Transfer Roundup Vol. 3

The Transfer Window remains open, and I’ll keep doing weekly Roundups until it closes. These will not replace the other articles, so often you’ll find that I’m citing back to other, more in-depth writing for certainly players (there’s a lot of that here). To get access to all of that, well, it’s in your hands:

Arsenal - Dani Ceballos, MID

Ceballos rejoins Arsenal and I am finally able to put a Gunner in the midfielder ranks. This is a team which will have an identity soon, but it’s not clear today what it will be. If the identity is Dani + 2 in the midfield, the former Real Madrid man is an interesting low-floor, low-ceiling player because of the sheer volume of minutes. Basically nothing else here is interesting. He’s Ruben Neves but on a worse team.

Aston Villa - Matty Cash, DEF

The man’s name is Matty MOTHERF*UCKING CASH. He’s youngish (23) and has a modest but eye-catching attacking resume. Over the past two seasons for Nottingham Forrest he’s had six goals with an assist followed by three goals with five assists. The new Aston Villa man could be in the mix for minutes at right back where he played for Forrest. He could also be in for minutes on the right side of midfield; we need to consider that his most value would be as an out of position player capitalizing on the attacking points. Last year there were only 2-3 players on Villa that were worth regular starts but Cash is one who needs to be on your radar this year should he land a regular spot in the midfield and as a streaming defender option against bottom half opponents.

Everton - James Rodrguez, MID; Allan, MID; Abdoulaye Doucoure, MID

We covered James and Allan in the first Waiver Wire article of the season. That all still stands, in fact their respective positions get stronger with the addition of Watford’s Doucoure who has proved his value in both Premier League and FPL teams already. He is more than capable of posting 7-9 points per game on a regular basis and in a team with more attacking options than his former side Watford, Doucoure could even have a bit more attacking upside. Over the past three years he’s recorded: 4g/4a, 5g/7a, 7g/4a as he’s moved further back into the midfield. With Allan on board, it seems unlikely he’ll need to be the most defensive-minded of this midfield quartet.

Rumors that Wilf Zaha has requested a transfer from Palace to join Carlo Ancelotti’s project at Everton. Zaha joining does not damage the value of any of these players and likely helps both Zaha’s value and Everton’s value as a whole. Last term Lucas Digne’s 5.7 xA led the team with only Richarlison (4.9 xA) coming close to a respectable number in the attack. A front line of Zaha, Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison ahead of the James/Allan/Doucoure midfield is a legitimate attack.

Leeds - Robin Koch, DEF

Hard to see much value in Leeds defense but the Kaiserslautern product will be competing for a starting role in Marcelo Bielsa’s squad. If, like some prominent pundits believe, Bielsa opts for a more pragmatic approach, the Leeds defense could be the value play this season that Sheffield United was last term.

Newcastle - Ryan Fraser, MID; Callum Wilson, FWD

The dynamic duo will look to recapture this form from 2018/19 when they nearly set the record for most goal hook-ups in a season with 12. They are covered extensively in the Waiver Wire post, as well.

Sheffield United - Ethan Ampadu, MID

Ampadu is young, young enough that it’s not a surprise he’s headed back out of Chelsea on loan again. But he’s seasoned enough that playing time here with Sheffield United is a reasonable expectation. Of course, Ampadu has been shattering expectations for a while: the first player born in the 2000’ to make a senior appearance for Chelsea is also, at the time of his debut, the third-youngest Wales international ever. He hasn’t done a lot on the big stage, but here’s what he has done

Right now, he’s a watch with streaming upside but if Chris Wilder trusts him in the center of the pitch he unquestionably has the skillset to merit a spot on your bench and starter as a MID5 with upside.

Wolves - Marcal, DEF

In from Lyon at age 31, Marcal isn’t the type of player you sign unless you’re clear on his role in the team. He is exactly what he is - and what Wolves need - a versatile left-sided defender capable of playing centre-back or off to either side. This signing most directly impacts the value of Romain Saiss, who had been a pre-season value play for many fantasy managers. Marcal should take that value, and merits that same consideration in your drafts. If you’ve already drafted, Marcal is worth a waiver wire add at the tail end of the waivers, and certainly as an add from the FA pool.

Fabio Silva, FWD

I’m loath to include 18 year old newly arrived players in this column simply because it creates a level of expectation. Wolves record signing begs an exception, with the transfer fee alone commanding attention. The young Portuguese may have set records for Porto (these are related to age, he’s not the club recorded scorer) but he has yet to step up beyond the U19 set-up for his home nation. That hasn’t stopped Nuno Espírito Santo and Wolves from bringing him in. There is plenty of time for transfers out of Molineux to open up playing time, but he’s mostly included here because in keeper leagues and dynasty formats he’s worth adding immediately.