Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville named their Premier League signing of the season on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football last night.
There has been a number of high-profile transfers that have caught the attention over the course of the season, whilst several loan signings have been impressive as well.
Jesse Lingard, for instance, joined West Ham United on loan from Manchester United in January and has scored nine goals in 13 appearances.
Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez and Chelsea stopper Edouard Mendy were named in Carragher and Neville’s respective Team of the Seasons.
Meanwhiles, the likes of Raphinha, Wesley Fofana and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg have impressed at Leeds United, Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur respectively.
And of course there is Manchester City defender Ruben Dias, who signed from Benfica for £65 million in the summer and has been widely tipped to win the Premier League Player of the Year award at the end of the season.
Here’s who Carragher and Neville named as their signing of their season:
Carragher – Tomas Soucek (West Ham United)
Tomas Soucek has impressed in his first full season with West Ham, scoring nine goals from midfield.
He is the Hammers’ joint top goalscorer in the league this campaign alongside Michail Antonio and Jesse Lingard.
The Czech Republic international initially joined West Ham on loan from Slavia Prague in January 2020, before the club made the deal permanent for a fee for £19 million that summer.
Carragher said: “I must say he had a taste of the Premier League – he was on loan there last season, signed officially in the summer.
“He’s almost a typical David Moyes player and I think he’s had a huge impact.
“The goals he gets from midfield, that combination with Declan Rice.
“I think this season, we talk about teams having great seasons or managers of the year, the turnaround for West Ham has been huge.
“A team who were fighting relegation, now going for Champions League and I just think he, for me, has possibly been the most important player around that and what he’s like in both boxes, and that’s a huge part of the success of West Ham.”
Neville – Edinson Cavani (Manchester United)
Edinson Cavani signed for Manchester United on a free transfer last summer, after his contract with Paris Saint-Germain expired.
The Uruguayan has impressed in his first season at Old Trafford, scoring 15 goals in all competitions.
Eight of those strikes have come in his last seven appearances, and Cavani recently signed an extension to his United contract which will keep him at the club until 2022.
He scored four goals across the two legs of United’s Europa League semi-final against Roma as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer‘s side progressed to the final of the competition via an 8-5 aggregate scoreline.
Neville said: “If Cavani hadn’t worked it would have been another Falcao.”
⭐️ Signing of The Year
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) May 10, 2021
➡️ Gary Neville – Edinson Cavani
➡️ Jamie Carragher – Tomas Soucek@GNev2 & @Carra23 reveal the winners of the MNF Premier League awards pic.twitter.com/kzHhja9ZKp
“I think the fact it’s worked – it was such a risk, they must have been a little bit anxious, that Manchester United recruitment team and the manager: ‘Shall we, shall we, we’re doing it last day [of the window], is it going to work?’ And it’s worked.
“So there’s a risk with that signing, and it’s paid off handsomely.”
Featured Image Credit: Getty
