Premier League Transfer Window Recap: FPL Impact of the Biggest Summer Signings
It was a mad dash to the end of the summer transfer window and plenty of talented players have moved to the Premier League in recent days. Spurs and Crystal Palace got new midfield maestros, Newcastle got their Alexander Isak replacement and Manchester City brought in a Champions League-winning goalkeeper among other moves to end the window Monday.
Let's take a look at the most important moves for FPL purposes to wrap up the summer window.
The RotoWire News page has notes on every transfer made across the top five European leagues
GOALKEEPERS
Gianluigi Donnarumma, Manchester City
Despite bringing in James Trafford for a British record fee earlier in the window, City added Donnarumma following the departure of Ederson. Only 26 years old, Donnarumma has been a first-choice goalkeeper since 2015 and brings a wealth of experience to City which includes a Champions League title with PSG mere months ago.
Trafford has been shaky through the opening three matches, meaning Donnarumma could and probably should enter the starting XI immediately following the international break, putting him into the conversation as a top addition.
Fantrax/Sleeper Tip: While I generally prefer a streaming approach at the position, a chance to get City's No. 1 goalkeeper each week does have it's appeal.
DEFENDERS
Piero Hincapie, Arsenal
Bayer Leverkusen's summer purge continued as Hincapie was the latest exile at the club joining Arsenal. Hincapie is a left-footed center-back who can also slide over to left-back when asked, though he lacks a ton of attacking prowess in that role.
Likely a depth piece behind Riccardo Calafiori and others, Hincapie provides excellent cover for the Gunners and protection for the Italian after Calafiori made just 19 appearances last season.
Alex Jimenez, Bournemouth
Jimenez is a talented full-back prospect who joins Bournemouth on loan after making 22 Serie A appearances with AC Milan in 2024/25. The full-back has some attacking upside in his boots as he provided 37 crosses, 12 chances created and an assist last campaign.
Capable of playing on both flanks, the main question Jimenez faces is playing time as he makes the move to the Premier League. Adrien Truffert is locked into left-back, but 34-year-old Adam Smith is merely a veteran presence ahead of the inexperienced Julian Araujo. Given that this was a late move, it's expected Jimenez will fight with Smith and eventually take over the starting job at right-back.
Fantrax/Sleeper Tip: In addition to Smith getting injured last game, there's a chance Jimenez starts in an upcoming match, making him a reasonable waiver add.
MIDFIELDERS
Xavi Simons, Tottenham Hotspur
Spurs were dealt a big blow when James Maddison was ruled out for the season due to an ACL tear just before the Premier League season started. Enter Simons who may be the perfect like-for-like replacement in attacking midfield after Spurs were able to hijack his move to Chelsea and bring him to the north side of London instead.
Simons has had 36 goal involvements in the Bundesliga over the past two seasons with RB Leipzig to go with 130 chances created, 131 shots and 156 crosses boosted by a role on set pieces. Simons brings the creative flair that Spurs currently lack in the space behind the striker and the dynamo is set up perfectly to be an every week starter both in real life and in fantasy.
Fantrax/Sleeper Tip: Maddison had been a pick in the top three rounds throughout his career and Simons is more than capable of providing that same type of value immediately. Blow the budget to get him.
Yeremy Pino, Crystal Palace
Like Spurs, Palace lost their talisman in Eberechi Eze, which wasn't entirely unexpected, and they've done well to bring in a similar type player to replace him. While Pino has never shown the same type of upside that Eze possesses, he's a similar player stylistically who had 11 goal involvements from 29 shots, 38 chances created and 47 crosses over 34 appearances in La Liga last season.
Pino isn't going to provide the same FPL value as Eze, but he will play in an attacking role at Palace and could end up with a set-piece role that would boost his floor.
Fantrax/Sleeper Tip: Think of Pino as a mid-round pick in drafts and you'll be happy with the production he can provide.
Tyler Dibling, Everton
Unlike the previous two midfielders, Dibling is not assured of a role in the starting XI with Jack Grealish's fast start to life at Everton and Iliman Ndiaye arguably being Everton's best player. Dibling is one to watch, however, as he's really the only out and out right-sided player on this Everton roster. At a minimum, as a pure dribbler, he should be able to learn plenty from working with Grealish and will get more time as the season moves along.
The winger flashed talent during his time at Southampton linking him with a move to the likes of Manchester City in the past year.
Fantrax/Sleeper Tip: Dibling has never shown much goal upside, but he's a capable shot taker and chance creator and is a worthy depth option for fantasy managers if he can carve out consistent playing time.
FORWARDS
Nick Woltemade, Newcastle United
Due to the Alexander Isak saga, Newcastle were desperate to add a striker and pulled in Woltemade for a club-record transfer fee from Stuttgart in the Bundesliga. Woltemade had a breakout 2024/25 in Germany, scoring 12 goals and providing two assists while firing 42 shots and creating 37 chances across 28 appearances.
The situation is set up perfectly for Woltemade to start right away with Will Osula the only other pure striker on the roster after his move to the Bundesliga didn't work on Deadline Day.
Fantrax/Sleeper Tip: Woltemade is one of the rare forwards who is likely to be readily available on waivers and should have an excellent chance to reach double-digit goals for his new club.
Randal Kolo Muani, Tottenham
The strong end to the window for Spurs continued as they landed Kolo Muani on loan from PSG. A talented attacker, the Frenchman was sought after by Juventus following a successful loan spell last campaign in which he scored eight goals and provided an assist in just 16 Serie A appearances over half a season.
A versatile striker who never worked at PSG, Kolo Muani has a chance to start right away while also providing depth at the position alongside Dominic Solanke and Richarlison. He's only a few seasons removed from the 15-goal, 11-assist season at Eintracht Frankfurt, but playing time at PSG has been the main concern in the past few years.
Fantrax/Sleeper Tip: There is a question of immediate role, especially since he has no real minutes on his legs this season. Thomas Frank has multiple options to use in his attack and there's a chance he'll rotate plenty with Champions League beginning later in the month, making it a bit of a headache for fantasy purposes.
Brian Brobbey, Sunderland
Brobbey makes the move to Sunderland, joining after spending the majority of his career with Ajax. The forward has talent in his boots, having had 26 goal involvements in 30 appearances during the 23/24 season, but struggled last year as that number fell to just eight goal involvements in the same amount of games.
On paper, Brobbey is the most talented forward at Sunderland, though his upside is capped playing for a side that will be underdogs in the majority of matches. He was a late addition after it was clear Marc Guiu would be returning to Chelsea.
Fantrax/Sleeper Tip: Similar to Guiu, starts and minutes are far from guaranteed. Sunderland are oddly deep. Eliezer Mayenda started the first three matches at striker, while Wilson Isidor scored in two matches off the bench. No matter who starts in this attack, it doesn't seem like 70-plus minutes is a given.
Final Thoughts: The Best FPL Picks from the Summer Transfer Window
The players making the biggest impact in FPL are the ones with likely minutes guaranteed coming out of the international break. Using the RotoWire lineup page is one way to help, but some of the player decisions won't be made until the club's final training session.
Pino already made an appearance for Crystal Palace and is almost a lock to start now that Ismaila Sarr is injured.
The situation is a little less clear with Woltemade since Yoane Wissa is there as well. However, Woltemade has already played a league game this season whereas Wissa has not.
Simons is another question since he'll spend most of the international break with Netherlands. While he may be fit, it's hard to see him moving into the starting XI with only a couple days of training at Tottenham.
