FPL Summer Transfer Window 2012 New Signings: Part IV

Is that Scott Parker? No. It's Tottenham's new signing Jan Vertonghen.

We’ve completed Part I, Part II, and Part III of our pre-season Premier League transfer signings preview articles earlier this weekend – so here is our fourth and final installment to round out all 20 Premier League clubs.

We’re taking a look club-by-club [alphabetically] at new signings and giving our take on their potential for fantasy stardom. Each player’s FPL price will follow their name in brackets. Good luck to all fantasy managers.

I. Swansea

New manager, same attractive passing style? We shall see. Boss Michael Laudrup was satisfied with his team’s pre season preparations, and the Dane also made a few interesting summer additions:

Michu [6.5m] came over from Rayo Vallecano and is a tremendous capture for the club. The 26 year old attacking midfielder will have big boots to fill after Gylfi Sigurdsson’s amazing loan spell last season, but he will do his best to combine with returning stars Scott Sinclair [7m] and Danny Graham [6m] up front.

At the back, Jose Manuel Flores [5m] is a nice capture from Genoa. If you can’t find him in the Fantasy Premier League player list, that’s probably because he’s listed as “Chico.” He spent last season on loan at Mallorca and should slot straight into the starting lineup in front of superb goalkeeper Michel Vorm [5.5m].

Finally, Jonathan de Guzman [6m] comes in on a one year loan from Villarreal. He’s an attacking player who played under Laudrup at Mallorca – and if he hogs free kicks and corners, he could end up being a nice fantasy contributor.

II. Tottenham

Another team with a new manager, Tottenham have made two significant captures. Nicely transitioning from Swansea to Tottenham, Gylfi Sigurdsson [9m] comes in to the fold with great expectations as an attacking midfielder alongside Bale [9.5m] and VDV [9M]. Last season, he was the bargain of the Fantasy Premier League – in the 5m range – he starred at Swansea, but he’ll have to share the exploits with the aforementioned VDV and Bale under Villas-Boas. He should receive a fare share of the ball with Modric seemingly close to an exit.

The other big summer move is the addition of Jan Vertonghen [6.5m] from Ajax. The classy defender is a sure starter at CB, and with the loss of Ledley King due to retirement, will be looking to make a big impact. The Belgian scored 10 goals last season for Ajax and if he achieves even half that total this year at Tottenham, he should be a significantly better investment than teammates Kyle Walker and Benoit Assou-Ekotto – both also 6.5m.

III. West Brom

Another team with a new manager – and another team with big summer changes. Steve Clarke comes in and takes over from the successful Roy Hodgson period with hopes of equalling mid-table status.

Up front, Markus Rosenberg [6.5m] comes in on a free from Werder Bremen, and Chelsea’s Romelu Lukaku [6.5m] arrives on a year long loan. Peter Odemwingie [7m] and Shane Long [6m] return, so new manager Clarke has a number of options to choose from up front. Odemwingie is the most expensive, but also the most decorated.

Rosenberg is a Swedish international who scored 10 Bundesliga goals last season, so it will be interesting to see if he combines well with Odemwingie and/or Long and becomes a bargain priced fantasy asset. Speculation only at this point, however.

Ben Foster [5m] of course will start in goal, while midfielders Yassine El Ghanassy – from AA Gent on loan and Claudio Yacob – a transfer from Racing Club de Avellaneda are both priced at 5m. Yacob is an Argentine defensive midfielder who should be avoided for fantasy purposes while El Ghanassy is a Belgian youngster who may not receive regular playing time at the start of the year.

IV. West Ham

Sam Allardyce has been busy this summer as the newly promoted Irons have added to the squad in place with a number of signings with Premier League experience.

Alou Diarra recently joined from Marseille for £2m but has yet to be priced in the Fantasy Premier League – he is a defensive midfielder who won’t be worth owning anyway though his “Real life” value and experience will be important.

James Collins [5m] is a defender with loads of experience, and he comes over from Aston Villa, as is George McCartney [4m] who returns from Sunderland.

Modibo Maiga [5.5m] is a big signing from Sochaux for £5m and the forward will battle it out with similarly priced mainstays Ricardo Vaz Te and Carlton Cole for the goalscoring lead. The Malian was close to a move to Newcastle last season and is a bright prospect who could reward those fantasy managers who take a gamble on him over Cole and Vaz Te. We’ll be taking a wait and see approach.

Mohamed Diame [5m] scored a few wondergoals for Wigan and joins looking for a regular starting role – but he may not get that with Diarra now in town.

Lastly, Jussi Jaaskelainen [4.5m] joins from Bolton on a free. He played for Big Sam at Bolton and will be the #1 keeper.

V. Wigan

Wigan have lost Hugo Rodallega and Mo Diame and haven’t brought in any significant players this summer, which is a bit concerning for a club trying to retain their top flight status once again, but perhaps Ivan Ramis from Real Mallorca and Fraser Fyvie from Aberdeen – both priced at 4.5m in the FPL game, will surprise us. Ramis is a big Spanish defender who should see significant playing time while Fyvie, a midfielder, is only 19 years old, and is one for the future.

Related posts:

1. FPL Summer Transfer Window 2012 New Signings: Part III
2. FPL Summer Transfer Window 2012 New Signings: Part I
3. FPL Summer Transfer Window 2012 New Signings: Part II
4. The Mandatory Transfer Window Gossip Post Part II: Foreign Fantasy Footballers
5. Premier League Transfer Deadline Day Summary: FPL Influence