Top 10 Premier League signings of the season headlined by Xhaka, Zubimendi

December 11, 2025
10:46 pm

We’ve ranked the top 10 Premier League signings of the 2025/26 season, with Granit Xhaka, Joao Palhinha and Martin Zubimendi among the new stars proving just how important it is for clubs to go all out on an elite defensive midfielder.

Arsenal spent big on Zubimendi and it’s instantly paid off, with those around him taking their game to another level, namely Declan Rice.

Sunderland, meanwhile, were ambitious enough to convince Xhaka to return to the Premier League. They immediately gave him the captaincy, and his leadership and quality have elevated the Black Cats.

Players like Adrien Truffert have seamlessly replaced key figures and made Bournemouth’s former left-back Milos Kerkez look even worse, both on the pitch and by comparison.

Anyway, signings of the season ahoy. Here’s our Premier League top 10. Click here for those signings who might just be a bit sh*t.

10) Nordi Mukiele (Sunderland, £9.5m)

If we’re being brutally honest, the signing of Mukiele seemed nailed on to be a waste of time and money. It’s been anything but.

Coming from Paris Saint-Germain after being loaned to Bayer Leverkusen, he looked destined to flop.

With 2.70 tackles, 1.46 interceptions and 6.15 clearances per game, plus a 70.7% aerial duel success rate, the Frenchman has adapted seamlessly to Premier League football. He’s excelled in both a back four and five under Regis Le Bris.

9) Mohammed Kudus (Tottenham Hotspur)

Kudus is actually the highest-rated new signing on WhoScored, and despite a topsy-turvy start to the season for Spurs, they have two players in this ranking of the top 10 Premier League signings of the summer.

The Ghanaian winger has registered five assists and two goals in 14 appearances and is quickly establishing himself as one of Thomas Frank’s most important players. As is Xavi Simons. But he’s not done enough yet to break into this ranking.

READ: Ranking the 20 biggest PL summer transfers as Gyokeres falls below Wirtz

8) Adrien Truffert (Bournemouth, £11.4m)

We’ve already mentioned Truffert’s terrific form for Bournemouth after replacing the popular Kerkez. It was a daunting task for a player with no Premier League experience, but he’s had no issues adapting, while Kerkez has struggled with the step up to Liverpool. He is getting better, but Andy Robertson should probably be starting ahead of him.

Bournemouth started the season well despite losing Dean Huijsen, Illia Zabarnyi, Kepa Arrizabalaga and Kerkez in the summer. They’ve gone off the boil quite significantly, but still…

7) Gianluigi Donnarumma (Manchester City, £26m)

Man City signed arguably the best goalkeeper in the world for just £26million. That’s probably all that needs to be said.

Yes, Donnarumma isn’t entirely convincing with the ball at his feet, but he’s hardly clumsy. Pep Guardiola wouldn’t sign him if he didn’t fit the plan, even as Pep adapts to a more direct style in his latest football revolution.

The Italian’s presence has spread calm through City’s backline and is a monster of a signing in every sense.

6) Malick Thiaw (Newcastle United, £31.1m)

Nick Woltemade is another Newcastle player who has come in and done well. It would be pretty ironic if they ended up with two players in the top 10 considering how poor the Magpies have been this season. Alas, the German striker is only an honourable mention.

Another German, Malick Thiaw, gets in just ahead. He’s been solid as a rock at the back for Eddie Howe and looks like a snip at only £31.1million.

If Sven Botman can get fit and firing again, this has the potential to be one of the best centre-back partnerships in the Premier League. And with Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento either side of them, one of the best back fours, full stop.

5) Estevao (Chelsea, £28.7m)

He’s better than Lamine Yamal. No, but seriously, this kid is special. The next Neymar? Honestly, maybe.

An agreement between Palmeiras and Chelsea was reached long before the 2025 summer transfer window opened, but Estevao absolutely qualifies. At only 18, he already looks like the Blues’ best winger and has scored big goals against Barcelona and Liverpool.

For an initial £28.7m, this could go down as the biggest bargain of the window when all is said and done. He’s not playing loads of football, but that’s fine for his age.

4) Joao Palhinha (Tottenham Hotspur, loan)

“Palhinha hasn’t got the quality. For a player playing for Tottenham in central midfield, for me, that’s a pass you have to be able to make. He can’t make it… What you’ve got is you’ve got a lack of courage and confidence from certain players, but you’ve also got a lack of ability of certain players.”

Those were the harsh words from Jamie Carragher about the fourth-best Premier League signing of the summer.

Frank knew what he was getting with Palhinha, and as Carragher also noted, he’s done his job brilliantly.

Palhinha is an elite destroyer. He might not be the most technical passer, but in terms of defensive work and positioning, few in the division do it better.

Spurs look far more stable with the former Fulham man, on loan from Bayern Munich, anchoring the midfield in the No.6 role.

F365 SAYS: Sorry Carragher but Joao Palhinha is the wrong Spurs player to criticise

3) Robin Roefs (Sunderland, £9.5m)

Sunderland’s summer business has been a roaring success, and Roefs has been at the heart of it.

The young Dutch goalkeeper has brought calm, composure and confidence between the sticks. We can’t quite believe how good some of Sunderland’s signings have been, and having three of them in this ranking says it all.

2) Martin Zubimendi (Arsenal, £60m)

Premier League pacesetters Arsenal look excellent and Zubimendi is a big reason why.

The Spaniard has slotted perfectly into the No.6 role, freeing Declan Rice to push forward and setting off a domino effect that’s lifted Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard too.

He keeps things ticking over beautifully, with the defensive steel Mikel Arteta craves. It will take something special to reach Rodri levels of control, but Zubimendi might be the final piece of Arsenal’s title-winning puzzle.

1) Granit Xhaka (Sunderland, £13m)

Premier League signing of the season: Granit Xhaka.

We couldn’t believe Xhaka wanted to swap Bayer Leverkusen for Sunderland, especially given the record of newly promoted sides. But his arrival has gone a long way to ensuring the Black Cats buck that trend.

Le Bris’ side are ninth with 23 points from 15 games and are proving to be sticky opposition for most teams.

The Switzerland and Sunderland captain is clearly a level above his teammates and looks one of the best No.6s in the league, underlining just how vital that position has become.

It’s no coincidence that Zubimendi, Palhinha and Xhaka are all in this top 10, and that Rodri won the Ballon d’Or last year. The defensive midfield role has become the position every manager wants to build around.