The forces of change in football are often unseen, slow-moving and beyond our control.
But if there’s one way to accelerate them, intentionally or not, it’s unquestionably via the transfer market. And whilst countless signings have played a hand in transforming their Premier League employers throughout its 25-year history, for better or worse, some signings have gone that one step further – changing the dynamics of the division itself.
Whether instigating a tactical shift, a change in mindset or ushering in a new era, these seven transfers all played intrinsic roles in shaping the division as we know it today.
Lauren to Arsenal – 2000
Today, the Premier League is awash with full-backs who act almost as wingers, bombing down the touchline to provide space and width for the midfielder in front of them to tuck inside. But back in summer 2003, that was a relatively uncommon idea – in fact, the right-back position was generally occupied by the worst player in the team, expected to put in the leg-work, make some meaty challenges and eventually pick up a booking.
But Arsene Wenger’s swoop for then-Mallorca midfielder Lauren soon changed all that. With one-time reserves forward Ashley Cole asked to make a similar transition on the opposite side, overlapping full-backs became a defining feature of Arsenal’s attacking play as the Invincibles carved up the Premier League in unprecedented unbeaten fashion.
That not only lead to Arsenal’s 2003/04 squad becoming arguably the greatest side in Premier League history over the course of a single season, but also accelerated a trend of dynamic full-backs that’s now commonplace throughout the division today.
Didier Drogba to Chelsea – 2004
Didier Drogba’s 2004 arrival at Chelsea not only helped transform the Blues almost instantaneously into one of the Premier League’s most dominant forces, winning four titles during his two spells at the west London club, but also changed the tactical landscape of the division for the next ten years – the dynamics only truly moved again at the start of last season with the introduction of Antonio Conte’s 3-4-3.
Indeed, the appointment of Jose Mourinho brought a new way of tactical thinking to the English top flight; chiefly, a rejection of the age-old 4-4-2 formation for an extra body in midfield, allowing for greater control of midfield and the consequential possession to pin teams back.
That, however, required a striker large, aggressive and potent enough to essentially do the work of two centre-forwards, whilst having the power and strength to bring the midfield into the game.
Drogba fitted that bill perfectly and as the rest of the Premier League soon embraced 4-3-3 and 4-5-1 as a consequence of Chelsea’s resounding success under Mourinho, pint-sized poachers quickly began to fade away – the age of little-n-large combos coming to an abrupt end.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to Manchester United – 1996
The Premier League is very much a squad game these days, but Sir Alex Ferguson was one of the first to truly cotton onto that trend. His ability to not only pick the right players for the right game but also keep happy those who’d resultantly been left out was always exceptional, as was his ability to change the game from the bench.
Curiously, the Premier League increased the substitutes capacity to five during the same year Ole Gunnar Solskjaer arrived at Old Trafford from little-known Molde in 1996. And whilst the Norway international always struggled to claim a place in the starting XI over the likes of Andy Cole, Dwight Yorke and Teddy Sheringham, he offered United something truly unique as the Premier League’s first standout super-sub.
Even to this day, Solskjaer ranks joint-second for most goals from the bench in Premier League history, producing 17 from 83 substitute appearances – many of which happened to be winners.
Fast forward to present day and super-subs can be seen in practically every Premier League squad but particularly those at the top end of the table. Last season, Chelsea often turned to Cesc Fabregas to change the game from the bench, whereas Olivier Giroud netted an impressive six substitute goals for Arsenal.
Robinho to Manchester City – 2008
Robinho’s Premier League career may have been unexpectedly short-lived, lasting just 18 months at Manchester City, but his shock move signified a dramatic shift in the balance of power in the English top flight, arriving from Real Madrid on the same day the Abu Dhabi United Investment Group purchased the Citizens.
The Brazilian provided a real eye-opener for what was to come at the Etihad Stadium; not only players of the highest calibre but particularly aesthetic and glamorous ones at that.
The £32million deal – at the time, one of the biggest transfer fees in Premier League history – also announced City as the latest member of the elite at the very top of the English game, funded by stupidly rich owners who were capable of spending in the transfer market to an unprecedented level.
Robinho was very much the trailblazer for all the exotic, ludicrously expensive signings to follow and the key to City attracting players of that top-class calibre. They’ve now spent over £1billion during the Sheik-owned era – including a world-record breaking £174million last summer alone.
Steve McManaman to Real Madrid – 1999
Following its introduction in 1995, the Bosman ruling wasn’t being taken advantage of by Europe’s biggest talents, particularly those in the Premier League. So when Steve McManaman left Liverpool for Real Madrid by way of a free transfer in 1999, the move sent shockwaves throughout English football.
It proved to be a watershed moment for not only professional footballers, who suddenly realised they had the power to dictate terms to their employers, but also Liverpool Football Club.
The decline at Anfield from the end of the 1980s was already underway, but McManaman ditching his boyhood club for Real Madrid was a real sign of the times, kickstarting a trend Liverpool have never truly arrested since – namely, their key players quitting Merseyside for Europe’s most illustrious clubs. Michael Owen would follow not long after, whilst Luis Suarez to Barcelona provides the most recent example.
More detrimentally, McManaman’s decision to take advantage of the relatively recent ruling increased its notoriety throughout the footballing world, partly leading to the situation today where player wages have escalated beyond all proportion – power shifting away from the clubs and into the hands of footballers and their agents. Of course, that can’t all be put on Jean-Marc Bosman’s doorstep let alone McManaman’s. But for two huge reasons, his free transfer to the Bernabeu has shaped much of the Premier League as we see it today.
N’Golo Kante to Leicester City – 2015
Leicester City’s title triumph is without a doubt one of the greatest miracles in sporting history, let alone throughout the last 25 years of the Premier League.
Whilst a whole raft of factors collided together to create a perfect storm that saw a side narrowly avoid relegation the season previous to beat some of the richest clubs in the world to the Premier League title, there is little doubt it wouldn’t have been possible without the £5.6million acquisition of little-known N’Golo Kante from Caen.
A small fee for a particularly small player, one who had been turned down by big clubs before because of his height, but the Frenchman’s influence was nothing short of ginormous.
His relentless energy not only protected a largely average back four but also allowed for Leicester to play unfashionably with two in central midfield and two up front, which created the dynamics for Jamie Vardy to play off Leonardo Uchoa and penetrate the space behind opposition defences.
Kante now plies his trade with Chelsea and last season became the first player ever to win consecutive Premier League titles with two different clubs. That was no coincidence either; utilising Kante’s incredible workrate once again, Antonio Conte also opted for two in the engine room in his 3-4-3 formation – freeing room for another attacking presence in the final third.
Eric Cantona to Manchester United – 1992
Eric Cantona arrived in English football a matter of months before the first Premier League season, rather ironically joining the bitter rivals of the club he’s now synonymous with – Leeds United. But the Frenchman couldn’t settle at Elland Road and just a few months into the inaugural Premier League campaign, he crossed the divide in a £1.2million move to Manchester United.
That would be where Cantona not only established himself as a Premier League and Manchester United legend, winning four out of the first five Premier League titles to earn the title ‘King Eric’, but also where he showed English football the enormous potential in attracting players from abroad – something the newly increasing wealth of the English top flight suddenly facilitated.
During the first Premier League season, just 28% of the players in the division weren’t English – and the majority of those were from either the rest of the British Isles or Ireland. Last season, from the 543 players to feature in the top flight, just 34% of the players were eligible to play for the England national team.
Whether that’s a good or bad thing remains a never-ending debate, but there is no question Cantona’s talismanic performances for United made the rest of the Premier League realise the level of talent available abroad. He was one of the first steps in turning the Premier League into the most international, competitive and exciting top flight in world football.
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