The five best summer signings in Europe so far
FT Desk
- Updated: 21 Sept 2022 20:01 BST
- 4 min read
The 2022 summer transfer window was like no other, with Premier League clubs breaking all kinds of records.
Never before had England's top-flight sides spent so much money, with Chelsea having the biggest window of any club in history.
But also on the continent there were some blockbuster transfers, with teams in Spain, Italy, France and Germany making some memorable signings.
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Almost two months into the 2022-23 season, FootballTransfers picks out five new arrivals who are shining.
Erling Haaland (Man City)
Arguably the signing of the summer so far, Erling Haaland joined Man City from Borussia Dortmund for €60 million after the English champions paid his release clause.
That is already looking like one of the bargains of the century as Haaland has taken the Premier League by storm.
He already has plundered 11 goals in seven league games – and 14 goals in 10 matches in all competitions.
He is scoring at a rate of a goal every 52 minutes, and has already scored back-to-back hat-tricks. A monster of a footballer.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (Napoli)
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia has been the breakout star this season not just in Serie A, but arguably in all of Europe.
The 21-year-old winger joined Napoli from Dinamo Batumi for €10m and has wreaked havoc in Italy and abroad in the early weeks.
He has scored four goals and provided two assists from nine games, and has been unplayable at times with his direct running, dribbling and searing pace.
Napoli are top of Serie A and memorably thrashed Liverpool 4-1 in the Champions League, with Kvaratskhelia their star man. A superstar of the future.
Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona)
Only Haaland has scored more goals in Europe this season so far than Lewandowski, who also can’t stop scoring at his new club.
Lewandowski joined Barca for €45m plus €5m in add-ons and, despite his age of 34, he is proving money well spent.
He has already scored 11 goals in all competitions from just eight appearances, also producing two assists.
Fifty-goal seasons for both Haaland and Lewandowski are very much possible in 2022-23.
Gabriel Jesus (Arsenal)
Gabriel Jesus hasn’t been as prolific as Haaland, but he has had an equally positive impact on his new team following his big-money move from Man City.
The Brazilian has scored four goals in seven games to take Arsenal to the top of the Premier League after seven matches.
Jesus has shown himself to not only be a goalscoring threat but fantastic in holding up the ball, bringing others to play and with his all-round movement.
Arsenal have moved on to the next level thanks to the striker.
Another Arsenal-owned player on this list, Folarin Balogun is spending the 2022-23 season on loan at Reims.
The England Under-21 international has been unable to find much space at Arsenal but he has certainly broken out in Ligue 1.
Balogun has already scored five goals from just eight appearances, six of them from the start.
In the process, Balogun became the first Reims player to score at least five goals in his first six Ligue 1 games since Carlos Bianchi back in 1973.
Read more about: La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Premier League, Arsenal, Barcelona, Man City, Napoli, Reims, Erling Haaland, Folarin Balogun, Gabriel Jesus, Robert Lewandowski
