By: Ryan Bode
After a wild summer transfer window, teams are looking for their new players to start paying off. Some players have thrived in their new settings, while other players are experiencing more difficulty than persuading a Real Madrid fan to root for Barcelona. Here are some grades as a result to some of the big transfers play this season.
Memphis Depay, Manchester United
Manchester United needed to go out and get players that could score after Falcao and Van Persie flopped last season. Memphis Depay from PSV was an excellent young talent that could grow into Manchester United’s system. He has not lived up to hopes and dreams that Louis Van Gaal had envisioned. The 21 year-old play has been less than sup-par, being subbed out at half time on Oct. 3rd in addition to only playing one of the following six games after that. In addition to his bad play and struggling internationally (leading to him to not having been selected), Depay has been hitting the nightlife in Manchester a bit more often than fans would like to see. Many people have said that Depay will perform better, but he just needs about a year to adjust (something Manchester United does not have time for). For now, Depay should get in contact with Manziel if he wants to be a must see at every night club.
Grade: D
Kevin De Bruyne, Manchester City
What a young talent De Bruyne has been for Manchester City. After becoming the second most expensive player in English football history ($57.49 million transfer fee from VfL Wolfsburg), De Bruyne has tallied six goals and six assists in 14 premier league games. His play has been so crucial to Manchester City, that even Sergio Aguero has taken notice. Aguero stated to City’s website that, “”As I say, he is a great player and it’s really important he settles in and shows us what he can do and he’s also a great lad off the field as well so I’m looking forward to playing alongside him again.” Manchester City currently sit in third place on the table and well within striking distance of first place team Leicester City.
Grade: A
Roberto Firmino, Liverpool
This youngster was hailed as the best player in the Bundesliga by Jürgen Klopp, current Liverpool and former Borussia Dortmund manager. Firmino has only played a handful of games for Liverpool, but made a big impact in their previous game against Manchester City, which led to a 4-1 rout. He only has one goal in those five games that he has played in addition to tallying two assists. With more opportunities, Firmino looks to provide a major boosts for the Liverpool attack, filling the void left by the departure of Gerrard and injury prone Sturridge. He needs to play more games though in order to prove that he can fill these voids.
Grade: C
Douglas Costa, Bayern Munich
Bayern Munich bought him for what they call a “bargain” for $31.98 million from FC Shakhtar. Douglas Costa has only had upside for the German Giants. On Nov. 24th, Douglas Costa scored two goals for Bayern along with almost netting a third in a 4-0 win over Olympiakos and clinching a berth for Bayern into the knock-out stage. In addition to this, he is averaging an 8.0 match rating in both Bundesliga and Champions League. It does not matter what Bayern is playing for, Douglas Costa just plays hard no matter what. At only 25 years old and this dominant in competitive play, Bayern Munich has made the steal of the transfer window.
Grade: A
Mario Mandzukic, Juventus
Mario Mandzukic was brought in to fill the hole left by striker Carlos Tevez, who scored 29 goals in all competition for Juventus last season. If anyone could live up to that potential, Juventus made the right move in getting Mandzukic. A talented, tall striker that can score from outside and inside the box as well. Through ten games in all competitions for Juventus, Mandzukic has four goals with no assists. In addition to this, he has only received a rating of above 7 only three times in the past ten games dating back to September 12th. He will need to step it up in the coming months in order for Juventus’s investment to pay off.
Grade: D
Angel Di Maria, PSG
Finally rid of the frustrations that plagued him at Manchester United, Angel Di Maria can finally focus on playing his best football. Through 11 games with PSG, Di Maria has scored a total of five goals and assisted on three. To put this in perspective when he was on Manchester United, Di Maria scored only three times and assisted on ten goals. He is well on track to eclipse his totals at Manchester United with PSG. In addition to this, he has felt more comfortable at PSG as well. He has numerously made comparisons between the two clubs and always holds PSG to a high standard than he ever felt for Louis Van Gaal and Manchester United.
Grade: B
Radamel Falcao, Chelsea
Remember when Falcao was in the conversation for best player in the world in 2012? Remember when he was the most sought after striker when he was playing for Atletico Madrid? What ever happened to that? He has been one of the biggest busts since leaving Atletico Madrid. He was loaned out to Manchester United where he underperformed throughout the season, and then loaned out to Chelsea where his struggles continue. It’s time to face facts and realize that Falcao has not been like himself since his ACL tear and will never return to that form…..Well, at least not in the Premier League.
Grade: F
This is only one of many transfer breakdowns with grades. Next week another seven will be released with their grades.
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