the end of the just-concluded 2021/22 season.

While the South Korean international was not able to replicate the form he once had at Leipzig during his loan, he will be looking to build off that and reach those previous heights once more.

During his time at RB Salzburg, Hwang Hee-chan averaged a G/A contribution every other two games. That will come handy to Bruno Lage’s team that is known to be subpar in front of goal.