Our transfer round-up looks at some of the recent deals that have taken place in the Premier League, including new Nottingham Forest defender Niccolo Savona (£4.5m).
The most noteworthy arrivals from a Fantasy Premier League (FPL) perspective will always be given their own Scout Reports, while regular round-ups like this one will recap everything else.
John Victor (Botafogo to Nottingham Forest, £10.8m)
Nottingham Forest have completed the signing of goalkeeper John Victor (£4.0m) from Botafogo on a three-year deal.
Forest pipped West Ham United to the punch for the 29-year-old, who will bring competition to Matz Sels (£5.0m). The fee remains undisclosed, but West Ham offered £10m for the Brazilian shot-stopper before Forest’s global head of football, Edu, exploited his good contacts to swoop for his compatriot.
Victor played a key part in Botafogo’s successful 2024 when they won the Brazilian League and Copa Libertadores double, and he also played every minute of his club’s Club World Cup campaign, as they reached the last 16.
The South American started out at Santos, had loan spells at Independiente and Valladolid in Spain, before coming into his own at Botafogo, where, in his first season, he won the Bola do Prato – the Silver Ball awarded by journalists to the second-best player in the Campeonato Brasileiro
At 6ft 5in, Victor is an imposing presence between the sticks, but it is his good footwork that stands out. Much like another Brazilian keeper, Ederson (£5.3m), he is particularly adept at picking out team-mates with long passes, which will be useful when Forest look to capitalise on Chris Wood’s (£7.7m) aerial ability or when seeking to set their flying wingers away on the counter-attack.
Sels’ place is unlikely to be under threat, at least initially. He was last season’s Premier League Golden Glove winner after all. However, Forest have not started the season well defensively and have yet to keep a clean sheet.
Niccolò Savona (Juventus to Nottingham Forest, £11m plus add-ons)
Niccolò Savona has also been added to Nottingham Forest’s burgeoning squad after moving from Juventus on a five-year deal worth £11m plus £3.5m in added fees.
Savona, who was signed before Victor, was Forest’s 10th signing of the summer and the second from the Italian giants after midfielder Douglas Luiz (£5.0m), who arrived on loan.
The 22-year-old defender is a product of the Juve academy who broke into Igor Tudor’s first team last season. He made 19 starts and nine substitute appearances in Serie A, producing two goals and one assist, and also played in seven Champions League matches. He has made three appearances for Italy’s Under-21s and received a call-up to the Azzurri senior squad last November.
Savona’s appeal lies in his versatility. He has spent most of his career as a right-back, but he has also played 34 times at centre-back. At 6ft 4in, he has the size and strength to play in the middle of defence, which is where he made three appearances at this summer’s Club World Cup before picking up an injury against Real Madrid. He has also played three times at left-back.
Savona has been recruited primarily as a full-back, where he will provide cover for Neco Williams and Ola Aina (both £5.0m). He is pacy and athletic with the ability to get up and down the pitch and help Forest offensively as well as at the back.
In terms of his FPL value, the verdict would be to sit tight until he gets a run of matches in the Premier League.
Soungoutou Magassa (Monaco to West Ham United, £17.3m)
West Ham have strengthened their midfield with the signing of Soungoutou Magassa (£5.0m) from Monaco for £17.3m.
The 21-year-old defensive midfielder has agreed terms on a long-term contract after impressing in Ligue 1 over the last two seasons.
Magassa joined Monaco from Paris side FC Gobelins in 2019 and broke into the first team in the 2023/24 season, initially as a centre-back.
The 6ft 2in France Under-21 international ranked second in tackles won in Ligue 1 that campaign and was among the leading defenders for interceptions and progressive passes, which prompted a move into midfield. As a defensive midfielder last season, he ranked first for ball recoveries as Monaco finished second in Ligue 1.
Magassa is exactly the sort of player West Ham have been crying out for, as the central midfield pairing of Tomas Soucek (£5.8m) and James-Ward Prowse (£5.9m) has lacked the necessary athleticism to shield their back line.
However, whether Mangassa is Fantasy material is open to question. While he could well deliver on the defensive contributions front, his attacking input does not really move the dial. He managed one assist and zero goals in his 44 Ligue 1 appearances, although he did manage one goal in his seven Champions League appearances.
Matheus Fernandes (Southampton to West Ham United, £40m)
Matheus Fernandes (£5.5m) is another player who has been recruited to strengthen West Ham’s midfield.
The Portugal Under-21 international has agreed a five-year deal for a fee believed to be in the region of £40m after moving from Southampton.
Fernandes was one of the few bright spots in the Saints’ relegation-doomed campaign last season, when he contributed 95 Fantasy points, placing him second only to Aaron Ramsdale (£5.0m) at the club.
He was top among his Southampton team-mates for goal attempts (42), chances created (34), crosses (113), successful corners (19) and successful free-kicks (5) taken, suggesting he can bring some offensive quality to the West Ham attack.
At the other end of the pitch, his 336 defensive contributions would have placed him 12th among midfielders for that metric had it been in place in FPL last season. Only Jan Bednarek and Taylor Harwood-Bellis would have bettered Fernandes’ 14 defensive contributions (DefCon) points among his teammates in 2023/24.
Fernandes has already made an impact at his new club, playing for 79 minutes in the Hammers’ first win of the season. The 22-year-old played well on the left of midfield as Graham Potter shifted from a 3-4-1-2 formation of the first two Gameweeks to a 4-2-3-1.
It should be noted that West Ham’s three goals all came after Fernandes had been substituted off, but he came agonisingly close to earning extra defensive contribution points; his 11 DefCons was behind only Lucas Paquetá (£5.9m) among his new team-mates, falling one point of the extra two FPL points.
Fernandes can play all the way across the midfield, but he has thrived in a central midfield role. Perhaps over time we will see him partnering Soungoutou Magassa in the middle, but what does seem certain is that, having been thrown in as a starter in Gameweek 3, he will be a regular in Potter’s team.
With Ward-Prowse on set-piece duties (three successful corners out of four in Gameweek 3) for now, Fernandes does not yet quite offer enough of an offensive threat to warrant selection, but should Ward-Prowse lose his place to Fernandes, who took one corner on his debut, the Portuguese could enter into the reckoning as a potential budget midfielder.
Ladislav Krejci (Girona to Wolverhampton Wanderers, £5m loan)
Wolves have confirmed the signing of Girona defender Ladislav Krejci (£4.5m) in a deal that is eventually likely to cost around £26m.
The signing will automatically become a permanent one next summer for a further £21m if clauses are triggered, but Wolves expect to activate an option to buy in any event.
Krejci started his career in the Czech Republic playing for Zbrojovka Brno before moving to Sparta Prague in 2019. He joined Girona in 2023.
Head coach Vitor Pereira has moved for the Czech international to provide cover for Toti (£4.5m), with a left-footed central defender key to the way he likes his Wolves side to build up from the back.
Krejci will also provide competition for Emmanuel Agbadou (£4.5m), who has struggled to match the levels of last season and has been a key factor in Wolves’ disappointing start to this campaign.
Krejci has been praised for both his left-footedness, his versatility and his experience. The 6ft 3in defender, who has scored three goals in 20 international appearances for the Czech Republic, also represents something of an attacking threat. Krejci has scored 50 goals and recorded 14 assists in 233 league appearances, although it should be recognised that 44 of those came in the Czech top flight. His two goals and one assist in 28 appearances for Girona last season is probably a fairer reflection of his likely offensive output.
Although a small sample size, Wolves’ start to the season has been poor. After three defeats, they find themselves at the foot of the league table and, having lost star players like Matheus Cunha (£8.1m), Rayan Aït-Nouri (£6.0m) and Nelson Semedo, are already looking likely relegation contenders. To that end, Krejci, whose starts are by no means guaranteed anyway, is very much one to swerve for the time being.
