In the foreign press – The Premier League’s new arrivals from Europe

As more and more new arrivals hit the Premier League ahead of August 9th, Fantasy managers can be left wading through club propaganda, fact-heavy news reports and countless statistics to try and suss out what the latest players are really like on the pitch.

Diving into foreign press from the last couple of year, you find the anecdotes and quotes that really paint a picture of whether the players are fantasy football gold.

I had a look at some of the new names attracting attention from FPL managers and what the foreign-language press has been saying. Focusing on those coming from French and Spanish-speaking countries (because, frankly, I can’t translate any others), hopefully these snippets will help you towards your decisions come next month’s deadline.

Dani Ceballos

Club: Arsenal
Position: Midfield
Price: 5.5m
Teams selected by: 2.7%

Dani Ceballos arrived at Arsenal from Real Madrid on a season-long loan deal having played 56 times since joining Real Madrid from Real Betis.

Looking over Spanish news reports, it’s clear Ceballos’ lack of game-time at Madrid is the reason for his departure, and it’s a lack of minutes that fans aren’t necessarily all too happy about.

On Radio Marca podcasts, hosts admit, “I don’t understand a Real Madrid without Dani Ceballos next season”, whilst another points out that “Real Madrid would pay 100 million euros for Ceballos if he wasn’t at the club”.

Whilst featuring in the Spanish Under-21 side’s 5-0 thumping of Poland, one report wrote: “Ceballos was the showman of the performance of which Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane, who seeks to sell the player, should take note, closing the scoring with a splendid strike.”

Ceballos’ performances at the European Under-21 competition did nothing but further his stock in the Spanish press too. Marca writes: “Dani Ceballos’ performances in the Euro under-21s have just further shown he is a special footballer. A player who is progressing in leaps and bounds every time he gets his chance to prove his talent on the European stage.”

However, it would be wrong to say the Spanish press has always been 100% sympathetic to the midfielder. In September last year, El País published a piece analysing his character, which can be a double-edged sword.

“Ceballos’ short career has always been marked by a peculiar temper, rebellious for the good and the bad […] ‘It’s his character’, explains Pepe Mel, his coach whilst at Real Betis. ‘He has this self-confidence that can be a bit cheeky. That Betis side had problems and needed to pick themselves up. It didn’t weigh on him and even though there were older players in the team, he took the responsibility’, explained the 55-year-old. ‘He has a few rare characteristics, like his cheeky attitude. He isn’t scared on the pitch and won’t ever sit back. He’s up for everything. It’s not usual to see people with such a desire to grow’, sums up Victor Sanchez del Amo, Ceballos’ coach during his last year with Betis.”

Still overwhelmingly positive, it could warn signs of caution to FPL managers. If the going gets tough early on for Ceballos, there is potential to see a more “rebellious” side to the player.

On as.com, one Spanish-speaking journalist spoke about how he predicts Ceballos will slot into the Arsenal set-up: “Arsenal’s footballing philosophy still has roots from the Wenger era. The French coach installed a style of possession-based football which remains today, allowing a player like Ceballos to take centre-stage with his style of playing, and will help him feel involved. Determined and used to the style of football, those are two traits which will only continue to grow.”

Wesley Moraes

Club: Aston Villa
Position: Forward
Price: 6.0m
Teams selected by: 1.5%

A potential budget option for FPL managers looking to spend more on defenders and midfielders, Wesley Moraes could be a name attracting some attention.

Aston Villa’s record signing for £22 million has quite the life story behind him that greatly endeared him to Club Brugge fans – leaving the pitch at the end of last season to rapturous applause.

As great a story his life has already been at 22-years-old, it’s not what fantasy managers are looking for, and the striker’s inconsistency may sway players to look elsewhere.

Walfoot.bet warns, “Wesley Moraes performs well in the big matches, but it’s not always the case against smaller teams.”

Enduring a dry patch for months last season, Moraes didn’t hit the back of the net in the league from October until January, Walfoot.bet writes:

“Wesley doesn’t stop getting better and becoming more and more important with the Club Brugge. He contributes a lot of assists but his goal tally has been stuck at seven since October 30th. ‘Wesley is extremely important for us, his profile is unsurprisingly very interesting for European clubs, but in reality, he doesn’t score enough’, remarked his coach Ivan Leko during a press conference on Friday.”

A flurry of six goals from January to April did follow, although that might not be prolific enough in a lower level league to convince managers.

Rodrigo Hernandez

Club: Manchester City
Position: Midfield
Price: 5.5m
Teams selected by: 1.0%

In an already overcrowded Manchester City midfield, former Atletico Madrid man Rodrigo Hernandez is not getting much attention. Perhaps rightly so, the reliable midfielder is not much of a goal scorer, but having forked out £62.8 million for his services, there must be something there…

In the Spanish press, it’s all about reliability and character when it comes to Rodrigo. El País wrote in 2018: “At Atlético they talk about a player with 95% pass accuracy, who at 22-years-old ‘plays with the wisdom of an old man.”

Although the praise rolls in. In another article the outlet elaborated:
“Never in the Simeone era has a change initiated such a reaction. He’s a different player who improves his team’s relationship with the ball. When his tall figure comes out of challenges with the ball and restarts the game with one touch, he draws applause. ‘He is the type of player the team has needed a long time since the Tiago years passed. Tactically he’s intelligent, he likes to have the ball and play a clean game. For me, he’s Atletico’s greatest signing this year and he’s the best fit, even above Lemar’, says Juan Vizcaíno, part of Simeone’s coaching set-up.”

A midfield-metronome, his reliability may well earn him game time under Guardiola. A lot of websites mention his trademark team-talks, whilst Sport.es reveal more about his style:

“He’s a young and focused kid. He knows his talents and his limits. He’s calm and strong, always thinking with his head.”

“Rodri is a central-midfielder with great placement. He plays the ball, is the complete payer, he can be aggressive too. […] He knows what he has to do in every moment. Defensively, he makes few errors and is very accurate.”

In terms of FPL point returns, there might be little to get excited about. But a hard-working error-less midfielder could quickly earn game time, and if his passing is as good as the Spanish press makes it out to be, who’s to say some assists couldn’t come his way.

Tanguy Ndombele

Club: Spurs
Position: Midfield
Price: 6.0m
Teams selected by: 3.9%

The £55 million 22-year-old arrived at Spurs from Olympique Lyon this summer which saw Spurs break their transfer record.
However, he attracted a mixed back of French press over the course of last season. Maxifoot picked up on his attitude as they quoted Lyon president, Jean-Michel Aulas:

“Certain players are well below their potential, those who are thinking of big transfers at the end of the year aren’t carrying their weight, they must talk yet and act more.”

In another piece, the website suggests he picks and chooses when to perform, “he normally has a tendency to up his game against big opponents.”

It didn’t dissuade Didier Deschamps however, who poured praise on the youngster after calling him up to the French side in October last year.

“He’s a player who is evolving and has a great level. He knows how to do it all, has a great capacity for the game. He is strong and has great technical qualities.”

His coach Bruno Genesio added the following on ici.fr:

“He’s made huge progress this season with his vision and use of the ball. We knew this growth was possible, but it’s always down to the player to succeed in it.’ He is hardworking then, very much so. He inspires others too. ‘He learns from his failures, he’s intelligent. With us, every week he reaches a new level’.”

Pulling the snippets together, Ndombele sounds like a talented youngster who has been ready to move on for a while. But is the impatience he showed at times with Lyon now cured as he starts afresh under Pochettino?

Pablo Fornals

Club: West Ham
Position: Midfield
Price: 6.5m
Teams selected by: 1.3%

West Ham’s Pablo Fornals arrived from Villarreal on a £25 million deal.

It’s fair to say the Spaniard hasn’t attracted a whole lot of media attention and when it does, it’s often in the form of comparisons.

When rumoured to be making his way to Arsenal, sport.es labelled him the “potential successor for Ozil” and El País have dubbed the 23-year-old, “the natural successor to Iniesta”.

The Spanish media giant has also written of his perfectionist personality:
“The most cunning, skilled and versatile player in the under-21 side is a maniac. A perfectionist always riddled with the possibility of an error. Therefore, any misfortune he blames on himself.”

A player with a big future ahead of him, as the Spanish media would lead you to believe, but whether there’s enough proof in points for the big comparisons remains to be seen.