ALVARO NEGREDO
Manchester City
Nationality Spanish
Position Striker
Fee £20.6m
Age 27
I have known Negredo since he was a teenager at Rayo Vallecano before he was picked up by Real Madrid. I coached him again at Sevilla last season.
He has needed this move for a while now. It looked as if it would come a season earlier and I think it was on his mind last year while still at Sevilla. Now he finally has his chance in the Premier League and he will certainly have no problems adapting to his new environment. He is physically very impressive and he plays superbly with his back to goal as well as running with the ball from deep.
He was playing out wide as a kid at Rayo before he established himself as a centre-forward. As often is the case with Spanish players there is that transition from playing one position at youth level to developing into a slightly different sort of player as a senior.
It gives the players a flexibility which suits a coach who wants to change things tactically during a game. He has not lost that ability to attack from wide: cutting in from the right flank and shooting with his left foot is one of his specialities.
At times he can become a little too static and he needs to offer a little bit more movement off the ball but he will be working with one of the best coaches in the world in Manuel Pellegrini so that will help him.
Michel, coached Negredo at Rayo Vallecano and Sevilla
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MARCO VAN GINKEL
Chelsea
Nationality Dutch
Position Midfield
Fee £8m
Age 20
Van Ginkel has an engine and a physical power that is not normal for such a young kid. He covers a fantastic area of the field from a defensive perspective and, after that, he wants to arrive, he wants to go into finishing areas, he wants to score goals.
He has to learn tactically and even technically he has the space for improvement. But potentially I think the kid is very much adapted to the Premier League: he is very good in the air defensively, also in attack and set-pieces.
He is a kid with great potential. I do not like to compare because I prefer to respect the players who have already achieved a lot. He has things of Frank Lampard, he has things of Steven Gerrard as well but he is just Marco van Ginkel. Two months ago nobody knew who he is and Gerrard is Gerrard and Lampard is Lampard. Do not mess with the kid.
We have Lampard, we have Essien, we have Mikel: experienced players. After that we have this kid [Van Ginkel] who is much younger, we have Ramires. We have De Bruyne, who can also play in these positions. We have quite a multifunctional squad with players that can play in different positions. That is good.
Jose Mourinho, Chelsea manager
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VICTOR WANYAMA
Southampton
Nationality Kenyan
Position Striker
Fee £12.5m
Age 22
Wanyamas are hard to find. You get a player like that only so often – he is up there with the best 22-year-olds I’ve ever seen and is a class player, without question. He has moved up to the Premier League now but I do not think he will be out of place against any opposition. He has got a superb temperament and I think his style will suit the Premier League.
He is technically very good, physically he is a very a good specimen and he can weigh in with his fair share of goals, as well. He is a danger at set-pieces and he will be pivotal to Southampton in both his own penalty area and the opposition’s as well.
Will he settle down there? I don’t think he’ll have a problem because he’s moved to a good club. Can he go on to play at an even bigger club? Yes, I think he can. I could do with him in my team, that’s for sure.”
Neil Lennon, coached Wanyama at Celtic
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