League Focus: New Signings Shine in the Premier League

Whether a summer signing will fail or succeed we, of course, cannot tell from just one match. However, much will be made of the impressive performances and impact of the players to grace the Premier League for the first time this weekend. The two players to achieve the highest WhoScored rating in the first round of fixtures were both new to English football, while three more made the top 10. Here, we have taken a look at who the most effective debutants were, and what exactly they did to deserve their ratings.

Mladen Petric – WhoScored Rating 9.96

At Craven Cottage, the rumoured-to-be-imminent departure of Clint Dempsey was quickly forgotten thanks to the exploits of newly purchased Croatian striker Mladen Petric, who hit the ground running with a fantastic WhoScored rating of 9.96. His 2 goals from just three attempts, with an assist from his only key pass to boot, ensured that he picked up a higher rating than he did in any of his 26 Bundesliga appearances last season, as he sought to impress his new employers at the earliest possible opportunity. In his final season at Hamburg he only picked up one assist, and in his last 3 seasons there, he only scored 2 or more goals on 3 occasions. Although it is extremely early days, it could be speculated that Petric’s game simply suits the Premier League.

Michu – WhoScored Rating 9.3

Tipped to succeed in WhoScored.com’s recent Fantasy Football Tips article, Michu stepped up and delivered what we expected of him, with 2 goals in Swansea’s mauling of QPR at Loftus Road. The Spaniard needed just 4 attempts on goal to score his goals (and hit the woodwork with another), while QPR’s Adel Taarabt, for example, had 8 shots but failed to find the net. Michu displayed his creative side with a couple of key passes, while he completed 89% of his passes, which is marginally above Swansea’s overall rate. On the defensive side, he got back to make 2 clearances, whilst showing a weakness in his tackling, making only 1 tackle and committing a rather clumsy 5 fouls. This was more than any other player on the pitch, and second most in the whole Premier League over the opening weekend, behind Marouane Fellaini, who committed 6 fouls. 

Michu’s strength is undoubtedly in his clinical nature; 7 Swansea players (and 6 for QPR) had more touches of the ball than his 46, showing that he does not need to be constantly involved in the play, but bides his time and times his late runs. However, when he does join in, he is extremely dangerous.

Chico – WhoScored Rating 8.53

Another La Liga import for Michael Laudrup impressed on his debut, first making his presence felt with a header that crashed off the crossbar from a corner. Having displayed his aerial threat early on, Chico went on to show that he is extremely comfortable on the ball, having the most touches (79) of all Swansea players, and completing 91% of his 56 passes, 12 of which were played long, also more than any other Swansea players.

He also excelled on the defensive side of things, making an incredible 13 clearances; 6 more than any other Swansea player, as well as the third most of all Premier League players across the opening weekend. Furthermore, he blocked the joint most shots in the English top flight, with three, one of which was inside his own six-yard box. If Chico continues in this vein he will be a huge success in English football, though there is, of course a very long way to go yet.

Eden Hazard – WhoScored Rating 8.35

Hardly a secret to English football any more, the young Belgium international made his first appearance in Premier League football in hardly the most glamourous of surroundings - the DW Stadium. Having looked slightly out of his depth in the Community Shield loss to Manchester City, Hazard made inroads early on at Wigan, with an assist for Branislav Ivanovic’s early goal, before winning the penalty from which Frank Lampard made it two soon after.

The youngster maintained his performance right up until he was replaced in the 64th minute, successfully dribbling past an opponent on 5 occasions – more than any other player on the pitch, including the Premier League’s top dribbler from last season and rumoured Chelsea target Victor Moses, who did so 4 times. He will, however, need to improve on his 74% pass success rate, although one of the passes he did complete was a through ball, in a game where only 3 were completed overall.

Santi Cazorla – WhoScored Rating 8.3

Cazorla has been purchased to fill the space in behind the central striker in Arsene Wenger’s 4-2-3-1 formation, providing some creativity that has arguably been lacking since Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas’s departures. Cazorla quickly got the gears into motion, laying on no less than 7 key passes for teammates – more than any other Premier League player managed. Five of the 7 chances he created led to shots on target by Arsenal players, but their finishing left something to be desired, with Sunderland ‘keeper Simon Mignolet coming out on top on each occasion. The best chance fell to fellow new signing Olivier Giroud, though he failed even to hit the target with his chance.

The Spaniard had 104 touches, completing 94% of his passes, including the only accurate through ball by an Arsenal player, whilst also chipping in with 3 tackles and 2 interceptions to win back possession for his side. When the team starts to gel together, Cazorla’s creativity will undoubtedly pay dividends. On a personal level, though, he has certainly settled in to English football very quickly.