The summer transfer market was full of surprises, twists, unexpected moves but also great champions who joined great teams.

Fabrizio Romano articles

These are my five favourite transfers of a session full of emotions; it wasn't easy to choose because there were so many important signings, but these are my five favourites in no particular order.

Robert Lewandowski to Barcelona

A historic deal, because Robert is among the best goal scorers in recent history also in the Champions League and the excitement of the Barça fans after a negotiation lasting over 4 months will remain unforgettable.

Barcelona had an agreement with Lewandowski and his agent Pini Zahavi since the end of February, the negotiation with Bayern was difficult but this is a deal that will be remembered for many years given the impact of Robert on Barça from the first game.


Erling Haaland to Manchester City

The difficulty of this deal made it special. Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern, Liverpool... they all wanted Erling Haaland but Manchester City were excellent in handling the negotiation.

Ferran Soriano, Txiki Begiristain and in particular Pep Guardiola have been working for months to bring Erling Haaland to Man City given the offers from multiple clubs around Europe.

The impact was incredible, I had no doubts: he is one of my all time favorite deals in recent years, an excellent player in a club that has an extraordinary ability to plan for the future.


Wesley Fofana to Chelsea

A deal perhaps underrated because the negotiation between Chelsea and Leicester lasted months, but I believe that the Blues with Fofana and Koulibaly have made two excellent deals.

Wesley is a perfect defender for present and future: he has speed, talent, intelligence, physique, he can be a key Chelsea player for many years.

An important economic investment for a defender among the best in the Premier League, wanted by Thomas Tuchel and Todd Boehly with great conviction.

I'm sure Chelsea will be happy with this deal for many years, even those who played with Fofana at Leicester commented to me on this deal as a very clever move by the Blues.


Sadio Mané to Bayern Munich

A top-level champion signed on excellent economic conditions.

Bayern have completed a top deal by signing Sadio Mané for €32m plus add-ons, I think it is the perfect step for Mané after so many incredible years at Liverpool and also an ideal choice for Bayern who needed a new leader for Julian Nagelsmann.

The planning was perfect: Mané had communicated his decision to leave the club right after the Champions League final to Liverpool, Bayern reached an agreement with the Senegalese star and Darwin Nunez arrived at Liverpool as his replacement immediately afterwards so as to avoid problems for Reds.

Everyone is happy, especially Mané who will try a new experience in the Bundesliga and can be a key player for Bayern also in the Champions League. A first level piece of business.


Aurelien Tchouameni to Real Madrid

An example of perfect planning by Real Madrid. Tchouameni was on the Paris Saint-Germain list, Jurgen Klopp tried in every way to convince him to join the Liverpool project but Real have signed one of the most promising midfielders in Europe.

The overall package is €100m add-ons included, but the departure of Casemiro makes this deal an already smart move for the present and not just for the future.

As always, when deals are completed in June they are often underrated in overall market valuations; but I think Real Madrid by signing Tchouameni have done a real masterpiece.


*Credit for all of the photos in this article belongs to AP Photo*

 

FIRST PUBLISHED: 5th September 2022

Fabrizio Romano is an Italian sports journalist. He was born in 1993, he lives in Milan and has over 30 million followers in total on the major social networks.

 

He collaborates with 888sport, CBS Sports, Sky Sport, The Guardian and has been a transfer market expert since 2011. He will take care of a column dedicated to some "Behind the Scenes" of transfers.