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Summer 2025 has seen billions spent in the transfer market, with Florian Wirtz, Benjamin Sesko and Martin Zubimendi all making big money moves to the Premier League.
Not all moves can be record breakers and piggy bank smashers though. Some pieces of business will fall under the radar as sides prepare for another long and intense season of football, with nine of the 20 sides in the league preparing for European football.
Spotlights deserve to be shone on some of the smartest and underrated moves made so far this summer, and as the window winds to a close, now seems the perfect time to do so.
Johan Bakayoko
Belgian winger Johan Bakayoko departed PSV after six successful years on their books, winning the Eredivise Talent of the Year in 2024 and five trophies, including back to back league titles in 2024 and 2025. His electric pace and agility saw him linked to sides all across Europe in past seasons, such as Arsenal, Bayern Munich and Tottenham Hotspur. After falling out of favour last season though, Bakayoko only started 17 games and played 30 all together, but still managed to contribute 10 goals and assists in the league.
After a strange down season that saw him regress from his excellent 2023/24 season that saw him grab 21 goals and assists in 29 starts (33 appearances), the calibre of side in for the young Belgian dipped slightly, but still maintained interest from major German sides Bayer Leverkusen and RB Leipzig. After rejecting Erik Ten Hag after a more than convincing proposal from Jürgen Klopp, Leipzig were able to bag his signature on a deal until 2030.
What’s most impressive is that despite the bump in the road the 22-year-old, Leipzig were able to snatch him up for just £19m to bring his talents to Red Bull Arena. For such a marginal fee for a player of Bakayoko’s age, quality and profile is some expert business for a player that will undeniably add lots of quality and threat to Die Rotten Bullen’s attack.
Roony Bardghji
Creative attacker Roony Bardghji made his Copenhagen debut aged 16 years and six days old in November 2021, making him the Danish side’s youngest ever player. That season, the talented winger went on to play 13 games, impressively starting 10 of them, grabbing two goals for himself as he began to make his name. The Swede, though originally born in Kuwait, would then develop a cult following through the popular video game Football Manager, becoming a go-to signing for players across the globe for his immense potential and quality in the game. He then began to show this quality in real life too, showing glimpses of a top class winger that would attract eyes from across Europe.
A cruciate ligament tear would cause a major bump in the road for his development though, taking him out the game in April 2024 and wouldn’t return until March 2025. It disrupted what could have been a monumental season for the then 18-year-old, who was on track for his first season hitting double figures in goals and assists, but instead finished on seven, which is still a career best for the lad.
His injury problems didn’t prevent Barcelona taking a punt on him this summer, splashing €2 million for his services. However, his future at the club quickly had a black cloud over it, with reports suggesting he may have to depart the club on loan or face a spell on the sidelines as Barça cannot register him yet ahead of new season due to La Liga’s strict wage rules. As of writing, the Catalan club are attempting to shift on the likes of Iñaki Peña, Héctor Fort and Oriol Romeu to make room for him, alongside Wojciech Szczesny and Gerard Martín. Reports suggest Bardghji is hopeful his new side can get the funds to register him so he can play with the likes of Lamine Yamal, Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha in Barça’s frontline this campaign.
Regardless of wether Bardghji will be registered for at least the first part of the season or not, picking up a player of his ability and potential for such a small fee is excellent business for what may just be a future superstar- a profile they’re oh so familiar with down their right-hand side. If the club can register him and he can stay fit, Bardghji will certainly be a great addition to their dynamic attack, with a magical left foot and some explosive dribbling skills that can worry any full-back when the ball is at his feet.
Arnaud Kalimuendo
After three successful seasons at Stade Rennais in Ligue 1, enjoying the best of the three last season with 17 goals and three assists, Arnaud Kalimuendo has ventured out of France for the first time in his career to give English football a go with UEFA Europa League side Nottingham Forest. Standing at five foot nine inches, physically the Frenchman is certainly a different profile to talisman Chris Wood, but with a sharp eye for goal and intelligence in the box he can still draw some similarities to the New Zealand international.
At 33 years old and turning 34 in December, Wood’s years at the top level- despite his excellent season last year with a career best 20 Premier League goals- could be limited. It may end up being the case that Kalimuendo, a product of PSG’s lucrative academy, is the long term heir for Wood, given he’s just 23 years old and is yet to reach his peak. In the short term, he’ll still offer great competition for the former Burnley and Newcastle striker and will help Forest balance a Europa League push alongside remaining competitive on the Premier League, where they’ll be looking to build from their 7th place finish last season.
£26 million for a proven goalscorer at still such a young age is a fantastic piece of business from the Tricky Trees, especially for someone with a positive injury record- his most recent absence was in 2023, where he missed just under three weeks with a hamstring injury. His addition to the squad may stunt the growth of fellow new striker Igor Jesus, but given the Brazilian’s versatility and young age as he adapts to English football, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the former Botafogo attacker split his minutes across the front three at least throughout this season.
With electric pace and a great work ethic, Kalimuendo promises to be a smart addition to Nuno Espirito Santo’s squad for a respectable fee, especially after their more lofty purchases of Omari Hutchinson and James Mcattee for a combined £67.5 million.
Giacomo Raspadori
Giacomo Raspadori was mainly utilised a squad player during his time in Naples, but limited minutes didn’t prevent the Italian becoming a fan favourite to those at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium. Uniquely donning number 81 on his back, he scored some crucial goals for Antonio Conte’s side last season, including late winners against Fiorentina and Lecce. After three seasons with the club, he’s decided to call time on his stint in Naples, moving abroad for the first time in his career for Diego Simeone’s ferocious Atletico Madrid side.
The Italian wasn’t a natural fit into Antonio Conte’s system, as his best work comes from an advanced midfield role operating as a fluid number 10. He has shown promise as a false nine brand of striker, as he has the technical ability to help join midfield to attack but lacks the height, physicality and clinically to operate as an out-and-out nine, which is why Romelu Lukaku consistently got the nod last season. Simeone’s system similarly doesn’t use an outright number 10, but alongside Antoine Griezmann or Alexander Sørloth he can take the Julián Alvarez role as a supporting striker with a capability to crash the box and offer a goal threat.
Raspadori’s best season came in 2021/22, achieving a career best 14 goals and assists to lead Sassuolo to a respectable 11th place finish. If he can return to his youthful best at Los Rojiblancos, he’ll be another top class addition to an already excellent frontline for Atletico as they look to return to challenging for the La Liga title once again. Perhaps by acquiring is services for just over £22.5 million, the club have one eye on the future, where they may be forced to sell Argentine superstar Julián Alvarez or replace the now 34-year-old Antoine Griezmann, who has showed signs of slowing down. The Frenchman contributed 15 goals and assists last campaign, a steep drop off from the 22 he contributed in 2023/24.
Given his versatility, talent and age, to land his signature- especially off the back of a title winning campaign- for just £22.5 million is a brilliant buy from Atletico. Though he’s yet to make a start under Simeone, in a season where they’ll be competing on four different bases, his minutes and opportunities to shine will certainly come.
Malik Tillman
In one of the most exciting Bundesliga signings of the summer, Mailk Tillman has returned to Germany to become the Florian Wirtz replacement at Bayer Leverkusen. The latter moved to Anfield this summer for a record-breaking £116 million, leaving a creative void in the side Tillman has been brought in to fill. Though it’ll take some work to match Wirtz’s lofty standards, the German-born US international possess bags of potential to do so and some immense talent to bring to last year’s Bundesliga runners-up already.
Tillman broke through at Bayern Munich’s academy, spending nine years on the books there before being sold permanently last summer. In that time, he only made seven senior appearances for the club, but impressed during loan spells at Rangers- where he claimed 14 goals and assists in 28 games for the club in the Scottish Premiership- and PSV, where he had his bests season yet (at least from a stats point of view) in the 2023/24 season before making his move permanent last season. His first season in Eindhoven was excellent, with 19 goals and assists to help the club lift their 25th league title.
14 goals and assist last season, albeit a decline in numbers, helped PSV claim back-to-back league title wins for number 26. He clearly had eyes from his birth nation watching on though, with RB Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen all after him. It would be Erik Ten Hag’s side to snap him up though, offering him another crack at German football ahead of his national side hosting the World Cup next summer.
The 23-year-old will be a natural fit in West Germany, offering creativity and silkiness to an already decent Leverkusen attack, despite the losses of the aforementioned Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong, and Amine Adli. Erik Ten Hag’s reign promises lots of change on and off the pitch, as the club look toward a future without Xabi Alonso and other key figures that contributed to their famous invincible Bundesliga season. Tillman has the capability to be the face of the new project though, with the talent and time to become a top class talent that can make Leverkusen competitive again.
